Vacation rentals are increasing in popularity in a big way. As of 2018, Airbnb alone had over 60 million users, and forecasted that it could reach more than $90 billion in revenue this year. As you might expect, this growth led to a need for vacation rental software that has now become a popular offering for vacation rentals. One of the best things about this sector is that there are numerous startups trying to redefine how vacations are booked — while doing so in an ethical and eco-friendly way.
It is not necessary to travel and take a holiday in a major city of your country, when you have a home away from home with all the conveniences, comfort and facilities one needs. In today’s time and age, one can stay at hotels even if his family or friends live there or rent out rooms or apartments in their homes to earn from it. Moreover there are many features that make it more convenient for you to rent out your facilities, apart from the fact that you may be traveling most of the year; therefore it would be ideal for you to use best vacation rental software 2022 to be able to manage your business easily.
The thing travelers and holidaymakers dread most is the tedious search for cheap or affordable lodging. This is often stressful and inconvenient. Some of the best vacation rental software 2022 will make your life a lot easier, because it includes hotel discounts that you can use. These are great places to stay at because many online booking agents work with them, giving you great discounts.
Vacation rental software is used by vacation rental property owners to help manage their properties. Rental software works by allowing users to manage bookings, listings and guest details. Guest facing websites, channel distribution, website builder and integrated payment gateways are also essential features that separate the leaders from the followers.
How We Chose the Best Vacation Rental Software
The quality of vacation rental software should match the quality of an amazing rental property. A great software system can positively affect ROI and renter satisfaction. From managing a multitude of online property listings to collecting deposits, payments, and cleaning fees, users demand a reliable and sophisticated vacation rental software that’s also easy to use. While researching the best vacation rental software, we focused our attention on three critical factors that should help make rental management easy and efficient.
Vacation Rental Features
Features like channel management help wrangle the many different rental sites. Other features like website builders can help ensure a consistent online presence is available for on-site booking and quick unit turnover.
Integrations
Integrations are especially important in the vacation rental industry. Being almost exclusively based on calendar availability, having the ability to sync calendars and integrate with different web channels is a must.
Reports
Powerful and extensive reporting helps keep track of no-show bookings, discover peak rental times, and gain a better overall understanding of each rental property’s revenue potential.
Hostaway – All-In-One Vacation Rental Software for Property Managers
About Hostaway: Hostaway is a unique vacation rental software that offers deep channel integrations and support. Hostaway provides property managers with the flexibility of the most advanced solutions while being easy to use. In addition to the industry-leading PMS and Channel manager that Hostaway offers, there are more than 100 integrated software partners on our marketplace. These companies will automate and streamline many activities and make daily life easier.
Hostaway Vacation Rental Features : Contact Management, Commission Management, Guest Reviews / Ratings, Housekeeping Management, Lead Management, Owner Statements, Payment Processing, Property Database, Reservations Management, Vendor Management, Work Order Management
Lodgify
Based in Barcelona, Spain, Lodgify offers a beautiful property management system that’s user-friendly and functional. The multi-calendar works well for multiple units, and it’s easy to input reservations manually. The customer service team is always friendly and quick to respond (you can even take advantage of personalized onboarding support), and the company maintains a robust library of resources and blog articles.
Unique features: Lodgify’s website builder is one of the best in the market. The tool includes several templates so you can quickly drag and drop widgets and add your own custom text. You can even add videos, maps, and custom code.
Integrations: Lodgify connects directly to Airbnb, Booking.com, and Expedia for rate and availability synchronization. A direct Vrbo is also available if you manage at least 5 properties. For all other channels, Lodgify uses an iCal connection that syncs availability and reservations, but not rates. The system also has free integrations with Mailchimp, Google Analytics, Zapier, and PriceLabs. Some integrations, like Stripe, come with an additional monthly fee.
Pricing: After a 7-day free trial, Lodgify’s annual subscriptions for one property start at $12 per month with a 1.9% booking fee, or you can opt for the Professional version ($32 per month) which has no booking fee. For 25 properties, the Professional version costs $220 per month. Monthly subscriptions without an annual commitment cost slightly more.
Disadvantages: Lodgify’s automated messaging tool falls short; it does not allow for much customization, especially with trigger timing and contact assignments.
Bottom Line: Lodgify is an excellent choice for property managers who want a solid property management system and an eye-catching website without needing to hire a website designer. However, Lodgify doesn’t offer many integrations with third-party services, like keyless locks and dynamic pricing software (only with PriceLabs), so if you use many of these ancillary services, you may want to opt for a different system.
FantasticStay
FantasticStay recently acquired Vreasy, a popular short-term rental property management system, but luckily FantasticStay is retaining much of Vreasy’s functionality. The system offers the standard package of calendar management, booking management, and a channel manager, plus a website builder and automated messaging. The user experience is smooth, and the system has a clean, modern look.
Unique features: One of FantasticStay’s add-ons is a 24/7 guest response service, so your guests can receive quick responses to inquiries and messages even during the middle of the night or when you’re busy with other things. You can also purchase a revenue management add-on that provides pricing guidance and a customer support add-on that gives you phone support around the clock.
Integrations: Direct connections to Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com allow you to update rates and availability from FantasticStay rather than on each site individually. For all other sites, you can sync reservations and availability with an iCal connection. Through Vreasy, integrations to PriceLabs and Quickbooks are available.
Pricing: FantasticStay’s basic plan has no monthly subscription fee, just an 0.8% booking fee, for an unlimited number of listings. This plan does not include integrations or any add-ons, like customer support. Higher-tier plans include all integrations, no payment processing fees, and personalized support. The annual Pro plan costs $214 per year for 20-29 listings.
Disadvantages: FantasticStay does not offer a direct connection to Expedia (yet), and since the software was originally built for the European market, some tax settings may not work properly for other markets.
Bottom Line: FantasticStay is a fantastic choice for Europe-based property managers. It’s also great for property managers who want a low-cost, basic software to manage listings on Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com with no additional integrations via the free plan.
Hostfully
In 2018 Hostfully acquired Orbirental, and today Hostfully’s property management system still looks and feels a lot like Orbirental. The system offers a multi-calendar, automated messaging, a booking engine, and channel management for Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, and Tripadvisor. Hostfully also connects to a couple other channel managers, like Rentals United and myBookingPal, which allows you to distribute rates and availability to additional sites.
Unique features: When many property management systems are shifting toward self-service customer support, Hostfully offers plenty of phone support. Even the most basic plan includes two setup calls with a support rep. Hostfully also offers its Digital Guidebooks feature, which is actually separate from the property management system. Even if you don’t use the property management system, you can still purchase a guidebook-only subscription.
Integrations: Hostfully has a huge “Integration Zone” which includes integrations with dozens of complementary systems. You can connect to dynamic pricing tools, home automation solutions, cleaning management systems, and even HelloSign for digital signatures.
Pricing: Hostfully offers three plans: 1-4 properties pay $79 per month, 5-19 properties pay $189 per month, and 20+ properties pay on a sliding scale depending on the number of listings. 50 listings cost $375 per month. Monthly subscriptions come with a $400 setup fee, but the fee is waived (and you get a small discount!) if you sign an annual contract.
Disadvantages: Some features, like automated text messaging and multiple user access, are not available for accounts with fewer than 5 properties. Hostfully itself doesn’t offer an Expedia connection, but you can connect to Expedia via an integrated channel manager like Rentals United.
Bottom Line: Hostfully is perfect for property owners or managers who want a little extra support in the setup process and on an ongoing basis. Though it’s slightly more expensive than other systems, there are no hidden fees or add-ons.
Beds24
Beds24 offers all of the standard property management functionality (multi-calendar, channel manager), plus a booking engine and integrations with several ancillary services. It’s best for property managers who want to take full control of their operations and don’t need much guidance from support representatives, since Beds24 does not offer phone support.
Unique features: Beds24 allows for a lot of customization – you can add essentially any restriction, pricing rule, fee, and policy you want, and the system makes it easy for you to set up channel connections on your own without the assistance of a support representative.
Integrations: Beds24 offers direct connections to Airbnb, Agoda, Booking.com, Expedia, Vrbo, and Tripadvisor. Several other regional channels are also available, as is iCal import and export functionality. Beds24 also integrates with PriceLabs, Wishbox, Mailchimp, several keyless entry solutions (igloohome, RemoteLock), and several payment processors (PayPal, Stripe).
Pricing: After a 14-day free trial, a Beds24 subscription starts at about $10 per month for one property. Additional properties/units and links to channels cost about $1 each. If you have 5 properties listed on 3 channels each, your monthly fee will be about $20. If you have 50 properties on 3 channels each, the monthly fee is about $70.
Disadvantages: Unlike some other systems on this list that have invested heavily in user experience and building a sleek, beautiful interface, Beds24 is a bit clunky. But while it’s not the most fashionable system, it’s certainly functional.
Bottom Line: Beds24 packs a lot of features into a very small price. If you’re comfortable with a less user-friendly experience, this system is an excellent value.
iGMS
Since its launch in 2015, iGMS has grown to support over 100,000 listings with its property management system. You may know the company by its old name, AirGMS. In addition to a multi-calendar, automated messaging, and booking management, the system offers special functionality for automating cleaning team operations and notifications.
Unique features: Some systems only let you set up a direct Airbnb or Vrbo connection to one Airbnb or Vrbo account, but iGMS allows you to configure direct connections with multiple Airbnb accounts, which is a nice option for property managers who list different properties under different profiles. The cleaning management features also help to streamline cleaning operations at scale.
Integrations: Direct integrations are available with Airbnb and Vrbo (for rates, availability, and reservation); all other sites use a simple iCal connection. iGMS doesn’t offer much in terms of third-party software integration.
Pricing: After a 14-day free trial, iGMS offers two plans: a pay-per-booking plan with a fixed cost (around $1) per booking, or a monthly or yearly subscription with no fees per booking. The “Pro” plan costs $100 per month for 5 properties and includes 24/7 email and phone support. Under the same plan, 20 listings cost $360 per month with an annual subscription.
Disadvantages: iGMS does not offer a direct connection with Booking.com or Expedia, making it a less strategic system for property managers or hosts who want to distribute listings on sites beyond Airbnb and Vrbo. As of today, iGMS also does not offer a website builder.
Bottom Line: Professional property managers, rather than individual owners or part-time hosts, may get the most benefit from iGMS, especially if your business is focused on Airbnb and Vrbo and not Expedia, Booking.com, or direct bookings.
OwnerRez
Catering to the traditional vacation home market, OwnerRez brands itself as “built by owners, for owners.” The company believes in simplicity and transparency, but that doesn’t mean the system lacks functionality. In fact, OwnerRez offers a vast array of features, from a multi-calendar to a guest database to automated message templates and responders. OwnerRez is known for its clean, user-friendly interface and hands-on customer service. The company is open to suggestions and encourages users to let them know about any features they’re missing.
Unique features: OwnerRez offers their own damage protection and travel insurance products. The system also allows you to collect and analyze your guest reviews from a variety of different sites.
Integrations: OwnerRez offers integrations with dynamic pricing software (PriceLabs, Beyond Pricing, Perfect Price), several keyless entry systems (RemoteLock, among others), guest communication tools (Wishbox), and QuickBooks (extra fee applies). You can also add an OwnerRez widget to your website via WordPress, Weebly, SquareSpace, and WIX.
Pricing: After a 14-day free trial, OwnerRez charges a monthly fee dependent on the number of listings and a choice of add-on features. With no add-ons, the monthly fee for 5 listings is $28.99 (as of June 2020) and $131.99 for 50 listings. The plans include unlimited bookings. Add-ons include website hosting, channel management, and QuickBooks integration for a few more dollars per month.
Disadvantages: iCal imports and exports are included in the monthly fee, but for property managers who want to use the channel management functionality to sync rates, availability, restrictions, content, and policies to sites like Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, and Tripadvisor, you’ll need to pay extra. OwnerRez does not have an integration with Expedia (yet).
Bottom Line: OwnerRez is a great choice for cost-conscious property managers who want a lot of features, integrations, and input into the company’s development pipeline.
Features of Vacation Rental Software
- Communications: Centralize all communications from guests, maintenance crews, owners, property managers, cleaning crews, and more. Assign different inboxes for certain teams, properties or tasks.
- Online Booking: Allow guests to search, book and pay online, at their convenience.
- Reporting: Save time and resources by using internal accounting and reporting software to fill in ledgers, generate reports, automate yearly IRS reports, update guests of their remaining balances, create owners statements, and more.
- Travel Site Integration: Create just one listing and automatically publish it on all of the top booking/travel sites at once.
- Automated Document Generation: Create custom and automated contracts, confirmations, rental agreements, waivers, maps, arrival instructions, etc. for your guests and yourself.
- Guest Feedback: Send automated messages to guests thanking them for their stay and asking them to leave a rating review. Include links to sites like Yelp or Vrbo, or to your own website’s feedback page to make leaving a positive review as easy and as likely as possible.
Conclusion
Vacation rental software is an important part of any vacation rental business. This is because it helps to make the process of hosting easier, faster and more effective. It can also make life much easier for both the vacation rental owner, and their guests.
Many vacation rental owners find it challenging to keep track of their rentals, bookings, and financial transactions. That is where vacation rental software comes in handy. Rental Property Software is designed to simplify processes and reduce time spent on administrative tasks, leaving you with more time to invest in your business.