Hostaway vs Lodgify: Which property management solution is better for you?

Jul 30 2025

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Comparing Hostaway and Lodgify: What you need to know

Killer business instincts aren’t enough to thrive in today’s short-term rental industry. Even the most experienced operators depend on property management systems (PMS) to streamline processes and give them visibility into all their operations.

The challenge is finding a tool that fits your unique setup. Choose the wrong one, and your expenses will soar while your team grapples with complex features and unnecessary add-ons.

Hostaway and Lodgify are two of the most popular PMS on the market. But are they the right fit for your vacation rental business? Read our comparison of their key features, pricing, user experience, and customer support to see whether either solution will meet your specific needs.

Key differences between Hostaway and Lodgify

Hostaway and Lodgify include the same basic features, such as a central calendar and channel manager. The key difference lies in the focus and depth of these tools.

Hostaway puts more emphasis on multiple property management through its user permissions, performance analytics, and range of portals. These features give every stakeholder visibility into your operations, no matter where they’re based, and enable them to collaborate.

Whereas Lodgify focuses more on direct bookings with its native web builder. It gives users full access to this feature from the start, alongside a variety of templates and WordPress reservation plugins.

Hostaway: Who’s it for?

Medium to large businesses are most likely to appreciate Hostaway’s complex feature set. As they’re well-established, they’ll already have the resources and expertise to integrate modules like marketing and financial reporting into their pre-existing workflows.

Plus, large companies can benefit the most from Hostaway’s custom pricing plans. When you already manage multiple units, you need a flexible subscription rather than a fee per property to get value for money.

Lodgify: Who’s it for?

Lodgify works best for property owners and small businesses with a handful of properties. It has a low starter price that easily fits into your monthly budget if you’re just experimenting with leasing your home for a few weeks in the summer.

The platform also offers a broad range of simple features that are ideal for small teams managing operations themselves. You can access a basic web builder, central calendar, and guest communications tools from the lowest cost plan.

Why Hostfully is the best alternative to Hostaway and Lodgify

Only Hostfully finds the middle ground between simplicity and complexity. Our solution is easy to adopt for first-time vacation rental owners and small businesses, but gives you the support and flexibility you need to expand your portfolio quickly.

Hostfully starts you on a budget-friendly plan with all the essentials, like our central calendar, channel manager, and direct booking site included. And we don’t withhold support just because you’re on a lower cost tier. Everyone can benefit from our one-on-one onboarding and 24/7 live chat.

We don’t apply booking fees to the lower cost plans either unlike many alternatives. The only thing Hostfully users have to worry about is payment processing and we give you a choice of integrations so you decide how much you spend.

When you’re ready to grow, Hostfully grants you access to tools for growing businesses such as our multi-unit management, team roles, and Open API. We also assign you a dedicated customer success manager to help you find the optimal software setup for your specific context and solve your unique challenges as your operations become more complex.

Plus, Hostfully is one of the few PMS to include a CRM-style booking pipeline feature. This gives you full visibility and control over reservations across listings and guests, so you’re never surprised by double bookings or last-minute cancellations again.

Hostfully vs Hostaway vs Lodgify: A feature comparison

Feature Hostfully Hostaway Lodgify
Centralized automation ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Multi/stacked calendars ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Booking pipeline ✔️
Proprietary guidebook ✔️ ✔️
Channel manager ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Unified inbox ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
AI assistant ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Direct booking website builder ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Accounting functionality ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Owner portal ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Automated messaging templates ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Task management ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Mobile app ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Minimum contract period One month One month One month
Booking fee Zero booking fees 1.8% 1.9%
Property minimum One One One
Scalable pricing ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Custom plans ✔️ from 21 listings ✔️ from the first listing ✔️ from 100 listings
Customer success manager ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
Direct integrations with popular booking platforms (Airbnb, Vrbo, Expedia, Booking.com, etc) ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
API ✔️ ✔️ ✔️
24/7 global live chat support (including weekends) ✔️ ✔️

Real user reviews: Why businesses choose Hostfully over Hostaway and Lodgify

Great software that makes my life easier. Hostfully is an easy to use property management software, with VERY good customer service and responsive to customer suggestions. I used Lodgify and Octorate previously and Hostfully is MUCH BETTER. It is VERY intuitive and easy to use.”

Ruth. M

“Get it if you’re looking to grow your business! Great team to onboard with and open office hours to answer questions between scheduled meetings with a dedicated specialist. There are so many great educational help articles and videos to learn the platform.”

Kelsey J

FRB Rentals wouldn’t be what it is today without Hostfully. The PMP that keeps on giving!

The Hostfully platform and especially the team have been a pleasure to work with. They are VERY responsive to anything the FRB Rentals team throws at them, be it a question, suggestion for improvement or a bug.

— Rich D, owner of FRB Rentals

Switching to Hostfully is easy and seamless

Changing PMS isn’t something you do lightly, especially when it supports your entire operations. It’s easy to keep delaying the decision over worries about downtime and disruption.

That’s why Hostfully handles every step of the onboarding process for you. Our team introduces themselves on a kick-off call before handing you over to your dedicated customer success manager, who acts as your point of contact for every issue, big or small.

Moving between Hostaway and Hostfully? Our tech specialists recreate all your complex workflows and reconnect all your OTAs and apps so everything’s ready to use. Or if you’re changing from Lodgify to Hostfully, our team can help you transfer your digital guidebook and direct booking site features.

Whoever you’re coming to Hostfully from, we can arrange the onboarding timeline around the end of your contract and go as quickly or slowly as you need.

Now you’ve seen the difference with Hostfully, see it in action

Book a personalized demo to experience the Hostfully platform firsthand.