Hospitable vs Touch Stay (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Hospitable: it is first in our ranking of vacation rental tools, and it grades higher too, 2.6 against 2.4.
Checked Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Hospitable grades higher on the free plan and features. Touch Stay grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Hospitable
Guest messaging, channel sync and operations for short-term rentals
Touch Stay
Digital guidebooks with an AI chatbot for rental guests
Which one is for you
Pick Hospitable if
- Fits if you host on Airbnb and spend most of your time answering guests
- Works for hosts who want a free plan that doesn't cap the number of properties
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: AI is capped at 10 uses a week, and there's no API, integrations, lock control or direct booking
- Pricey if you grow: Host stops at 2 properties, and each extra property costs $10 to $30 a month by plan
- Not for you if you need owner statements without a sales call, since they need Mogul, which is sold through a demo
- Watch out: direct bookings start on Professional and cost 1%, or 4% plus 3% processing, per booking
- Watch out: the free plan gets only AI and community support, and upsells on it carry a 10% fee
Pick Touch Stay if
- Fits if you want a guidebook guests can open on any device
- Works for hosts who want an AI chatbot answering guest questions
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: the trial length is not stated on the page
- Pricey if you own many properties, as the price is per property and calculated for you
- Skip it if you want an app, as only a web guidebook is listed
- Watch out: the site advertises free guidebook creation, but the pricing page lists no free plan
- Watch out: portfolios above 300 properties get a quote
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAHospitableGood | 2.4GPATouch StayFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CHost is $25.52 a month billed yearly, or $29 monthly, for one property, which is this category's middle. A second property is $10. Professional is $51.92 yearly for 2, and owner statements need Mogul at $99 a month for 3, plus $30 for each extra. | B$99 a year for 1 property, about $8.25 a month, inside the category's cheaper quarter. Pricing is per property. |
| Free plan and trial | BEssentials is free for unlimited properties, with channel sync, one inbox, scheduled messages and cleaning tasks, so one host could live on it. AI stops at 10 uses a week, upsells carry a 10% fee, and dynamic pricing is $15 a property after 30 days. | CA free trial is offered from the pricing page, but its length is not stated and there is no free plan. |
| Features | BChannel sync, one inbox with AI replies, cleaning tasks with teammate payouts, dynamic pricing, lock and thermostat automation, a direct booking site, and owner statements and accounting on Mogul. The whole job is there, spread across four plans. | CGuidebook, AI guidebook generator, AI chatbot and an upsell widget. It does that one job fully, but it is a smaller job than a property system. |
| Ease of use | CNo app-store rating on record. You connect your channel accounts and set up message schedules and cleaning workflows first, so there's setup to do. | CNo store rating on record, and the guidebook content must be written. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with an API and MCP on paid plans and QuickBooks, PriceLabs and Stripe connections. There's no desktop app, and the free plan has no API access. | BWeb only, with Airbnb, Guesty, Hospitable, Hostaway, Lodgify, Avantio and Escapia. |
| Best for | Airbnb hosts who mostly answer guests | digital guidebooks for guests |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Hospitable and Touch Stay. How we grade
Price against what you get
Hospitable starts at $25.52 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Touch Stay starts at $8.25 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.3.
Hospitable scores higher, and starts $17.27 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other vacation rental tools on the chart, 1 scores higher than Hospitable for less, and 2 score higher than Touch Stay for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Hospitable also covers tasks, shared inbox and channel manager.
- Touch Stay also covers help center, chatbots and qR codes.
At a glance
| Hospitable | Touch Stay | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $25.52 per month for 1 property, billed annually ($29 billed monthly) | $99 per year for 1 property, billed annually ($12.50 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Essentials: unlimited properties, unified inbox and automated messages, Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com and Agoda sync, and cleaning workflows. AI is capped at 10 uses a week; no API, smart devices or direct booking. | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of all features, no credit card required | Free trial offered from the pricing page; its length is not stated. |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Hospitable R&D BV | Touch Stay |
| Price read from | help.hospitable.com | touchstay.com |
| Checked | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Hospitable
- Host is limited to 2 properties; beyond the included properties, each paid plan charges $10 to $30 per extra active property.
- Direct bookings are only on Professional and Mogul, at a 1% commission (Basic) or 4% plus 3% processing (Premium) per booking.
- Owner portals, owner statements and accounting integrations need the Mogul plan, which is sold through a demo.
- Essentials has AI and community support only; API access, integrations and smart devices need a paid plan.
Touch Stay
- Pricing is per property and the page shows it through a calculator; larger portfolios above 300 properties get a quote.
- The web guidebook is the only platform listed; no dedicated apps are mentioned.
- The site advertises free guidebook creation, but the pricing page lists no separate free plan.
Key features
Hospitable
- Unified inbox and automated messages
- Guest messages from every connected channel in one inbox, with scheduled messages, Q&A auto-replies and a guest portal.
- Channel sync
- Connects Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com and Agoda on every plan, with iCal imports and Google Vacation Rentals listing for direct bookings.
- AI replies and Copilot
- Suggested and automatic AI replies, a knowledge hub and AI issue alerts; Essentials is limited to 10 AI uses a week.
- Tasks and teammate payouts
- Cleaning and teammate workflows with a tasks app, and payouts to cleaners for a fee of 2.5% per clean on Essentials or 1.5% on paid plans, capped at $5.
- Smart devices
- Professional and Mogul generate smart lock codes and run thermostat automations, with 2 or 4 devices included per property and $5 for each extra.
- Direct booking and owner tools
- A direct booking website from Professional, at 1% or 4% plus 3% per booking; owner portals, statements and accounting come with Mogul.
Touch Stay
- Digital guidebook
- A branded guide per property with check-in details and local tips, shared by link or QR code in messages, emails or on site.
- AI guidebook generator
- Paste an Airbnb listing link and the tool builds a first guidebook, filling in check-in info, Wi-Fi and local tips from the listing.
- AI chatbot
- Answers guest questions in their language using only the host's guidebook content; harder requests are passed back to the host.
- Upsell widget
- Offers extra services to guests from inside the guidebook.
- PMS and channel integrations
- Connects to Airbnb and several property management systems so reservations and guest messaging can run from one place.
Plans
Hospitable
Essentials$0
Free for unlimited properties. Upsells carry a 10% processing fee, and dynamic pricing is $15 per property a month after a short trial.
Host$25.52
per month for 1 property, billed annually ($29 billed monthly)
For solo hosts, up to 2 properties at $10 for the second. Adds AI message replies, dynamic pricing, the metrics dashboard and API and MCP access.
Professional$51.92
per month for 2 properties, billed annually ($59 billed monthly)
Each extra property is $15. Adds a direct booking website, smart lock and thermostat automation and guest payment collection.
Mogul$99
per month for 3 properties, billed monthly
Each extra property is $30. Adds owner portal, payouts and statements, accounting with QuickBooks, and commission tracking. Sold through a demo.
Touch Stay
Short-term rental guidebook$99
per year for 1 property, billed annually ($12.50 monthly)
Priced by number of properties: $285 a year for 5 and $495 a year for 10; over 300 properties is quoted by form.
Ways to pay less
Hospitable
- Annual discount
Save 12% with annual billing
Hospitable's pricing page lists a 12% saving for annual billing: Host is $25.52 a month instead of $29, and Professional $51.92 instead of $59.
Touch Stay
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Hospitable or Touch Stay?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Touch Stay is cheaper to start with: $8.25 a month when paid by the year, against $25.52 a month for Hospitable. Hospitable starts at $25.52 per month for 1 property, billed annually ($29 billed monthly), and Touch Stay starts at $99 per year for 1 property, billed annually ($12.50 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Hospitable or Touch Stay?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Hospitable has a free plan. Touch Stay does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Hospitable and Touch Stay run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Hospitable lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.