Hostaway vs KrossBooking (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, KrossBooking grades higher than Hostaway: 2.6 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
KrossBooking grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
KrossBooking
Property management with channel manager and booking engine
Free trial · from €4/mo
Which one is for you
Pick Hostaway if
- Fits if you manage several listings and answer guests over SMS and WhatsApp as well as Airbnb
- Works for managers who send owners a statement every month
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to see a price first, as every price is a quote based on your listing count
- Not for you if you'd rather try it alone, since sign-up goes through a demo and no free trial is on record
- Watch out: the quote form is built for 2 or more listings and sends single-listing hosts to a separate page
Pick KrossBooking if
- Fits if you run a small hotel, B&B or a few holiday apartments in Europe
- Works for owners who want PMS, channel manager and booking engine from one vendor
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you have fewer than 3 units, as both plans need at least 3
- Tight if you want channels on Basic, as the channel manager and booking engine are Premium only
- Watch out: prices are in euros, and over 20 units you get a quote
- Watch out: the tourist-statistics and guest-registration features follow local rules and may not fit outside Europe
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAHostawayFair | 2.6GPAKrossBookingGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo price is published. The pricing page asks how many listings you have and returns a quote, so the price only comes from Hostaway's sales team, and we can't set it against this category's $25.52 middle. | B4 euros a unit for Basic and 6 for Premium, with a minimum of 3 units, so Premium costs 18 euros a month at the floor. That is around the category's cheaper quarter. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free on record. Sign-up goes through a demo or quote request, and the site shows no free plan and no trial. | CA 30-day free trial, and the listing doesn't say a card is needed. There is no free plan. |
| Features | BChannel sync over direct connections, one inbox for channel, email, SMS and WhatsApp messages, AI replies, dynamic pricing, owner statements and an owner portal, a booking site and an open API. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core work. | BPMS, channel manager, booking engine, competitor rates and a multi-property planner. The channel manager and booking engine are Premium only. |
| Ease of use | CHostaway rates 4.3 on the US App Store from 447 ratings, which puts it at C on our ease ladder. | CNo rating on record. A PMS with channels, a booking engine and guest registration rules to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, an open API and 300+ marketplace integrations, QuickBooks among them. There's no desktop app. | BWeb, iPhone and Android apps, with channel connections and PayPal. No desktop app is listed. |
| Best for | property managers answering guests on many channels | a low-cost PMS and channel manager for small properties |
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: Hostaway and KrossBooking. How we grade
Where they differ
- Hostaway also covers shared inbox, reports and whatsApp messaging.
- KrossBooking also covers calendar and invoicing.
In commonWebiOSAndroidChannel manager
At a glance
| Hostaway | KrossBooking | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free trial |
| Starts at | Not published | €4 per room or apartment / month |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day free trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Hostaway | Solutions Plus s.r.l. |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | krossbooking.com |
| Checked | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Hostaway
- Hostaway publishes no prices: the pricing page asks for your listing count and returns a quote.
- Sign-up goes through a demo or quote request; the site shows no self-serve plan or free trial.
- The quote form is built around managers with 2 or more listings and sends single-listing hosts to a separate page.
KrossBooking
- Prices are shown in euros and both plans need at least 3 rooms or apartments.
- The Basic plan leaves out the channel manager and the booking engine; those need Premium.
- Properties with more than 20 units get an individual quote rather than a listed price.
- The pages describe tourist-statistics and guest-registration features built around local rules, which may not apply outside Europe.
Key features
Hostaway
- Channel manager and multi-calendar
- Syncs listings, rates and availability with Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Google and Expedia over direct API connections, with regional channels through the marketplace.
- Unified inbox
- Messages from Airbnb, Vrbo and Booking.com sit in one inbox with email, SMS and WhatsApp, alongside templates and automated messages.
- AI Replies and AI CoHost
- AI Replies drafts answers to common guest questions and can send them automatically. AI CoHost, new, reads live account data and suggests next steps.
- Dynamic pricing
- Adjusts nightly rates for season and events across channels, alongside coupons, promotions and upsells.
- Owner statements and reporting
- Financial and occupancy reports, owner statement templates with automated delivery, an owner portal and a QuickBooks connection.
- Direct booking site and open API
- A website builder with a booking engine and widgets for existing sites, an open API, and 300+ marketplace integrations.
KrossBooking
- Channel manager
- Receives reservations from online travel agencies and updates availability and rate plans automatically, with the aim of avoiding overbooking.
- Booking engine
- A booking widget for the property's own website. The newer version adds changes, cancellations, online check-in, packages and discount codes.
- Competitor rates
- Shows competitors' rate plans so a property can compare its own prices against the market.
- Multi-property planner
- Several properties can sit in one planner, or be kept as separate setups behind a single login.
- Guest data and tourist statistics
- Stores guest details to meet local registration rules and builds the tourist-movement file some offices require. Rules differ by country.
- Mobile app
- Phone and tablet app with push notifications, check-in and check-out, invoices and receipts, a dashboard and the reservations calendar.
Plans
Hostaway
Pricing could not be confirmed. See hostaway.com.
KrossBooking
Basic€4
per room or apartment / month
The main PMS features without the channel manager and booking engine. Minimum of 3 rooms or apartments.
Premium€6
per room or apartment / month
PMS plus channel manager plus booking engine in one package. Minimum of 3 rooms or apartments.
Custom quoteCustom
For properties with more than 20 units; the vendor writes an individual quote.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Hostaway or KrossBooking?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Hostaway has no price we could confirm, and KrossBooking starts at €4 per room or apartment / month.
Which has a free plan, Hostaway or KrossBooking?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Hostaway nor KrossBooking has a free plan. KrossBooking has a free trial.
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.