Hostaway vs Smily (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Hostaway and Smily share a 2.0 GPA, neither has a free plan and their prices can't be set side by side, so the choice depends on which platforms you need.
Checked Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
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 Smily if
- Fits if you manage rentals in Europe and want a property system with payments
- Works for managers who want an owners portal and direct booking site
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to see a price, as none is published
- Watch out: Smily Pay, damage protection and cancellation protection show no price
- Watch out: the site markets a mobile app but does not say which platforms it runs on
- Watch out: help and developer pages sit on the BookingSync domain
- Not for you if you want a free start, as the site directs visitors to a demo
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAHostawayFair | 2.0GPASmilyFair | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | CNo price is published, so there is nothing to place against the category. |
| 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. | FNo free plan or trial on record, only a request for a demo. |
| 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. | BProperty system, channel manager, payments, AI tools, inbox, direct booking site, owners portal and tasks. Nothing in the core job is missing. |
| 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 store rating on record, and a demo and setup come before use. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, an open API and 300+ marketplace integrations, QuickBooks among them. There's no desktop app. | BWeb only on record, with Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and Vrbo and an app center. |
| Best for | property managers answering guests on many channels | European vacation rental managers |
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 Smily. How we grade
Where they differ
- Hostaway also covers reports and whatsApp messaging.
- Smily also covers tasks and email campaigns.
In commonWebPublic APIAI featuresShared inboxChannel manager
At a glance
| Hostaway | Smily | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | Not published | Not published |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Hostaway | Smily |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Checked | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 13, 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.
Smily
- No prices are published; the site directs visitors to schedule a demo.
- The site markets a mobile app but its feature page does not say which platforms it runs on.
- The company calls itself a European vacation rental software, and its help and developer pages sit on the BookingSync domain.
- Smily Pay, damage protection and cancellation protection are listed under its fintech features, with no pricing shown.
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.
Smily
- PMS and channel manager
- A property management system and a channel manager for Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, Vrbo and more, which the site says Smily is a preferred partner of.
- Payments and fintech
- SmilyPay, credit card acceptance, payments reconciliation, split payments and revenue distribution, with optional cancellation and damage protection.
- AI tools
- Smart replies in several languages, urgent inquiry detection, AI-written review replies and listing audits, with GDPR-compliant data handling stated.
- Unified inbox and email marketing
- Guest messages from all channels in one inbox, plus automated and personalized email campaigns, remarketing and a CRM.
- Direct booking website
- A customizable booking website, with a performance dashboard, revenue management and dynamic pricing listed alongside it.
- Owners portal, tasks and app center
- An owners portal, task management for teams, and an app center of third-party integrations for cleaning, pricing and guest communication.
Plans
Hostaway
Pricing could not be confirmed. See hostaway.com.
Smily
Pricing could not be confirmed. See smily.com.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Hostaway or Smily?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Hostaway has no price we could confirm, and Smily has no price we could confirm.
Which has a free plan, Hostaway or Smily?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Hostaway nor Smily has a free plan.
Which platforms do Hostaway and Smily run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Hostaway 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.