How to Build Vacation Rental Software Like Hostaway: Features, Tech Stack & Cost

Struggling to gain traction in a market ruled by Hostaway? Want your vacation rental app to stand out and win users fast?

“What do I need in a vacation rental software that 90% of my business needs are fulfilled?”

If you haven’t already asked yourself this question as a vacation rental owner, you need to. 

For that, the buyer must know what the core needs of their business are. And whether the said software is fulfilling those needs or not. If not, there is no use spending money on pretty-looking features.

Today, proptech startup founders are either frustrated with high OTA commissions or overwhelmed by platform complexity. They are struggling to build guest loyalty and find answers in a perfect vacation rental software solution. 

In this blog, you’ll get a full blueprint to build your Hostaway clone – packed with tech stack, features, cost, launch plan, and ROI strategies. 

Why is the Business Model for Hostaway Successful?

Hostaway is a leading vacation rental software solution that combines a property management system (PMS) with a powerful channel manager. 

It allows the property owners, agencies, and property managers to manage bookings, synchronize listings across channels with one interface.

In the next section, we’ll see how Hostaway is making money and is a successful vacation rental software.   

How Hostaway Makes Money?

Hostaway primarily uses a SaaS subscription model. It earns revenue through:

• Monthly/Annual Subscription Fees: Based on the number of properties or features.
• Transaction Fees: On bookings and payments processed through the platform.
• Add-On Services: Includes automation tools, integrations, and CRM modules.
• API Access: Premium API services and integrations with third-party tools.

Basically, through subscription fees and some additional fees, Hostaway is ruling the vacation rental software marketplace. Here is a quick feature comparison between the top competitors.

Hostaway vs. Competitors (Guesty, Lodgify, Hospitable)

Feature	Hostaway	Guesty	Lodgify	Hospitable
PMS + Channel Manager	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Price Point	Mid-High	High	Mid	Low-Mid
Mobile Optimization	Excellent	Good	Average	Great
Onboarding Ease	Moderate	Steep	Easy	Easy
Integrations	Extensive	Enterprise-Level	Limited	Moderate

Hostaway hits a sweet spot between functionality and affordability, especially for mid-sized vacation rental operators. So, if you want to develop a vacation rental software solution and position it in the market, you need to find differentiating factors.

Why Build Your Own Vacation Rental Platform Instead of Using Hostaway?

You have decided to develop a vacation rental software like Hostaway; however, you want to stand out from the competition. Here are some categories that you should consider:

1. Target niche segments– The best way is to select your niche market. Promote your platform within that niche and ace the competition. Whether it is Glamping sites, boutique hotels, or B&Bs.
2. Better user experience (UX): Better user experience (UX) is always the winner for any tech solution. Use simpler workflows and better dashboards to make the UX better and more convenient. 
3. Lighter performance: Portability is the first thing that a user will demand. Give what the user needs. Design for mobile-first performances and cater to user needs. Also, keep in mind that the vacation rental software solution should work even in low-connectivity regions.
4. Localization features: Niche + localization is a winning formula. Keep in mind the regional taxes, currency, and language settings for the vacation rental software solution. 
5. AI Integration: Smarter messaging, smart recommendations based on guest preferences and needs. Additionally, keep the pricing dynamic.  

Use Cases & Types of Vacation Rental Software Solutions

When it comes to building vacation rental software like Hostaway, one size doesn’t fit all. Everybody has different needs from property managers, hosts, to co-hosts, and to cater to that, you need a custom-built solution. Here’s a breakdown of the most common types of vacation rental software solutions – and who they’re best suited for;

1. Full-Stack PMS + Channel Manager + Website Builder

Best For: Medium to large rental businesses, agencies, or property managers managing 10+ properties.

This is the all-in-one powerhouse. It includes a property management system (PMS), multi-channel integration (Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com), and a direct booking site builder. Ideal for teams that want everything under one roof – automation, operations, and branding.

Why it works: Reduces dependency on OTAs, centralizes everything, and gives hosts full control over listings and guests.

2. Channel Manager Only

Best For: Solo hosts or co-hosts listing the same property across multiple OTAs.

This type focuses on synchronizing calendars, pricing, and availability across platforms to avoid double bookings. No deep PMS features – just clean sync functionality and peace of mind.

Why it works: Lightweight, faster to implement, and keeps multi-channel presence consistent.

3. Booking Engine + Direct Booking Site

Best For: Hosts who want more ownership of their guest relationships.

This solution empowers hosts to make direct bookings via a branded website – without OTA fees. Add payment gateways, coupon codes, review systems, and automated messages.

Why it works: Reduces platform commission, increases brand trust, and builds guest loyalty.

4. Niche Clones

Best For: Entrepreneurs targeting speciality markets like glamping, luxury villas, hostels, co-living, or co-hosting platforms.

These are customized software versions built for specific audiences. For instance, a clone tailored for eco-retreats or urban co-host networks might prioritize features like eco-rating badges, local SEO, or host networking.

Why it works: Hyper-personalization allows for stronger brand loyalty and faster market traction.

Deployment Models

Choosing the right platform form factor is equally important. Let’s break it down:

• Web/Desktop-Based

Primarily admin portals for large agencies and operational teams. Best for detailed reporting, multi-user workflows, and centralized control.

Use case: A regional agency handling 50+ properties prefers a desktop for bulk actions, accounting, and team collaboration.

• Mobile-First / Hybrid Apps

Designed for on-the-go hosts, field agents, and travelers. Offers push notifications, mobile check-ins, photo uploads, and task tracking.

Use case: A co-host managing 5 apartments across the city who needs real-time communication, maintenance alerts, and mobile payments.

Key Features of Vacation Rental Software Like Hostaway Must Have

Quick table to give you a glance at the features you can get vs the different parties involved, like owners, guests, and admins.

Feature	Host / Owner	Guest	Admin / Manager
Property Listings	Upload, edit, and manage properties	Browse/search with filters	Approve/manage quality
Calendar Sync	Prevent double bookings	See availability	Ensure cross-channel sync
Booking & Payments	Track bookings, automate invoices	Seamless payment options	Reconcile reports
Guest Messaging	Autoreplies, AI-driven chat	Quick responses	Monitor communications
Dynamic Pricing	Adjust rates by demand	Get fair pricing	Revenue optimization
Analytics Dashboard	Occupancy & revenue insights	N/A	Global performance view
Review Automation	Auto-review generation	Read reviews	Moderation
Smart Home / IoT	Control locks, utilities	Self-check-in	Ensure safety & logs

This gives a crisp comparison of who benefits from what – making it easy for decision-makers to visualize value.

1) Core Features (Must-Have)

These are some must-have features for any vacation rental software solution. Basic features help you build great software, whereas advanced features differentiate your vacation rental software solution from others in the market. 

• Property Listing Management

Listing all the properties with photos, amenities, a detailed description, and dynamic pricing. Keeping the information updated and all in one place for convenience. 

• Multi-Channel Integration

Integrate popular vacation rental channels like Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia, Vrbo, and others to your platform for a seamless customer experience. Users can book through a single platform. Also, it helps in synchronizing the calendar bookings. 

• Calendar Sync

This feature syncs availability in real-time. This helps in managing the bookings as well as preventing double bookings. With this feature, you can also get rid of the scheduling error or miss a call. 

• Centralized Reservation System

Now handle direct reservations and OTA bookings with a centralized system. Get automated confirmations, cancellations, and modifications across all the channels through one dashboard.

• Integrated Payments Options

Your users get convenience and security with this feature. Get credit cards, deposits, and refunds without any transaction hassle. Give your users faster transactions and smooth checkouts. This smooth user experience will encourage them to use the platform repeatedly. 

• Guest Messaging

This feature caters to guests with automated replies for standard inquiries, check-ins, and post-stay messages. You can also get a centralized inbox for all the guest conversations, so it is easy for anybody to manage. 

• Owner & Admin Dashboards

A dashboard for owners and admins to manage the properties from one place. Quick access to bookings, occupancy, and property performance with visuals. An easy-to-read board with detailed information for management.

• Reports & Analytics

With this feature, you can get reports and analytics of the platform for a selected option. Get detailed reports on occupancy and property performances. Also track KPIs to know the growth of any property and optimize revenues. Get a report on guest feedback to make better data-driven decisions.   

2) Advanced Features (Differentiators)

The advanced features are like the extra addition that makes the vacation better. Like a nice “breakfast in bed” feature, it is not necessary, but it will make your vacation rental property a standout from competitors. 

• Dynamic Pricing Engine (AI feature)

Dynamically adjusting the pricing of the vacation rental depending on the market factors. This feature helps in maximizing the revenue as the price fluctuation is high during peak seasons and lower during slow periods. 

• Automated Guest Messaging (AI feature)

Leverage the AI-powered features for your guests. Send your guests some lovely personalized messages at each phase of their stay. 

• Review Automation

Again, using automation to the advantage, request feedback and reviews from the guests post-stay. This helps in boosting reputation and online visibility.

• Maintenance & Task Management

A dedicated place for maintenance requests and task management. Create, assign, and monitor property maintenance tasks. This ensures the timely repairs and smooth guest experiences.

• IoT Integration

For an eco-friendly property management, you can use smart locks, energy meters, and even noise sensors. Make it IoT integrated, modern, and secure.

• Compliance & Security

Keeping the sensitive data safe is another crucial feature that needs attention. If dealing with data in the European region, you need to stay GDPR compliant. Also, if there are payment integrations, stay PCI-DSS compliant with OAuth2 logins, encrypted databases, and secure APIs for safe transactions.

Top 5 Benefits of Vacation Rental Software Development

Here are the 5 ways in which vacation rental software like Hostway is useful and can be helpful. 

• Save Time with Automation – Implement the latest tech AI to your advantage and save time. Use automated messages for guests, and automation for redundant tasks.
• Streamlined Operations and Centralized Management – With a unified interface and multi-channel management to make the management easier and convenient. 
• Faster Communications with the Guests – Personalized guest messaging, unified inbox, making way for faster guest responses from multiple channels. 
• Making Decisions based on Data – Get reports and analytics for various metrics and analyze the property performance based on data. 

Steps to Build an App Like Hostaway – Practical Guide(With Timeline)

When building an app like Hostaway, you will come across many property management software development companies offering you solutions. It is necessary for you to understand the basic steps in the process involved. To help you, we have mentioned a step-by-step guide. 

• Market Research & Requirement Gathering

Timeline – Week 1-2

This step includes: 

• Research the market
• Studying the competitors
• Identifying the gaps to solve and place your unique angle. 

Start by researching your market, in this case vacation rental market. You can start with these three questions. 

• What are the pain points of the audience?
• Why are property managers choosing software to manage the vacation houses? and 
• How are the property owners managing the properties financially?

Study competitors like Guestey and Lodgify to understand their pros and cons. It helps you understand what already exists in the market and what new things you can add. 

You need to find answers as well, and while researching, you find a gap. You can find a unique solution to these gaps and position your Hostaway clone app. 

These three steps will sum up your discovery phase. Next, move on to the feature planning.

• Feature Prioritization & MVP

Timeline – Week 3-4

Never fall into the trap of building anything attractive but not useful. Also, don’t build everything at once. It will take you forever. 

Start lean, start smart. List out the core features you want in your Hostaway clone app. 

Differentiate them from the “nice” or “attractive” features like AI-fying. Next, start building the MVP with the core features listed out. Focus on one big pain point for starters. This helps you build trust and also gives you a faster time to market. 

• UI/UX Design & Wireframing

Timeline – 3-5 weeks

Yes, design is all about the look, but what makes a good design is how it feels. An intuitive design leads to a great user experience. Create wireframes showing user journeys for guests, hosts, and admins. Test the prototypes for seamless workflows.  

• Choose Tech Stack for Vacation Rental Software

Timeline – Week 5-6

Choosing tech that is scalable and flexible is necessary. When in the future you decide to scale, the tech should support the user base along with the speed. 

Layer Technologies

• Frontend: React.js, Angular, Flutter
• Backend: Node.js, Python (FastAPI), Java (Spring Boot)
• Database: PostgreSQL, MongoDB
• Hosting: AWS, Azure, GCP
• Integrations: Stripe, Twilio, OTA APIs, CRM, IoT

When developing a vacation rental software like Hostaway, you need an expert real estate app development company that can use the latest tech stack. This helps in not only implementing the frontend and backend perfectly but also integrating the latest AI development services into the real estate app. This gives you a competitive edge in the real estate market. 

• MVP Development

Timeline – Week 6-12

Making a prototype before going for the launch is a wise option. It gives you a head start before you actually launch. With an MVP, you can reduce your time to market. Also, get feedback from users and implement those changes in your MVP. 

Not sure how to turn your real estate app idea into a working MVP?

We specialize in MVP development for building vacation rental software like Hostaway. In just a few weeks, we can help you prototype, validate, and launch a fast, scalable version of your app. Save your time, cost, and unnecessary headaches. 

• Testing, QA, Compliance

Timeline – Week 12-14

Every missed bug can reflect on your app review, as a 1-star rating. You don’t need that. Functional and non-functional testing can find bugs of all sorts. Run manual and automated testing across all devices to find any remaining loopholes. 

Make sure you have compliance in place, like GDPR, PCI-DSS, if you are dealing with user data and payment integration. 

• Deployment, Support & Continuous Improvement

Timeline – Week 14-16

Launch does not mean you are “Done”. It is time to listen and take a look at the results and feedback you are getting. Deploy on a cloud server and start onboarding early users. Track usage patterns with tools and improve the weak spots. The best vacation rental software isn’t built in one go – it evolves with user feedback and consistent upgrades.

Here is the Cost to Develop an App Like Hostaway, Timeline & ROI

In this section, we’ll talk about the cost to develop an app like Hostaway, with the timeline. So, you get a decent idea about the dollars and time you need to put in. 

 Here’s a ballpark breakdown to give you clarity:

Build Stage	Approx. Cost (USD)	Timeline	What’s Included
MVP (core features: listings, bookings, payments, calendar sync)	$10,000 – $30,000	2–4 months	Basic PMS + channel manager, host/guest dashboards
Mid-Complexity Platform	$30,000 – $60,000	6–8 months	Dynamic pricing, AI chat, review automation, integrations
Enterprise-Grade Solution	$70,000 onwards	9–12 months	Advanced analytics, multi-region compliance, IoT/smart home features, scalability infrastructure
Ongoing Maintenance	$3,000 – $8,000/month	Continuous	Server hosting, updates, support, API renewals

This provides transparency on costs and timeframes, so you know how to plan for the vacation rental software.

Note– The cost here is dependent on the features and app complexity. So if you need an app with smarter features, it is going to impact the cost and timeline as well. 

Although there are some other costs (not limited to) that will also influence the overall cost of the vacation rental software solution. 

• Ongoing Costs like maintenance
• Cloud hosting & maintenance
• OTA API licenses
• Support & compliance updates

For a better understanding, it is always advisable to discuss it with your property management software development company. They can help you map out all the information in detail with a timeline.

ROI of Building Vacation Rental Software

Developing a Hostaway-like app isn’t just a tech investment – it’s a business growth lever. Here’s how ROI plays out:

• Operational Savings: We talked about automating guest communication in the (features section and benefits) as this impacts the ROI. Automating the payments and maintenance reduces staff workload by up to 40%.
• Higher Revenue: With the help of dynamic pricing and direct bookings, you can boost occupancy rates and cut OTA commission fees (Airbnb, Booking.com) by 10–20%.
• Scalability: Subscription fees are recurring revenue. An effective subscription model makes sure that a customer’s subscription cost increases with their usage or needs, giving the company a viable and long-term growth path.
• Market Expansion: A custom-built solution lets you localize and serve regional markets where Hostaway isn’t optimized.

ROI – it’s not just about finance, it is strategic. ROI gives founders a competitive edge in a saturated rental market.

Ideas to Grow Your Vacation Rental Software

Building the app is half the journey. Growth is the other half. 

You can design your growth strategies on how you want things to get done. Here we are giving you a phase-wise plan which, if you want can apply as is; if you want to change it, sure you can. After all, it is your growth and your business. 

Here’s how to do it:

Phase 1 – Host Onboarding & Portfolio Seeding

Start small. Bring early adopters for the platform to use it (property managers, boutique rentals). Fill the platform with initial listings. 

Phase 2 – Strategic Partnerships and Targeted Marketing

Pick your local market to start with. Partner with local real estate associations, travel agencies, and even OTAs to cross-promote. API integrations can become co-marketing opportunities.

Publish market insights, rental calculators, and compliance guides. This not only drives traffic but positions your platform as a thought leader.

Phase 3 – Referral Programs

The best marketing method is word-of-mouth. Referrals are powerful in real estate. Offer incentives for hosts to invite other hosts. It is one of the tactics Airbnb used initially to scale.

Phase 4 – Feature Usage Optimization

Always start with core PMS features. Then upsell add-ons like dynamic pricing, marketing tools, or premium analytics. Build slowly on the core features. 

Phase 5 – Localization

Localize for specific markets – e.g., vacation homes in Europe, glamping in the US, student rentals in Asia. Tailor features to local compliance and culture. 

The narrative here shows readers how to not just build but grow a Hostaway-like app into a competitive, scalable business.

Building Vacation Rental Software?

Creating vacation rental software like Hostaway is not just about copying features – it is more than that. It’s about understanding the business model, aligning with user needs, and building a scalable product that grows with your market. 

Vacation rental software is complex. You’re dealing with integration, compliance, security, and whatnot. But when done right, it pays off in the form of reduced operational chaos, higher bookings, and stronger guest loyalty.

Here is where SolGuruz helps you. 

We’ve helped proptech startups and enterprises build property management systems, vacation rental platforms, and real estate SaaS products.

Our team blends product strategy, UX design, scalable tech stacks, and performance-first development practices to deliver solutions that stand out.

Whether you’re planning an MVP to test your idea or aiming for a full-scale Hostaway alternative, we can guide you from concept to launch and beyond.

FAQs

1. What is vacation rental software like Hostaway?

Vacation rental software like Hostaway is used by property managers and owners to manage their vacation properties. It also helps them streamline rental operations. A combination of a property management system, channel manager, booking engine and other tools in one platform.

2. How much does it cost to develop vacation rental software like Hostaway?

The cost to develop vacation rental software like Hostaway for a basic MVP can start from $10,000, depending on features, team location, and platform complexity.

3. What are the essential features of a Hostaway-like app?

Key features include property listing management, calendar sync, booking & reservations, integrated payments, guest messaging, dynamic pricing, owner dashboards, and automated reviews. Advanced versions also offer IoT and smart home integration.

4. How long does it take to build vacation rental software?

For a basic MVP version, can take as less as 8 weeks. A fully-featured app with third-party integrations may take 9–12+ months, including design, development, testing, and deployment.

5. Can I build a niche vacation rental software for a specific market?

Yes, you can build a niche vacation rental platform targeting luxury villas, boutique rentals, glamping sites, or co-hosting services. Custom features and regional compliance can help differentiate your platform from giants like Hostaway.