Exely Channel Manager vs. Shiji Horizon Distribution: Which Is Right for You?

Updated September 11, 2026  ·  168 verified reviews analyzed

TLDR

We analyzed 168 verified hotelier reviews, compared feature sets, pricing, and real-world case studies to break down where each platform delivers. The right choice depends on your property type and priorities:

Exely shines in ease of use and customer support — especially for brand properties (0.0/5) , with exclusive features like Integrated Payment Processing and Booking Performance and Pace Reporting.

Shiji Group shines .

See the full breakdown below ↓

How Does Exely Channel Manager Compare to Shiji Horizon Distribution?

Side-by-side ratings based on 168 verified hotelier reviews on HTR.

HTScore
88
0
Likelihood to Recommend
98%
0%
Ease of Use
4.9/5
0.0/5
Customer Support
5.0/5
0.0/5
Value for Money
4.9/5
0.0/5
Starting Price From $100/mo Contact sales
Verified Reviews 168 0

What Are the Pros and Cons of Exely Channel Manager vs Shiji Horizon Distribution?

After analyzing 168 verified reviews, Exely users most value its ease of use and operational efficiency, support quality and responsiveness, direct booking growth and revenue optimization, while Shiji Group users highlight . Click any theme to see what reviewers say.

Exely Exely Shiji Group Shiji Group
Pros
+ Ease of use and operational efficiency
+ Support quality and responsiveness
+ Direct booking growth and revenue optimization
+ Need for more OTAs, channels, and integrations
Cons
Reporting and analytics limitations
Customization gaps in reports, branding, and booking engine design

Exely vs Shiji Group: Rankings by Hotel Segment

How each product ranks among Channel Managers vendors for different property sizes, types, and regions — based on verified reviews from hoteliers in each segment.

By Hotel Size

Segment Exely Exely Shiji Group Shiji Group
Small (10-24 rooms) #15 26 reviews
Mid-Size (25-74 rooms) #9 51 reviews #35 0 reviews
Large (75-199 rooms) #14 5 reviews #32 0 reviews
X-Large (200+ rooms) #7 5 reviews

By Property Type

Segment Exely Exely Shiji Group Shiji Group
Boutique #15 29 reviews #37 0 reviews
Luxury #13 27 reviews #37 0 reviews
Branded / Chain #15 14 reviews #38 0 reviews
Extended Stay #14 6 reviews

By Region

Segment Exely Exely Shiji Group Shiji Group
North America #18 2 reviews #23 0 reviews
Europe #19 10 reviews #34 0 reviews
Asia Pacific #5 67 reviews
Middle East #7 13 reviews

The Decision

Choosing the right channel management software is critical for your hotel’s online distribution, operational efficiency, and revenue growth. Exely Channel Manager by Exely and Shiji Horizon Distribution by Shiji Group aim to streamline your rate updates, sync bookings, and expand your market reach. But their approaches, features, and overall user experiences differ significantly. Your decision hinges on your hotel’s size, regional focus, and specific distribution needs.

Is Exely Channel Manager or Shiji Horizon Distribution Better for Hotels?

Both products aim to simplify hotel distribution, but they diverge in regional presence, feature scope, and user feedback. Exely emphasizes ease of use, real-time synchronization, and a strong user base in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, with over 102 reviews—most recent reviews praise its intuitiveness and customer support. Shiji, meanwhile, boasts a vast partner network of 64 integrations, including global GDSs and Chinese platforms, but has no available user reviews or recent feedback, making its actual user experience less clear.

Exely’s higher review count and recent feedback suggest a more established, user-validated product. Shiji’s broad integration list hints at extensive connectivity but lacks recent reviews to confirm its current reliability or usability. Given this, which solution truly meets your hotel’s regional reach and operational demands?

Exely Channel Manager vs Shiji Horizon Distribution: Which Should Your Hotel Choose?

If your hotel values ease of use, quick onboarding, and a strong track record of customer support, Exely is the clear choice. Its high ratings—4.95/5 for ease of use and customer support—along with over 102 reviews, demonstrate a satisfied user base, especially for hotels in North America and Europe seeking efficient online distribution.

Conversely, if your hotel operates across multiple global markets, particularly in China or regions where extensive partner networks are critical, Shiji’s 64 integrations and broad partner ecosystem might appeal. However, the absence of recent reviews makes it hard to gauge real-world performance. For most hotels prioritizing proven, user-rated solutions, Exely offers a more reliable option.

Is Exely or Shiji Easier to Use?

Exely scores 4.95/5 in ease of use, with recent reviews emphasizing its intuitive interface and streamlined workflows. Users report that the platform simplifies updating rates and managing bookings from one dashboard, reducing manual effort significantly.

Shiji offers no recent user ratings or reviews, making its ease of use unclear. Its extensive partner network suggests complex integrations that could require a steeper learning curve or specialized training, but without current user feedback, this remains speculative.

Edge: Exely.

Which Has Better Features: Exely or Shiji?

Exely boasts seven exclusive features, including support for weekly and monthly rates, bulk updates, multi-currency support, integrated payment processing, and centralized role management. These features directly address operational flexibility and financial management, giving your team more control.

Shiji offers only one unique feature—Yield Rules—mainly relevant for dynamic revenue management but less comprehensive overall.

Given the feature count and recent reviews highlighting Exely’s robust capabilities, it clearly provides a richer feature set tailored for day-to-day hotel operations.

Edge: Exely.

Which Has Better Customer Support: Exely or Shiji?

Exely’s customer support scores 4.95/5 with reviews praising its responsiveness and professionalism. Hotels report quick issue resolution and support that feels genuinely helpful, especially during onboarding.

Shiji, on the other hand, has no recent reviews or ratings available, making it impossible to assess support quality. Its extensive global presence suggests 24/7 support, but without customer feedback, confidence is lower.

Edge: Exely.

Which Has More Integrations: Exely or Shiji?

Shiji’s platform integrates with 64 partners, including major OTAs, GDSs, and Chinese channels, offering broad global reach. This extensive network allows access to diverse markets and distribution channels.

Exely has 8 verified partners, including top OTAs and industry leaders, but with fewer overall connections. For hotels focused on North American or European markets, this might suffice; for those needing Chinese or GDS integrations, Shiji’s broader network could be advantageous.

Edge: Shiji.

Which Do Hoteliers Rate Higher: Exely or Shiji?

Exely’s reviews, totaling over 102 in the last six months, are highly positive. Hotels praise its ease of use, customer support, and impact on revenue, with a 98% likelihood to recommend.

Shiji has no available reviews or recent feedback, so hotel ratings and satisfaction levels remain unknown. This lack of recent data makes it difficult to determine which platform is preferred by similar hotels.

Edge: Exely.

How Much Do Exely and Shiji Cost?

Exely charges a straightforward $100 monthly flat fee, with no implementation or trial fees, providing transparent pricing. Shiji does not publicly disclose its pricing, which may require direct contact for a quote.

If budget certainty and simplicity matter, Exely offers clear pricing that can fit most hotel budgets. Shiji’s opaque pricing model may be less attractive unless its extensive features justify higher costs.

What Type of Hotel Should Use Exely?

  • Hotels seeking an easy-to-navigate platform for online distribution.
  • Hotels prioritizing quick onboarding and reliable customer support.
  • Hotels in North America, Europe, or Asia Pacific.
  • Properties that need real-time synchronization and automated reporting.
  • Hotels aiming to reduce manual updates and overbooking issues.

Not ideal if:

  • Your hotel operates mainly in China or requires extensive local partner integrations.
  • Your team prefers a platform with a broad array of advanced revenue management features like Yield Rules.
  • You need highly customizable analytics and reporting beyond basic performance metrics.

What Type of Hotel Should Use Shiji?

  • Hotels operating in diverse international markets, especially China, where access to local GDSs and Chinese social platforms is vital.
  • Large hotel chains needing extensive integration with multiple OTAs, GDSs, and wholesalers.
  • Hotels that prioritize broad connectivity and automated rate management across many partners.
  • Properties with dedicated technical teams capable of managing complex integrations.

Not ideal if:

  • Your hotel values proven, highly-rated user experiences and responsive customer support.
  • You prefer transparent, straightforward pricing.
  • You need recent user reviews to validate ongoing platform performance.

Exely vs Shiji: The Bottom Line for Hotels

The core difference lies in user validation and feature completeness. Exely, with its high recent review count and superior ease of use, is a proven platform favored by hotels in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.

Choose Exely if your hotel needs a straightforward, dependable channel manager that improves operational efficiency and customer support. Opt for Shiji if your hotel’s strategy hinges on extensive global integrations, especially in China or other markets where their partner network is essential—though you’ll need to verify its current performance due to the lack of recent reviews.

In summary, for most hotels seeking a reliable, easy-to-use solution backed by user feedback, Exely remains the better choice. Shiji offers broader connectivity but lacks recent validation, so it suits hotels with complex international needs willing to manage potential uncertainties.

How Much Do Exely Channel Manager and Shiji Horizon Distribution Cost?

Channel Managers pricing is rarely straightforward. Here is what we know from each vendor's public pricing data. Always request a custom quote for your property size.

Exely Exely Shiji Group Shiji Group
Starting Price From $100/mo

Feature Comparison: Exely Channel Manager vs Shiji Horizon Distribution

These are the features each vendor has configured, organized by feature group — the same data shown in the vendor dashboard. Expand a group to compare features side by side.

Feature Exely Exely Shiji Group Shiji Group
Rate Management
100%
80%
Support for Weekly & Monthly Rates
Yield Rules
Derived Rates
Inventory Management
Inventory grid
Room Type Mapping
100%
100%
Channel Self-Mapping
Automation & Syncing
100%
0%
Bulk Updates & Multiple Restrictions
2-way real time integrations
PMS connectivity
Administration & Settings
100%
40%
Multi-lingual
Centralized user & role management
Multi-Currency Support
Inventory grid
Integrated Payment Processing
Analytics & Reporting
100%
50%
Analytics dashboard
Booking Performance and Pace Reporting

Real-World Results: Exely vs Shiji Group by Business Goal

We analyzed 2 verified case studies to compare what hotels actually achieve with each platform across four key business objectives.

Increase Revenue & Reduce Costs
Exely Savoy Westend Hotel Large
+ Direct bookings doubled after implementation of Exely Solutions.
+ Website conversion rate increased from 1.7% to 3.5%, meaning nearly twice as many visitors completed bookings.
+ �s official website became the #1 sales channel, consistently outperforming all OTA channels in revenue.

"Before Exely, we could not get enough flexibility or functionality we needed. We couldn’t manage dynamic pricing or promotions properly, now the system provides us all the tools t..."

M
Ms. Ada
Deputy Manager/Sales & Marketing Directo...
Shiji Group Shiji Group

No published case study for this goal yet.

Increase Operational Efficiency
Exely Boulevard Batumi Hotel & Bellevue Residence Mid-Size
+ 15% of total online bookings now come from the hotel
+ �s own website.
+ Availability and pricing are now consistently synced across all OTA channels.

"Once we switched to Exely, we immediately noticed a significant increase in reservations from online travel agencies. We discovered that our previous system had blocked some availa..."

N
Nino Motskobili
Head of Data Operations
Shiji Group Shiji Group

No published case study for this goal yet.

Exely vs Shiji Group: The Bottom Line

Exely
Exely
4.9/5 from 168 reviews

What hoteliers love

Ease of use and operational efficiency 98% positive

Reviewers consistently describe Exely as intuitive, simple to learn, and effective for managing bookings, rates, and channels from one place. The main... Reviewers consistently describe Exely as intuitive, simple to learn, and effective for managing bookings, rates, and channels from one place. The main benefit cited is time savings: hotels say it streamlines daily operations, reduces complexity, and helps staff work more efficiently with fewer manual tasks.

Support quality and responsiveness 94% positive

Many users praise Exely’s support team for fast, solution-oriented help that makes operations smoother, especially during setup or urgent reservation... Many users praise Exely’s support team for fast, solution-oriented help that makes operations smoother, especially during setup or urgent reservation issues. A smaller number note that faster response times during peak periods or more proactive local support would make the experience even stronger.

Direct booking growth and revenue optimization 100% positive

Many reviewers credit Exely with increasing direct reservations and reducing dependence on OTAs, helping hotels improve profitability by cutting commi... Many reviewers credit Exely with increasing direct reservations and reducing dependence on OTAs, helping hotels improve profitability by cutting commission costs. They also mention revenue-focused tools such as promotions, early-booking offers, pricing controls, and occupancy-based optimization that help convert more website traffic into bookings.

Where hoteliers push back

Reporting and analytics limitations 58% negative

A common theme is that Exely’s built-in reports are useful for day-to-day operations, but many users want deeper, more customizable analytics. Reviewe... A common theme is that Exely’s built-in reports are useful for day-to-day operations, but many users want deeper, more customizable analytics. Reviewers ask for better performance tracking by channel, stronger revenue insights, faster data freshness, and custom report options to support smarter distribution decisions.

Customization gaps in reports, branding, and booking engine design 83% negative

Many reviewers want more flexibility in reporting, confirmation templates, invoice formats, and booking engine appearance. The most common complaints... Many reviewers want more flexibility in reporting, confirmation templates, invoice formats, and booking engine appearance. The most common complaints are limited customization options for analytics and branding, plus requests for hotel colors, more modern templates, and better control over booking flow and promotions.

Ranks higher for

Large (75-199 rooms) #14 vs #32
Mid-Size (25-74 rooms) #9 vs #35
Boutique #15 vs #37
Branded / Chain #15 vs #38

Unique capabilities

Support for Weekly & Monthly Rates Bulk Updates & Multiple Restrictions 2-way real time integrations Multi-Currency Support Integrated Payment Processing
4.9/5 ease of use 5.0/5 support 8 integrations
Visit Profile
Shiji Group
Shiji Group
0.0/5 from 0 reviews
0.0/5 ease of use 0.0/5 support 72 integrations
Visit Profile

Where the ratings diverge most

Ease of Use Exely 4.9 vs 0.0 (+4.9)
Customer Support Exely 5.0 vs 0.0 (+5)
Value for Money Exely 4.9 vs 0.0 (+4.9)
Onboarding Exely 4.9 vs 0.0 (+4.9)

Frequently Asked Questions About Exely Channel Manager vs Shiji Horizon Distribution

Can Exely Channel Manager replace Shiji Horizon Distribution?

It depends on your requirements. Exely Channel Manager and Shiji Horizon Distribution share many core Channel Managers features, but each has unique capabilities. Exely Channel Manager offers 8 verified integration partners, while Shiji Horizon Distribution offers 72. Review the feature comparison above to see where they differ before switching.

Which is better for small or independent hotels?

Small hotels should prioritize ease of use and fast onboarding. Exely Channel Manager leads in ease of use at 4.9/5 vs 0.0/5. Look for transparent pricing and a trial or demo option. Filter reviews on each product page by property size to hear from hotels like yours.

Do Exely Channel Manager or Shiji Horizon Distribution offer a free plan?

Exely Channel Manager: No. Shiji Horizon Distribution: No. Neither product currently offers a free tier. Most Channel Managers vendors offer demos or trials — request one from each to evaluate before committing.

How Does HTR Evaluate and Rank Exely Channel Manager and Shiji Horizon Distribution?

The HT Score is a composite ranking that considers 4 criteria groups and over a dozen variables to help hoteliers objectively compare hotel technology products. Exely has an HT Score of 88 and Shiji Group has 0. Here is how the score is calculated.

Criteria Group Weight What It Measures
Customer Ratings & Reviews

How highly do users recommend this product?

Ratings Score, Review Volume, Share of Voice, Review Depth, Review Recency, Success Stories

The most heavily weighted factor. Analyzes average satisfaction ratings (likelihood to recommend, ease of use, support, ROI), total review count relative to category peers, review recency (at least 20 reviews in the trailing 6 months), and share of voice across unique hotel clients to detect selection bias.

Partner Ecosystem

How highly do tech partners recommend this company?

Partner Recommendations, Integration Quantity, Integration Quality

Evaluates partner recommendations as expert votes of confidence, the number of verified integrations, and ecosystem quality — the average HT Scores of integration partners. Products with higher-quality integration ecosystems are more likely to deliver a connected tech stack.

Customer Centricity

How customer-centric is this organization?

Certified Support, Review Consistency, Profile Completeness

Assesses whether the company has earned HTR Customer Support Certification, maintains consistent review collection over time (an indicator of feedback-driven culture), and keeps product profiles complete with capabilities, screenshots, pricing, and features.

Reach, Staying Power & Resources

How extensive is this company's reach and resourcing?

Geographic Reach, Staying Power, Company Resources, Trending Score

Measures global presence (countries and regions served), years in business as a stability proxy, team headcount as a resource proxy, and a trending score based on trailing-twelve-month buyer inquiries, reviews, partner recommendations, and press activity.

Customer ratings and reviews are by far the most important factor in the HT Score algorithm. HTR does not accept payment for higher rankings. All reviews are verified — only hotel industry practitioners with confirmed affiliations can submit ratings. View full HT Score methodology →

Get Your Free AI Analyst Report

Custom recommendations tailored to your property

Ghostel icon
Trusted by
footer image 1 footer image 2 footer image 3 footer image 4 footer image 5 footer image 6 footer image 7

Let´s lookup your hotel information