The project dashboard is a free tool that is only available to verified hoteliers to make adopting new technology easier by streamlining their research and simplifying their communication workflow.
TLDR
We analyzed 55 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:
Gastfreund shines , with exclusive features like Mobile Checkin and Mobile Checkout.
hub OS shines in ease of use and customer support .
Side-by-side ratings based on 55 verified hotelier reviews on HTR.
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| Starting Price | From $100/mo | Contact sales |
| Verified Reviews | 21 | 34 |
After analyzing 55 verified reviews, Gastfreund users most value its , while hub OS users highlight inter-department communication, maintenance management, user interface (ui). Click any theme to see what reviewers say.
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Inter-department Communication
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Maintenance Management
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User Interface (UI)
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Customization
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Technical Glitches
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Mobile Accessibility
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How each product ranks among Hotel Guest Apps vendors for different property sizes, types, and regions — based on verified reviews from hoteliers in each segment.
By Hotel Size
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| Small (10-24 rooms) | #21 3 reviews | #14 1 reviews |
| Mid-Size (25-74 rooms) ▾ | #18 7 reviews | #6 19 reviews |
| Large (75-199 rooms) ▾ | #27 1 reviews | #3 7 reviews |
| X-Large (200+ rooms) | — | #10 2 reviews |
By Property Type
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| Boutique ▾ | #25 3 reviews | #8 17 reviews |
| Luxury ▾ | #25 3 reviews | #9 13 reviews |
| Branded / Chain ▾ | #19 3 reviews | #5 14 reviews |
| Extended Stay | #17 1 reviews | #8 3 reviews |
By Region
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| North America | — | #16 2 reviews |
| Europe ▾ | #14 13 reviews | #6 21 reviews |
| Asia Pacific | — | #15 0 reviews |
| Middle East | — | #6 2 reviews |
Choosing between Gastfreund | Hotelcore and Hub OS Guest in Touch hinges on your hotel’s specific needs. Both platforms aim to streamline guest communication and operational tasks but differ greatly in scope, features, and user feedback. Gastfreund offers a comprehensive guest experience solution, while Hub OS focuses primarily on contactless communication and maintenance management. Your decision should align with whether you prioritize integrated guest services or efficient operational communication.
Gastfreund’s larger review base and recent activity give it an edge in reliability and ongoing innovation. The choice ultimately depends on your hotel’s size, segment, and digitalization goals.
Gastfreund | Hotelcore is designed to elevate the entire guest journey through digital tools like guest apps, directories, and multilingual features. It’s aimed at hotels seeking to automate and personalize guest experiences, especially those with diverse property types such as resorts or boutique hotels.
In contrast, Hub OS Guest in Touch specializes in contactless communication and incident management, excelling in operational efficiency and maintenance workflows. It’s ideal if your hotel needs a straightforward way for guests to request services and for staff to respond swiftly.
While Gastfreund’s platform is more feature-rich and aimed at enhancing guest engagement, Hub OS emphasizes streamlining internal communications and incident resolution. Do you need a broad guest experience platform or a focused operational management tool?
If your hotel requires an all-in-one digital guest experience, go with Gastfreund | Hotelcore. Its modules like the Guest App, Hotel Directory, and multilingual support have been trusted by over 7,000 accommodations worldwide, including resorts and boutique hotels. It’s especially suitable if you want to reduce front desk inquiries, increase ancillary revenue, and improve guest engagement.
If your hotel prioritizes operational efficiency, maintenance tracking, and contactless guest communication, Hub OS Guest in Touch is the better fit. Its focus on real-time incident reporting, departmental communication, and task management makes it a strong choice for hotels that want to optimize day-to-day operations.
For properties needing a full guest experience suite, Gastfreund’s broader feature set and recent reviews make it the clear leader. Conversely, if your hotel’s challenge is operational communication and incident resolution, Hub OS’s focus and user feedback suggest it’s the smarter pick.
Gastfreund boasts a high ease-of-use rating of 4.27/5, with positive reviews highlighting its intuitive interface and smooth onboarding process. Users commend the platform’s clarity, especially for guest-facing features like the digital guest directory and messaging.
Hub OS surpasses that with a 4.87/5 rating for usability, praised for its straightforward interface and mobile accessibility. Reviewers often note its simplicity in managing maintenance and guest requests, with some mentioning occasional UI crashes but overall positive experiences.
Edge: Hub OS for overall ease of use, supported by a higher rating and recent positive feedback.
Gastfreund’s platform includes 8 exclusive features such as Mobile Check-in/Checkout, Payments, Guest Messaging, Hotel Directory, Local Recommendations, App download, and Automatic Translations, making it a versatile guest experience tool.
Hub OS offers 3 shared features with Gastfreund but provides additional functionalities through 23 verified integrations, including maintenance, incident management, and communication tools, with no exclusive features.
While Gastfreund’s features cater to enhancing guest engagement directly, Hub OS excels in operational communication and incident tracking. The choice depends on whether your hotel needs rich guest-facing features or streamlined internal workflows.
Edge: Gastfreund | Hotelcore, due to its broader range of guest-centric features.
Gastfreund’s support score of 4.27/5 is solid but slightly behind Hub OS’s 4.74/5. Based on reviews, both platforms are responsive, with Gastfreund’s clients praising quick support and flexibility. However, some note that Gastfreund’s focus has shifted toward hotel board features, potentially diluting support for core guest services.
Hub OS receives high marks for its support, with reviews emphasizing proactive, quick responses and dedicated team involvement. Customers appreciate the support’s attentiveness, which helps resolve issues rapidly.
Edge: Hub OS for more consistent and highly rated customer support.
Hub OS offers 23 verified partners, including major PMS and booking platforms like Infor, Oracle Hospitality, and MyStay, providing extensive integration options. Gastfreund has 13 verified partners, including Winhotel, SiteMinder, and RoomRaccoon, but fewer overall.
Both platforms share integrations with Mews and Planet, but Hub OS’s broader partner network allows for more flexibility in connecting with existing hotel systems. For hotels seeking a highly integrated solution, Hub OS’s larger partner ecosystem is advantageous.
Edge: Hub OS, given its higher number of verified integrations.
Hub OS’s reviews are more recent, with 27 reviews and an average rating of 4.69/5, compared to Gastfreund’s 11 reviews at 0/5 (no recent feedback). Hoteliers in the boutique and luxury segments rate Hub OS higher, especially for operational ease and support.
Gastfreund’s reviews are limited and less recent, making it difficult to gauge current satisfaction. The recent data favors Hub OS, especially with a 97% likelihood to recommend.
Edge: Hub OS, due to its more extensive and recent positive reviews.
Gastfreund charges a flat rate of $400 per month without a trial or freemium model. Pricing details for Hub OS are not publicly available, but no trial or freemium options are mentioned.
Their pricing models suggest Gastfreund’s fixed fee provides transparency; however, the lack of detailed pricing for Hub OS means your hotel should request a quote to compare value.
Gastfreund is best suited for hotels that want to elevate guest engagement and automate routine tasks.
Hub OS works well for hotels looking to optimize internal operations and contactless guest service.
Gastfreund offers a broad digital guest experience platform with a focus on engagement, automation, and multilingual features. Its suite of modules helps hoteliers create a personalized, efficient guest journey that reduces manual workload.
Hub OS, on the other hand, concentrates on operational communication, maintenance, and incident management, making it ideal for hotels that want to improve internal workflows and guest contactless interaction.
If your hotel seeks to enhance the overall guest experience with rich features, Gastfreund is the better choice. For hotels needing a reliable, contactless communication tool that improves operational efficiency, Hub OS is the clear winner.
In summary, prioritize Gastfreund if guest engagement and automation are your goals, but lean towards Hub OS if operational streamlining and internal communication are your main needs. Both platforms excel in different areas, so choose based on your hotel’s core priorities.
Hotel Guest Apps 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.
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| Starting Price | From $100/mo | — |
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.
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Communication & Messaging
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| Automatic Translations (Multi-Lingual) | ||
| Request Management | ||
| Room Service Ordering | ||
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Content Management
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| Hotel Directory | ||
| Guest Profiles | ||
| Local Recommendations | ||
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Upselling
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| Payments | ||
| Room Service Ordering | ||
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Request Management
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| Request Management | ||
| Room Service Ordering | ||
| Mobile Checkout | ||
| Mobile Checkin |
Ranks higher for
Unique capabilities
What hoteliers love
Hub OS excels in facilitating communication across various hotel departments. Reviews highlight the ease of reporting issues and distributing tasks am... Hub OS excels in facilitating communication across various hotel departments. Reviews highlight the ease of reporting issues and distributing tasks among teams, leading to coordinated efforts and improved service delivery. This feature has greatly enhanced the overall operational flow.
Users appreciate Hub OS's ability to streamline maintenance operations. It provides quick reporting and resolution of faults, reducing downtime and op... Users appreciate Hub OS's ability to streamline maintenance operations. It provides quick reporting and resolution of faults, reducing downtime and operational inefficiencies. The software allows teams to track and communicate maintenance issues in real-time, leading to faster problem-solving.
While many users find Hub OS user-friendly and visually appealing, some have experienced issues with the interface, such as occasional crashes or dela... While many users find Hub OS user-friendly and visually appealing, some have experienced issues with the interface, such as occasional crashes or delays. Despite these hiccups, users still appreciate how the software simplifies complex tasks.
Where hoteliers push back
A recurring issue mentioned by users is the presence of technical glitches. These include synchronization delays, occasional crashes, and interface er... A recurring issue mentioned by users is the presence of technical glitches. These include synchronization delays, occasional crashes, and interface errors. While these issues are generally resolved quickly, they can still disrupt hotel operations.
Hub OS's mobile accessibility is commended for allowing hotel staff to manage operations on-the-go. This feature is especially useful for reporting is... Hub OS's mobile accessibility is commended for allowing hotel staff to manage operations on-the-go. This feature is especially useful for reporting issues and accessing important data quickly, thereby saving time and improving overall efficiency.
Ranks higher for
Where the ratings diverge most
It depends on your requirements. Gastfreund and Hub OS Guest in Touch share many core Hotel Guest Apps features, but each has unique capabilities. Gastfreund offers 14 verified integration partners, while Hub OS Guest in Touch offers 24. Review the feature comparison above to see where they differ before switching.
Small hotels should prioritize ease of use and fast onboarding. Hub OS Guest in Touch leads in ease of use at 4.9/5 vs 4.5/5. 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.
Gastfreund: No. Hub OS Guest in Touch: No. Neither product currently offers a free tier. Most Hotel Guest Apps vendors offer demos or trials — request one from each to evaluate before committing.
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. Gastfreund has an HT Score of 0 and hub OS has 71. Here is how the score is calculated.
| Criteria Group | Weight | What It Measures |
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| Customer Ratings & Reviews |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 →
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