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 215 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:
Core System Technologies shines .
STAY shines in ease of use and customer support — especially for brand properties (0.0/5) , with exclusive features like Mobile App and Guest Messaging.
Side-by-side ratings based on 215 verified hotelier reviews on HTR.
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| Starting Price | Contact sales | From $300/mo |
| Verified Reviews | 0 | 215 |
After analyzing 215 verified reviews, Core System Technologies users most value its , while STAY users highlight guest experience optimization, mobile and user experience, operational efficiency. Click any theme to see what reviewers say.
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Guest Experience Optimization
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Mobile and User Experience
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Operational Efficiency
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Support and Service
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CMS and Customization
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Integration Capabilities
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Analytics and Reporting
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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
| Segment | Core System Technologies |
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|---|---|---|
| Small (10-24 rooms) ▾ | — | #9 10 reviews |
| Mid-Size (25-74 rooms) ▾ | — | #4 83 reviews |
| Large (75-199 rooms) ▾ | — | #2 89 reviews |
| X-Large (200+ rooms) ▾ | — | #2 24 reviews |
By Property Type
| Segment | Core System Technologies |
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| Boutique ▾ | — | #2 77 reviews |
| Luxury ▾ | — | #2 88 reviews |
| Branded / Chain ▾ | — | #3 91 reviews |
| Extended Stay ▾ | — | #6 7 reviews |
By Region
| Segment | Core System Technologies |
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| North America ▾ | — | #5 27 reviews |
| Europe ▾ | — | #3 112 reviews |
| Asia Pacific | — | #6 3 reviews |
| Middle East | — | #7 2 reviews |
When choosing a guest app solution, your hotel faces a critical decision: do you opt for Hello by Core System Technologies or STAY Guest App? Both aim to enhance guest communication and streamline hotel services, but they diverge sharply in scope, support, and market presence. Hello offers an AI-driven review aggregation platform but lacks recent reviews and a tangible hotel-facing feature set. In contrast, STAY provides an integrated guest experience OS with a strong track record, extensive features, and active hotel adoption.
Your choice hinges on whether you prioritize a broader, feature-rich platform with proven hotel integrations or a nascent, review-focused AI tool. Which will deliver the operational and guest experience improvements you need most?
Hello by Core System Technologies presents itself as an AI-powered review and feedback analysis platform designed to help your hotel understand customer sentiment. However, its lack of recent reviews, with no data from the last six months, raises concerns about current relevance and active hotel usage. It does not offer direct guest-facing features, leaving your team to interpret insights rather than engage with guests directly.
STAY Guest App, on the other hand, boasts over 200 recent reviews—zero for Core System Technologies—indicating a vibrant, engaged user base. Its focus on digitizing hotel services through a comprehensive OS means your staff and guests can interact via mobile, reservations, and messaging. Are you more interested in a tool that helps analyze feedback or one that actively enhances guest interactions?
If your hotel needs a proven guest engagement platform with extensive features, choose STAY. It caters to hotels seeking to digitize operations, improve guest satisfaction, and benefit from a large integration network, especially if you’re aiming for measurable operational efficiencies and revenue growth.
If your primary goal is to leverage AI to analyze guest reviews for strategic insights without direct guest-facing tools, Hello might appeal — but be wary given its zero recent reviews and minimal market presence. For most hotels looking to deliver tangible, measurable improvements, STAY’s active hotel base and feature depth make it the clearer choice.
Hello’s platform is not well-rated or reviewed recently, so its user experience, onboarding, and support quality are unclear. Its AI focus suggests a back-end tool meant for data analysis, which may require training but lacks user feedback to confirm ease of adoption.
STAY Guest App excels with a 4.78/5 ease of use rating and a 4.83/5 customer support score from over 200 recent reviews. Hotel staff find its interface intuitive and straightforward, and onboarding is generally smooth, with many describing it as “easy to implement” and “simple to manage.” Edge: STAY.
Hello’s features are centered on review analysis and sentiment aggregation, with no direct guest-facing tools or service management capabilities. It does not list specific functionalities beyond AI review summaries, limiting its scope for operational improvements.
STAY provides 14 distinct features, including mobile app access, chatbot, automated replies, message routing, guest messaging, room service ordering, local recommendations, hotel directory, multilingual support, mobile checkout, and guest profiles. These tools directly improve guest engagement, streamline operations, and facilitate service personalization. Edge: STAY.
Hello’s support and onboarding ratings are unavailable, reflecting uncertainty about its user assistance quality. Its limited reviews make assessing support difficult, and its lack of recent activity signals possible stagnation.
STAY earns high marks with a 4.83/5 support rating from over 200 reviews. Hoteliers praise its prompt, helpful service, noting “support is quick and knowledgeable,” and “onboarding was smooth.” Its active presence across regions supports ongoing assistance and updates. Edge: STAY.
Hello does not list any verified partners or integrations, indicating a limited ecosystem or a focus on internal analysis rather than system connectivity.
STAY boasts 20 verified partners, including major PMS, CRM, and distribution platforms like SiteMinder, Oracle Hospitality, Mews, and hotelkit. Its broad integration network ensures your hotel can connect existing systems efficiently, reducing data silos and improving operational flow. Edge: STAY.
Given the absence of recent reviews and a clear user base, Hello’s rating is negligible and unverified. Conversely, STAY is rated 3/5 overall, with over 200 recent reviews, and a 9.59/10 NPS score indicating strong customer satisfaction.
Hotels of all sizes and segments, especially large chains and resorts, significantly value STAY. Many praise its impact on operational efficiency and guest satisfaction, citing specific improvements in service speed and guest engagement. Edge: STAY.
Hello’s pricing details are unavailable, indicating a lack of transparency or market presence. Its freemium or trial options are also not listed.
STAY charges a $300 monthly fee, with no implementation or setup costs explicitly listed. Its straightforward pricing model makes budgeting predictable and accessible for a range of hotel sizes. Edge: STAY.
Not ideal if:
Not ideal if:
At its core, STAY offers a comprehensive guest experience platform with tangible operational and revenue benefits, backed by active hotel users and recent reviews. Hello, by contrast, functions primarily as an AI review aggregator with minimal recent market activity and no direct guest-facing features.
Choose STAY if you want a full-fledged guest app that reduces queues, enhances service delivery, and integrates with your existing systems. Its large user base and proven results make it the more reliable investment for improving guest satisfaction and operational efficiency.
Opt for Hello only if your primary goal is review sentiment analysis and you are comfortable with a limited feature set and uncertain support landscape. Its lack of recent reviews and market presence suggests it’s less suited for hotels seeking immediate, measurable improvements.
With more recent reviews, active integrations, and a proven track record, STAY Guest App stands out as the clear choice for hotels ready to elevate their guest experience through technology. Meanwhile, Hello’s review-focused approach may serve niche needs but is less likely to deliver comprehensive operational benefits.
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.
| Core System Technologies |
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| Starting Price | — | From $300/mo |
According to HTR's product database, Hello and STAY Guest App share 0 features. Here are the key differences — features one has that the other lacks.
| Feature | Core System Technologies |
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| Automated Replies | ||
| Chatbot | ||
| Guest Messaging | ||
| Message Routing | ||
| Mobile App | ||
| Web-app |
Showing top differences. 2 more features differ between these products.
We analyzed 8 verified case studies to compare what hotels actually achieve with each platform across four key business objectives.
No published case study for this goal yet.
"Thanks to STAY, we offer our guests an interaction tool with our staff. We can make real-time decisions with it. This simplifies our staff's duties at the same time. The guest expe..."
No published case study for this goal yet.
"Implementing STAY contributed to a significant increase in our revenue and customer satisfaction. The app pays for itself. We have seen significant increases in consumption for all..."
What hoteliers love
Multiple reviews highlight how STAY dramatically enhances guest experience by providing digital and sustainable ways for guests to access information... Multiple reviews highlight how STAY dramatically enhances guest experience by providing digital and sustainable ways for guests to access information and services. Features like real-time updates, mobile service ordering, and the ability to make restaurant reservations reduce wait times and provide convenience.
The app's user interface and mobile experience are lauded for being intuitive and easy to navigate. Users find it simple to update information and man... The app's user interface and mobile experience are lauded for being intuitive and easy to navigate. Users find it simple to update information and manage content, whether they are hotel staff or guests.
STAY aids in improving hotel operational efficiency by allowing quicker handling of guest requests, optimized internal processes, and reduced front de... STAY aids in improving hotel operational efficiency by allowing quicker handling of guest requests, optimized internal processes, and reduced front desk lines. The tool facilitates sustainable practices by digitizing traditional paper-based services, aiding hotels in their sustainability goals.
Where hoteliers push back
The CMS is highlighted for its ease of use and customization capabilities, though users have indicated some areas for improvement, particularly more f... The CMS is highlighted for its ease of use and customization capabilities, though users have indicated some areas for improvement, particularly more flexibility in design and functionality.
Users appreciate STAY's robust integration capabilities with various internal applications and systems, including PMS and CRM systems. These integrati... Users appreciate STAY's robust integration capabilities with various internal applications and systems, including PMS and CRM systems. These integrations streamline data management and help provide a seamless experience for both staff and guests.
Unique capabilities
Where the ratings diverge most
It depends on your requirements. Hello and STAY Guest App share many core Hotel Guest Apps features, but each has unique capabilities. Hello offers 0 verified integration partners, while STAY Guest App offers 20. Review the feature comparison above to see where they differ before switching.
Small hotels should prioritize ease of use and fast onboarding. STAY Guest App leads in ease of use at 4.8/5 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.
Hello: No. STAY Guest App: 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. Core System Technologies has an HT Score of 0 and STAY has 47. 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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