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 113 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:
Prostay shines in ease of use and customer support , with exclusive features like Centralized Messaging.
Planet shines when it comes to functionality and features — especially for brand properties (5.0/5) , with exclusive features like Guest profiles and Guest CRM.
Side-by-side ratings based on 113 verified hotelier reviews on HTR.
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| Starting Price | From $600/mo | From $500/mo |
| Verified Reviews | 5 | 108 |
After analyzing 113 verified reviews, Prostay users most value its , while Planet users highlight functionality and features, ease of use, multi-property management. Click any theme to see what reviewers say.
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Functionality and Features
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Ease of Use
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Multi-property Management
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Support Issues
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Customization and Flexibility
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System Performance and Reliability
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How each product ranks among Property Management Systems 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) ▾ | #48 5 reviews | #27 32 reviews |
| Mid-Size (25-74 rooms) ▾ | #67 0 reviews | #15 50 reviews |
| Large (75-199 rooms) ▾ | — | #15 10 reviews |
| X-Large (200+ rooms) | — | #17 3 reviews |
By Property Type
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| Boutique ▾ | #54 3 reviews | #21 42 reviews |
| Luxury ▾ | — | #21 34 reviews |
| Branded / Chain ▾ | #62 1 reviews | #17 33 reviews |
| Extended Stay ▾ | — | #20 9 reviews |
By Region
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| North America ▾ | #49 0 reviews | #29 6 reviews |
| Europe ▾ | #48 1 reviews | #10 79 reviews |
| Asia Pacific | #15 4 reviews | — |
| Middle East | — | #15 2 reviews |
Choosing a property management system (PMS) is a critical decision that affects your hotel's operations, guest experience, and revenue. Prostay by Prostay and protel PMS by Planet are two leading options, each promising to streamline workflows and boost efficiency. However, they cater to different hotel types, scales, and operational needs. Your choice hinges on understanding their core strengths, weaknesses, and how well they align with your property’s specific requirements.
Both products aim to centralize your hotel operations — from reservations to billing, guest communications, and integrations. The key question is: which one better fits your hotel’s size, complexity, and growth trajectory?
Prostay is a modern, all-in-one PMS built to serve resorts, boutique hotels, and vacation rentals of all sizes, including large chains. It offers native apps across multiple platforms and supports both cloud and on-premise deployment, emphasizing offline capabilities. In contrast, protel PMS is a mature, highly versatile platform with a focus on scalability and extensive integration, supporting both cloud and on-premise setups.
While Prostay’s recent reviews are scarce, its high ease-of-use rating (4.8/5) and positive customer support ratings (5/5) suggest a user-friendly experience. Conversely, protel’s reviews are more extensive but often critique slow support and bugs, especially after its acquisition by Planet. Prostay’s newer reviews indicate better recent performance, but protel’s longer market presence and larger user base mean its capabilities are more proven at scale.
Do these differences matter more for your property’s size, complexity, or future plans? Your decision depends on whether you prioritize ease of use and modern features, or extensive integration and proven scalability.
If your hotel is a resort, boutique, or vacation rental property seeking a straightforward, intuitive system with excellent support, go with Prostay. It excels in simplifying daily operations, supporting offline work, and delivering rapid onboarding, especially for properties that value a user-friendly experience.
If you manage a larger hotel, chain, or complex property requiring extensive integrations, multi-currency support, and advanced customization, protel’s extensive ecosystem is more fitting. Its broad feature set and integration options make it better suited for properties with complicated workflows and multi-property management needs.
In summary, choose Prostay for smaller, service-oriented properties prioritizing ease and support, and protel for larger, multi-property, or tech-heavy hotels aiming for maximum scalability.
Prostay’s UI is praised for its simplicity, with a 4.8/5 ease-of-use rating and intuitive flows that reduce staff training time. Its onboarding process receives high marks (4.8/5), indicating a smooth start and quick adoption for your team.
In comparison, protel’s ease-of-use rating is 4.12/5, with reviews noting its user-friendly interface but occasional complexity due to its feature richness. Support response times are a recurring concern, which can hinder staff onboarding and daily use.
Edge: Prostay.
Prostay offers 37 features, including unique modules such as central messaging, automated reminders, channel management, EPoS, and a spa & wellness module. Its integrated messaging platform and automation tools are especially valued by users.
Protel supports 31 shared features with 15 additional functions exclusive to its platform, like multi-currency, guest CRM, digital registration, integrated payment terminals, and shift planning. Its strengths lie in detailed reporting, extensive customization, and broad integration ecosystems.
While protel’s features are more comprehensive for complex operations, Prostay’s tailored modules and automation are more user-friendly. For simplicity and rapid deployment, Prostay edges ahead.
Edge: Prostay.
Prostay’s customer support is rated 5/5, with reviews emphasizing prompt, friendly, and effective assistance. Users mention that onboarding is smooth, and support is highly responsive, which enhances overall satisfaction.
In contrast, protel’s support scores slightly lower at 3.95/5, with reviews citing long response times and occasional unhelpful responses. Support delays and bugs often frustrate users, especially during system troubleshooting.
Support quality is critical — for your peace of mind, Prostay’s consistently high marks give it the edge.
Edge: Prostay.
Protel boasts over 1,200 integrations, including well-known partners like Stripe, STAAH, and booking engines, offering extensive connectivity options. Its protel io interface simplifies connecting to third-party systems, making it ideal for scalable, complex operations.
Prostay provides integrations with essential systems and channel managers, but with only 2 verified partners currently. Its ecosystem is growing but less extensive than protel’s.
For hotels that rely heavily on extensive third-party integrations, protel’s ecosystem is superior. For those prioritizing ease and targeted integrations, Prostay suffices.
Edge: protel PMS.
Prostay, with only 5 reviews, has no recent data, but its high NPS score of 10/5 and 100% likelihood to recommend suggest strong satisfaction among early adopters, primarily resorts.
Protel’s 105 reviews in the last six months provide a broader view, with an overall rating of 4.11/5 and a support rating of 3.95/5. Hoteliers praise its functionality but criticize support delays, especially for multi-property setups.
Given the recent review volume and higher overall ratings, protel’s performance is more established, but Prostay’s emerging positive sentiment is promising.
Edge: protel PMS.
Prostay’s pricing is $600 per month with no free tier or trial, making it a straightforward but premium option. Its pricing structure suggests it is aimed at hotels that want a comprehensive package without additional hidden costs.
Protel’s base price is slightly lower at $500 per month, but its additional modules, integrations, and setup costs can increase total expenses. No trial or freemium model is available, so evaluating value depends on your specific needs.
In terms of value, Prostay’s higher price reflects its newer, more integrated approach and support. Your choice depends on your budget and desired features.
Not ideal if you require extensive multi-currency, guest CRM, or large-scale customization that involves complex integrations and high-level reporting.
Not ideal if you prefer a system with a simple, intuitive interface or prioritize rapid onboarding over customization.
Prostay is a streamlined, user-friendly PMS designed for resorts, boutique hotels, and vacation rentals that value simplicity, quick onboarding, and dedicated support. Its automation and native apps make daily management easier, especially for properties looking for a modern, all-in-one solution.
Protel, on the other hand, is better suited for larger, more complex hotels and chains needing extensive integrations, customization, and scalability. Its broad feature set and mature ecosystem make it ideal for properties with sophisticated operational demands.
Choose Prostay if your hotel prioritizes ease, support, and fast deployment. Opt for protel if you need a highly adaptable, enterprise-grade platform capable of handling complex multi-property management.
This comparison is based on current reviews, feature sets, and market presence. Your specific needs and future growth plans should ultimately guide your decision, but the recent feedback and data favor Prostay for simplicity and support, and protel for extensive integrations and scalability.
According to HTR's product database, Prostay and protel PMS (by Planet) share 31 features. Here are the key differences — features one has that the other lacks.
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| Automated Assignments | ||
| Automated reminders | ||
| Centralized Messaging | ||
| Channel Manager | ||
| EPoS | ||
| Group functionality | ||
| Guest CRM | ||
| Guest profiles | ||
| Integrated ID & Passport Scanner | ||
| Multi-currency | ||
| Multi-lingual | ||
| Spa & Wellness Module |
Showing top differences. 9 more features differ between these products.
We analyzed 4 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.
"It feels like a partnership, not a product. Our feedback is always heard and acted on. We’re working together for the shared goal of great guest service."
Unique capabilities
What hoteliers love
Users appreciate Protel's extensive features for managing single properties, with comprehensive tools for reporting, room plans, and rate management.... Users appreciate Protel's extensive features for managing single properties, with comprehensive tools for reporting, room plans, and rate management. However, many reviews expressed disappointment that a lot of these functionalities are incomplete, buggy, or missing entirely when dealing with more complex setups or multi-property environments. Custom reports and seamless integration with other tools are also highlighted as beneficial.
The user interface is generally praised for being intuitive and easy to navigate. Many users found Protel Air particularly user-friendly and noted the... The user interface is generally praised for being intuitive and easy to navigate. Many users found Protel Air particularly user-friendly and noted the efficiency in managing daily operations. However, certain updates have made certain functions more complex and less intuitive than before.
Protel's performance in catering to multi-property environments received mixed feedback. While some users praised its organizational tools and interfa... Protel's performance in catering to multi-property environments received mixed feedback. While some users praised its organizational tools and interfaces, many found the system frustratingly limited for multi-location setups, highlighting significant bugs and reduced functionalities.
Where hoteliers push back
Customer support is a consistent area of concern. Reviews mentioned long waiting times for support requests, lack of phone availability, and poor resp... Customer support is a consistent area of concern. Reviews mentioned long waiting times for support requests, lack of phone availability, and poor response times after the acquisition by Planet. Users recommend improving the speed and reliability of customer service.
Users are generally happy with the level of customization available in Protel, allowing them to adapt the system to better fit their specific needs. H... Users are generally happy with the level of customization available in Protel, allowing them to adapt the system to better fit their specific needs. However, this flexibility often comes at a high cost, and some required features are only available through paid custom development.
Ranks higher for
Unique capabilities
Where the ratings diverge most
It depends on your requirements. Prostay and protel PMS (by Planet) share many core Property Management Systems features, but each has unique capabilities. Prostay offers 2 verified integration partners, while protel PMS (by Planet) offers 194. Review the feature comparison above to see where they differ before switching.
Small hotels should prioritize ease of use and fast onboarding. Prostay leads in ease of use at 4.8/5 vs 4.1/5. 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.
Prostay: No. protel PMS (by Planet): No. Neither product currently offers a free tier. Most Property Management Systems 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. Prostay has an HT Score of 0 and Planet has 33. 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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