Planet Payments vs. Zil Money:
Which Is Right for You?

The Decision

When evaluating payment processing solutions for your hotel, it’s essential to consider how each product addresses your specific needs—whether that's transaction variety, integration capacity, or user experience. Planet Payments and Zil Money serve different hotel profiles and operational demands, making their comparison critical to your decision. Both aim to streamline payments, but they diverge significantly in scope, features, and market presence.

Planet Payments offers a comprehensive, multi-channel payment platform with extensive integrations and global coverage, primarily targeting larger or more complex hotel operations. Zil Money provides a straightforward financial management tool with a focus on ease of use, speed, and cost-effectiveness, appealing more to budget-conscious or smaller properties. Which aligns better with your hotel’s scale and goals?

Is Planet Payments or Zil Money Better for Hotels?

Both products aim to facilitate hotel payments but approach the challenge differently. Planet Payments is designed as an all-in-one solution supporting a vast array of payment methods, currencies, and integrations, suitable for hotels needing global reach and extensive transaction options. Zil Money, by contrast, emphasizes ease of use and quick setup, with features like virtual cards and multiple payment types, but its market presence and review volume are much lower.

Planet's user reviews are limited—only 2 reviews, with no recent feedback—reducing confidence in its current performance and support. Conversely, Zil Money has amassed 54 reviews, all within the last six months, providing fresher insights into its reliability and customer satisfaction. With more recent reviews and a higher review count, Zil Money emerges as the more credible choice for hoteliers seeking robust and current feedback.

Which platform aligns better with your hotel's size, operational complexity, and regional needs? Do you prioritize extensive integrations and currency support or straightforward financial operations with quick onboarding?

Zil Money vs Planet Payments: Which Should Your Hotel Choose?

If your hotel needs a simple, reliable way to handle core payments, especially in North America or regions where speed and user-friendliness matter, Zil Money is the better fit. Its 4.5/5 ease of use and 4.5/5 customer support ratings, alongside 54 recent reviews, indicate a robust, well-received platform suited for small to medium hotels, B&Bs, and vacation rentals.

Planet Payments, with only 2 reviews and no recent feedback, appears less suitable unless your hotel operates on a very small scale with minimal transaction diversity. Its extensive features and global reach might appeal to large chains or properties with complex payment needs, but the lack of current user data makes it harder to recommend confidently.

In summary, for most hoteliers seeking dependable, recent feedback-driven solutions, Zil Money offers a more immediate and proven option. Planet might serve niche markets or very specific use cases but lacks the recent validation to support a broad recommendation.

Is Planet Payments or Zil Money Easier to Use?

Zil Money scores 4.5/5 in ease of use, reflecting its intuitive, straightforward interface and well-rated onboarding experience. Users describe it as simple to navigate, with a quick setup process, making it accessible even for staff less familiar with financial platforms.

Planet Payments, by comparison, has a modest 3/5 rating in ease of use, with reviews indicating a steeper learning curve and limited support during onboarding. Its interface appears complex, with many features that can be overwhelming without dedicated technical support.

Edge: Zil Money.

Which Has Better Features: Planet Payments or Zil Money?

Planet Payments boasts 11 shared features plus 10 unique features, including PCI compliance, payment tokenization, dynamic currency conversion, and acceptance of major credit cards and digital wallets like AliPay and WeChat Pay. These capabilities support multi-channel, multi-currency, and international transactions.

Zil Money offers only 4 unique features—recurring payments, gratuity functions, partial capture, and PayPal acceptance—focusing on core financial management. While easier to operate, it lacks the extensive payment options and global acquirers of Planet.

Edge: Planet Payments.

Which Has Better Customer Support: Planet Payments or Zil Money?

Zil Money’s customer support scores 4.5/5, with recent reviews praising its responsiveness, professionalism, and proactive assistance. Users feel supported during setup and ongoing use, enhancing trust and operational confidence.

Planet Support scores 3/5, with reviews indicating slower responses, limited support resources, and frustrations over unresponsive help databases. Its support seems underwhelming, especially given its limited recent customer feedback.

Edge: Zil Money.

Which Has More Integrations: Planet Payments or Zil Money?

Planet Payments offers integrations with 195 verified partners, including major PMS, RMS, and revenue management systems, making it highly adaptable for hotel environments requiring extensive connectivity. Its options cover popular platforms like Innspire, Profitroom, and Omnibees.

Zil Money, with zero verified integrations, primarily functions as a standalone system or with limited API capabilities. Its lack of third-party integrations restricts its use to smaller or less complex setups.

Edge: Planet Payments.

Which Do Hoteliers Rate Higher: Planet Payments or Zil Money?

Zil Money’s reviews are recent and abundant, with a 4.5/5 customer support rating and 8.57/5 NPS score, indicating high satisfaction. Hotels across various segments, including hotels, B&Bs, and motels, appreciate its simplicity and speed.

Planet’s ratings are outdated—only 2 reviews, both from early 2023, with no recent data—making it impossible to gauge current user sentiment meaningfully. Its 5/5 NPS score is based on minimal feedback, providing little confidence.

Therefore, Zil Money’s higher, more recent ratings make it the more reliable choice for hoteliers today.

Edge: Zil Money.

How Much Do Planet Payments and Zil Money Cost?

Planet Payments does not publicly disclose pricing, which suggests a customized or enterprise-level quote, possibly making it less accessible for smaller hotels. Zil Money charges a $400 base price, with no ongoing monthly fees, making it a predictable and transparent option.

Given the lack of clear pricing for Planet, budget-conscious properties are likely to find Zil Money’s straightforward fee structure more attractive and manageable.

What Type of Hotel Should Use Planet Payments?

• Hotels that operate across multiple countries and require multi-currency support.
• Large hotel chains with complex, high-volume payment needs.
• Properties needing extensive integrations with PMS, RMS, and revenue management platforms.
• Hotels aiming to accept a wide variety of payment methods, including WeChat Pay, AliPay, and Diners Club.
• Teams that prioritize global reach, compliance, and advanced payment security.

Not ideal if your hotel is small, local, or needs only basic processing; in such cases, the complexity and cost may outweigh benefits.

What Type of Hotel Should Use Zil Money?

• Small to medium hotels or B&Bs looking for an easy-to-use payment solution.
• Hotels that primarily serve domestic guests and need quick, reliable transactions.
• Properties seeking a low-cost, transparent platform with essential features.
• Hotels preferring a platform with a user-friendly interface and minimal setup.
• Teams that value speed, simplicity, and customer support.

Not ideal if your hotel requires extensive international payment options, complex integrations, or multi-currency support beyond local currencies.

Zil Money vs Planet Payments: The Bottom Line for Hotels

The core difference lies in scope: Planet Payments provides an extensive, globally oriented payment infrastructure suitable for large, multi-property operations, but it suffers from limited recent feedback and complex setup. Zil Money offers a straightforward, recent, and highly-rated platform ideal for smaller hotels or properties seeking quick deployment and ease of use.

Choose Planet Payments if your hotel operates globally, needs a broad range of payment options, and integrates deeply with existing hotel systems. Opt for Zil Money if your priority is simplicity, speed, and cost-effectiveness, especially within regions where fewer international payment methods are required.

In conclusion, for most hotels today, especially those valuing current user experiences and support, Zil Money is the safer, more proven choice. Planet Payments remains a potent tool for large-scale, complex operations but requires careful consideration of its current market standing and support infrastructure.