The Best Hostel Management Software of 2023

By Jordan Hollander

Last updated March 09, 2023

5 min read


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Are you new to the hostel industry? Or perhaps looking to upgrade your hostel’s tech stack?  Any person or website that presents just one kind of hostel software has completely missed the mark.  Anyone who's been in this business knows that hostels require several different types of software to run properly.

Whether you’re managing a hostel on the beach, in a city, or in a far-flung destination, technology can unlock more revenue and operational efficiency when you choose your software wisely. With the right tech in place, you can automate repetitive tasks and reduce the risk of manual errors, which lets your team focus on nurturing relationships with guests and building community.

Hostels have unique technology requirements that differ from traditional hotels due to their specific business model and target market. A hostel management software that includes features such as property management system, booking engine, reservation system, channel manager, and revenue management is essential. A user-friendly and efficient front desk and check-in system, pricing and revenue management strategies, direct bookings, OTA integration, and payment processing and invoicing functionality are also critical components. Hostel management systems should enable upselling opportunities and provide high-quality customer support to enhance guest experience and ensure maximum profitability.

In this article, we’ll introduce you to the essential software categories that will allow you to take your hostel’s operations to the next level.  We then use advanced filters on HotelTechReport.com to search these categories for the most popular and highest rated tools by hostels specifically.

 

Property Management System

Any software search in hospitality should start with a property management system, or a PMS, and this holds true for hostels as well despite their unique characteristics (multi-bed, multi-booking occupancy). This software is the “mission control” of your operations, with functionality to support reservation creation and management, guest details, room and bed status, billing, and integrations with other on-premise technology. Property management systems are common in the hotel industry, but not all PMSs have the functionality that hostel operators need. A PMS that works for hostels, such as Cloudbeds and WebRezPro, will support not only room inventory, but also bed inventory that you can designate as male, female, or mixed. This functionality will allow you to not only keep tabs on available bed and room inventory, but also book reservations for a specific bed.

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THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Cloudbeds is 92% recommended by 164 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Cloudbeds PMS Property Management Systems
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Cloudbeds is 92% recommended by 164 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
98 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Mews is 91% recommended by 82 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Mews PMS Property Management Systems
THE PITCH
RATINGS
98 HT Score
Mews is 91% recommended by 82 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Channel Manager

Most hostels receive reservations through third-party channels, such as Booking.com or Expedia, also known as online travel agencies (OTAs). It’s possible to manually update rates and inventory on these sites, but that’s far from the most efficient way to run your hostel. Instead, you can use a channel manager, like SiteMinder or RateGain, to seamlessly push your availability and rate data to these third-party channels. When you get a reservation on a third-party, the reservation data will flow through your channel manager to your PMS, taking that bed or room out of inventory.  You'll also need connections to popular hostel booking websites like Hostel Geeks and Hostelworld.

Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Siteminder's channel manager is 92% recommended by 78 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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SiteMinder (The Channel Manager) Channel Managers
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Siteminder's channel manager is 92% recommended by 78 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Website & Booking Engine

Third-party channels can be expensive, and it can be difficult to fully communicate the uniqueness of your property on these sites. Therefore, many hostels want to get more direct reservations, in which guests book on your own website. Setting up a website can be easy enough, but the key is to allow guests to book reservations on your site. The technology that makes these direct reservations possible is a booking engine.

A booking engine displays your rates and availability (from your PMS) and allows guests to enter their dates, number of guests, bed preferences, and other relevant details, before showing available beds or rooms that fit the search criteria. Guests can then select the option they want to book, enter their personal and payment details, and click “confirm.” The reservation flows back through your booking engine into your PMS, and you’ve secured a booking free of any OTA commission. Booking engine vendors invest in making their software user-friendly so your website can benefit from a strong conversion rate. A high-quality booking engine will also be mobile-friendly so that guests can easily book from a smartphone or tablet. Many PMSs have integrated booking engines and website builders that you can activate with just a few clicks, while others support integrations.

Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Siteminder's booking engine isis 91% recommended by 38 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
Product logo
SiteMinder Booking Engine Booking Engine
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Siteminder's booking engine isis 91% recommended by 38 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
Learn More
Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
99 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Profitroom's booking engine is 94% recommended by 9 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Profitroom Booking Engine 360 Booking Engine
THE PITCH
RATINGS
99 HT Score
Profitroom's booking engine is 94% recommended by 9 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Guest Messaging Software

A fantastic way to leverage technology to eliminate manual labor is to automate guest communication with a guest messaging system. Again, some PMSs have this feature built-in, but other vendors, like ALICE and Whistle, specialize in guest messaging. In your software’s dashboard, you can configure message templates to send on a set schedule via email or SMS. You can also track open rates and engagement to monitor whether guests are receiving and reading your messages. For instance, you might want to send an automatic confirmation email after a booking is made. Then on the day before check-in, you might want to send an SMS with detailed arrival instructions. Maybe you even want to text guests on the afternoon of check-in to invite them to your nightly happy hour. Without messaging software, you or your front desk team would need to send these messages manually. Messaging software alleviates this manual load and strengthens your relationships with your guests.

Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Duve guest messaging is 98% recommended by 40 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Duve - Communication Hub Guest Messaging Software
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Duve guest messaging is 98% recommended by 40 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
96 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Easyway is 93% recommended by 27 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Easyway Guest Messaging Software
THE PITCH
RATINGS
96 HT Score
Easyway is 93% recommended by 27 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Revenue Management Systems

While there's lots of revenue management overlap between hostels and regular hotels, hostels have different revenue management system needs compared to traditional hotels due to their different pricing strategies, guest demographics, room types, and booking patterns. Hostels require revenue management systems that can adapt to changing demand, manage inventory effectively, and price rooms appropriately to attract price-sensitive guests while still generating revenue.

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THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
80 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Pace is 94% recommended by 31 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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FLYR for Hospitality Revenue Management Systems
THE PITCH
RATINGS
80 HT Score
Pace is 94% recommended by 31 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Duetto is 98% recommended by 16 hostels on HoteltechReport.com
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GameChanger by Duetto Revenue Management Systems
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Duetto is 98% recommended by 16 hostels on HoteltechReport.com
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Mobile Key & Contactless Check-in

Mobile keys are increasingly essential for hostels due to their high volume of guests and fewer staff members, leading to more congestion at check-in and check-out times. Unlike traditional hotels, hostels may have multiple guests arriving at different times, which can cause congestion at the front desk. The mobile key technology allows guests to bypass the front desk and go straight to their rooms using their mobile devices, reducing wait times and minimizing congestion. This feature is particularly important for hostels with a large number of dormitory-style rooms and shared bathrooms, as it reduces the need for staff to monitor access to these areas. Additionally, with fewer staff members available to manage guest access, mobile keys offer a secure and convenient solution for guest access to their rooms. Mobile keys provide a fast, convenient, and secure way for hostel guests to access their rooms, which is critical for ensuring a positive guest experience in a high-traffic environment.

Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Goki's mobile key solution is 94% recommended by 73 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Goki Mobile Key & Keyless Entry
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Goki's mobile key solution is 94% recommended by 73 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
99 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Duve's contactless check-in solution is 97% recommended by 41 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Duve - Online Check-in Contactless Check-in
THE PITCH
RATINGS
99 HT Score
Duve's contactless check-in solution is 97% recommended by 41 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Payment Processor & Accounting Software

Now that you’re getting reservations, how do you collect payment? If your PMS doesn’t include one, you’ll need to set up a payment processor to collect funds from guests’ credit cards and transfer those funds to your bank account. Payment processors, like Stripe, Planet and Adyen, can integrate with your PMS or POS for effortless credit card charging. Then once you’ve collected funds, you need to keep track of where that money is going. Some accounting software, like QuickBooks, is industry-agnostic, while others, like Xero or Inn-Flow, are hospitality-specific. Within your accounting tool, you can draw up invoices, bill vendors, and run financial reporting.

Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
98 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Aptech's accounting software is 99% recommended by 10 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
Product logo
PVNG (by Aptech) Finance & Accounting Software
THE PITCH
RATINGS
98 HT Score
Aptech's accounting software is 99% recommended by 10 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
Learn More
Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
79 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Omniboost is 93% recommended by 6 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
Product logo
Omniboost Finance & Accounting Software
THE PITCH
RATINGS
79 HT Score
Omniboost is 93% recommended by 6 hostels on HotelTechReport.com
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Point of Sale System

Besides a PMS, if your hostel sells any type of food, drinks, merchandise, or tickets, or charges fees for linens, laundry, or lockers, then you’ll want to use a point of sale system to handle billing and collect payments. Some property management systems have a POS built in, while others support POS integrations. With a PMS and POS integration, you have the option to add charges to a guest’s folio so they can pay for all purchases (room rate, F&B, merchandise, and more) in one transaction upon checkout. Many modern POSs, like Micros and Clover, accept not only credit cards, but also contactless payment options like ApplePay and Google Pay, so that guests can pay using their preferred method.

Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
99 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Expand Hotel Food and Beverage Revenue with Flexible, Easy-to-Use Technology
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Oracle MICROS Point of Sale for Hotel Restaurants Restaurant Management Software
THE PITCH
RATINGS
99 HT Score
Expand Hotel Food and Beverage Revenue with Flexible, Easy-to-Use Technology
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Image
THE PITCH
RATINGS BEST FOR
100 HT Score
Hotel Tech Score is a composite ranking comprising of key signals such as: user satisfaction, review quantity, review recency, and vendor submitted information to help buyers better understand their products.
Learn More
Vento POS is a superior cloud-based POS and stock system for restaurants & bars
Product logo
Vento ePOS Restaurant Management Software
THE PITCH
RATINGS
100 HT Score
Vento POS is a superior cloud-based POS and stock system for restaurants & bars
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Although these are the most critical pieces of software for managing hostels, the list of tech solutions doesn’t end here. Other common software tools include contactless check-in kiosks, keyless smart locks, reputation management systems, housekeeping management systems, and more. But it’s not about the number of systems in your tech stack, it’s about how you use them. Your technology should enhance your hostel’s guest experience, not over-complicate it.

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Jordan Hollander
Jordan is the co-founder of Hotel Tech Report, the hotel industry's app store where millions of professionals discover tech tools to transform their businesses. He was previously on the Global Partnerships team at Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Prior to his work with SPG, Jordan was Director of Business Development at MWT Hospitality and an equity analyst at Wells Capital Management. Jordan received his MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management where he was a Zell Global Entrepreneurship Scholar and a Pritzker Group Venture Fellow.