Owning a short-term rental has tons of perks: tax benefits, passive income, and investment diversification. The question is, can Airbnb hosts and property managers capitalize on the surging demand for short vacation rentals?

You know how cumbersome it can be if you’ve been managing Airbnb listings on the platform. Think about the hours spent replying to inquiries, coordinating guest check-ins, and the cleaning staff. Or tricky calculations to find the sweet spot for your rental price.

Thankfully, you can now be a better host by using the best Airbnb management software. Like many apps and digital technologies, Airbnb property management software has undergone massive upgrades in the past two years. With more innovative AI features, you can automate almost any Airbnb workflow for multiple rental properties. It’s great to see how AI is making its way into nearly every business.

Whether you’re hosting a single property or own a sizable portfolio, AI now takes over mundane and repetitive tasks in managing rental tasks. It frees up your time by automating time-consuming processes, including sorting and replying to guest messages. 

Undoubtedly, AI automation is key to scaling your Airbnb operations. The question is, which Airbnb management software works best for you and your business? 

I spent hours comparing different Airbnb property management software and shortlisted six promising options that are sure to surpass your needs.

What is the Best Airbnb Management Software? 

These are Airbnb property management software that helps you grow your rental business. 

Best Airbnb Management Software:

  • Best Overall for Airbnb Management: Hospitable
  • Best for Large-Scale Property Managers: Guesty for Pros
  • Best Affordable Airbnb Management Software: iGMS
  • Best for Building Airbnb Rental Websites: Lodgify
  • Best for User-Friendly Tools: Smoobu
  • Best for Delivering Personalized Guest Experience: Hostfully

1. Hospitable

Best Overall for Airbnb Management

Hospitable was formerly Smartbnb. It is a popular property management software that many Airbnb hosts use to grow and manage their listings. Hospitable boasts many AI-capable features that help property managers save time on Airbnb tasks, including channel manager, automated task management, analytics, and more.  

These are reasons why Hospitable is my top pick for Airbnb rental management. 

  • Hospitable uses AI to do the heavy lifting on guest communication. It allows you to edit pre-built templates and customize messaging schedules for every guest interaction point. 
  • It only takes one click, literally, to integrate with your Airbnb account. Besides, Hospitable also synchronizes your listing on Booking, VRBO, and other platforms. The platform uses dynamic pricing tools to calculate and set the best price in real-time on all platforms. 
  • You can automate almost every Airbnb task with the platform. For example, the Airbnb software automatically sends a notification to your cleaner, manager, or maintenance based on configured rules.  
  • The app’s messenger is also highly-intelligent. It can analyze the guest’s question and choose a response from several templates. 
  • The software sends daily market reports that shed light on how you fare against competitors and adjust your pricing strategies. 
  • Hospitable lacks advanced reporting features that allow property owners to dive deeper into their rental performance. 

Pricing

Hospitable offers a flat rate of $25/month for up to 2 listings. For subsequent listings, you’ll only pay if a guest checks in. You can try Hospitable free for 14 days. 

Verdict

Hospitable is a good all-rounded property management software with robust automation and messaging tools. Its semi-flexible payment plan is ideal for individual hosts and mid-size property rental businesses.

try hospitable here

2. Guesty For Pros

Best for Large Scale Property Owners

Guesty For Pros is the best property management software for property managers who want to manage rental listings automatically on multiple platforms. It provides all the necessary automation tools, such as calendar integration, task management, and pricing adjustment on both web software and mobile app. I like how Guesty For Pros adds a touch of personalization with AI in its automated messaging and flight tracking tools.

Check out these pros and cons before trying Guesty For Pros 

  • You can avoid double bookings with its accurate, real-time calendar management tool. It allows you to integrate and view all rental properties and channels from a single dashboard.
  • Guesty For Pros offers smart pricing integration with PriceLab and WheelHouse. You can set your nightly charge once on the software, which will automatically adjust the price on different platforms to include the varying commissions. 
  • The app uses AI and neurolinguistic processing (NLP) to detect and respond to guest messages in their native languages. 
  • Choose from 60+ templates to automatically write a glowing review for your guests. This encourages them to reciprocate by leaving a review for your Airbnb business.
  • Use the app’s flight tracking tool to anticipate guest delays and reschedule check-in, onboarding tasks, and automated messages accordingly. 
  • Sadly, setting up automated messages on Guesty For Pros is not as intuitive as I expected.

Pricing

Guesty For Pros provides a custom quote to property owners with 4 or more listings. However, you can try Guesty For Hosts, a basic version of Guesty, with the following rates. 

  • 1 listing – $44/month.
  • 2 listings – $66/month.
  • 3 listings – $88/month.

Verdict

Guesty For Pros is likely to be pricier than competing Airbnb property management software providers, based on the subscription price for its basic version. Still, it offers many AI automation tools that help balance occupancy and profitability for large-scale property owners.

try guesty here

3. iGMS

Best Affordable Airbnb Management Software

iGMS is an affordable property management system for new Airbnb hosts. With a flexible plan that charges $1 per booked night, it allows you to reduce operational costs as you get your Airbnb business up and running. Despite being cost-friendly software, iGMS offers AI-powered features that rival premium competitors. For example, it has an intelligent multi-calendar and supports direct bookings from websites and social media pages. 

Here are why iGMS enjoys massive support amongst the Airbnb community and what it sorely lacks: 

  • The software’s multi-calendar lets you schedule tasks and manage reservations from Airbnb and other online travel agencies like VRBO and Booking. It shows booking links, money earned, and channels where the booking was made. Clicking into each reservation provides more options, such as adjusting prices or sending guests messages. 
  • You can connect multiple Airbnb accounts with iGMS. This is handy for large businesses with a team of property managers. 
  • The software has a smart, unified, AI-powered inbox. It allows you to check all guest messages from different platforms, create automated responses or send replies manually. The inbox also has a to-do list to keep track of pending tasks for each guest. 
  • iGMS works with Keyface, an online service that notifies hosts and cleaners when the guests have checked out and returned their keys. 
  • iGMS lacks a dynamic pricing tool, which according to their website, is still under development.  

Pricing

For one to four listings, you can subscribe to iGMS for $14/month for each property. Meanwhile, Airbnb property managers with more than four listings pay $20 per property per month. Alternatively, sign up for the Flex plan, which charges $1 per booked night with a minimum of $20 per property monthly. 

Verdict

iGMS makes starting an Airbnb business effortless and affordable. It is the go-to property management to trim costs when you’re just starting out.

Try iGMS Today

4. Lodgify 

Best for Building Airbnb Rental Websites

Lodgify provides modern, easy-to-use tools to build a vacation rental website in minutes. Once built, you can use the website on WordPress, Drupal, or Squarespace to process bookings. Lodgify also has a channel manager and other automation tools that integrate with top rental listing platforms, including Airbnb, VRBO, and Expedia.

These are areas where Lodgify shines and some areas for improvement:

  • Its website builder is arguably the most user-friendly and feature-rich among competing vendors. You can design with pre-built templates to build SEO and mobile-optimized websites in 30+ languages.
  • Lodgify integrates with Google Analytics. This gives you deeper insights into your traffic sources for optimizing visibility and conversions. 
  • Easily create or import your listing from Airbnb with Lodgify’s property management software. Then, edit the rental information quickly with a few clicks. For example, you can modify the sleeping arrangement by clicking + or – on baby cribs, double beds, king-size beds, and other sleeping options. 
  • The software’s smart AI messaging tool lets you automate conversations with guests. You can also reply to guests on Whatsapp and SMS. 
  • Lodgify lacks flexibility in communication automation. For example, it sends all scheduled messages at 00:00 GMT, and you can’t change the hour. 
  • The software might become sluggish when streamlining dozens of listings. 

Pricing

Lodgify offers several plans that range from $0 to $56. However, only Lodgify Ultimate, which costs $56, provides all the advanced management tools to manage and automate your Airbnb listings. 

Verdict

Lodgify is the ideal Airbnb property management software for property managers who want to brand their business with modern, engaging websites.

Try Lodgify Today

5. Smoobu

Best for User-Friendly Tools

Smoobu is an Airbnb property management software with professional tools tailored for less tech-savvy beginners. Despite adding more features, Smoobu keeps its interface clean, uncluttered, and easy to navigate. It allows you to connect automatically to 15 vacation rental listing platforms, including Airbnb, VRBO, and Bookings. Smoobu enables you to create your own website with a no-code web builder.

Smoobu users are showering the app with praises for these reasons:

  • It takes minimal effort to get started with Smoobu’s channel manager. Smoobu lets you block off specific dates, synchronize rates, or prevent double bookings on multiple platforms.
  • You can create a personalized guest guide with Smoobu. It contains helpful information, such as WiFi passwords, food, emergency contacts, maps, and local attractions. Smoobu’s AI will automatically translate it into forty languages for your guest.
  • I’m impressed with the range of integrations (fifty to be exact), considering how affordable Smoobu is. For example, Smoobu integrates with ten online check-in services, including Chekin, Duve, MyMaison, and Vikey. 
  • Smoobu has an AI-powered unified inbox that allows you to organize and automate message sending and replies. You can reuse or edit from the templates and schedule the messages at certain events. 
  • Smoobu’s invoicing report is not fully streamlined with the financial statements on 3rd party platforms. For example, it misses out on the commission received from the reservation payments. 

Pricing

Smoobu offers a commission-free, flat fee pricing that starts from $29.53 / month for the Professional version. It has a free Basic plan that runs without the channel manager and other advanced automation tools. Large-scale property managers can sign up for Smoobu Team at $193.44 / month.

Verdict

Smoobu is an all-in-one solution for running a successful Airbnb business. It remains an agile, easy-to-use Airbnb software despite continuously adding advanced features. Also, Smoobu’s flat-rate pricing makes it an attractive option.

Try Smoobu Here

6. Hostfully

Best for Delivering Personalized Guest Experience

Hostfully is an award-winning property management software with a strong focus on customer engagement. It has a standalone digital guidebook solution that can be integrated with the property management app. Hostfully provides end-to-end management of your Airbnb vacation rental properties with automated messaging, multi-channel integrations, and guest management tools. 

These are the pros and cons of Hostfully:

  • The booking pipeline is a unique feature that lets you have an overview of every guest’s onboarding journey. You can send quotes, and check-in instructions or engage with each guest differently. 
  • I like how Hostfully uses the data collected from its property management software to create beautiful and helpful digital guidebooks. For example, you can include local recommendations and highlight them on the map for your guests when creating the guidebook.
  • The software’s channel manager streamlines your listings on Airbnb, Booking, Yonder, and Tripadvisor. Set your rate once, and it will update the price dynamically on all platforms. 
  • Hostfully also integrates with other channel managers, such as MyBookingPal, Rental Uniteds, and NextPax. It is the only one amongst other vacation rental software in this review that lets you expand your listings exponentially in this manner.
  • You can use its color-coded multi-calendar to manage vacancies with ease. For example, you can filter multiple properties by vacancies and recommend them to potential guests. 
  • Hostfully’s price range is expensive for hosts with less than twenty properties. 
  • You’re provided with basic reporting features, and there are limits when streamlining reports from certain channels. 

Price

Hostfully starts at $99 per month (Gasp!!) for 1-4 listings, plus a $400 implementation fee, which is waived on its annual plan. 

Verdict

Hostfully is not the cheapest Airbnb property management software, but it’s one to go for if you want to impress your guests with hyper-personalized engagement throughout their stay.

Try Hostfully Here

What is Airbnb Management Software? 

Airbnb management software is software that allows property managers, owners, and hosts to automate their property management businesses. The software uses AI technologies to streamline Airbnb tasks, such as updating listings on 3rd party platforms, adjusting prices, coordinating cleaning schedules, and replying to guest inquiries. 

What are the benefits of Airbnb Property Management Software?

Without Airbnb property management software, you will be overwhelmed by day-to-day tasks instead of growing your Airbnb businesses. Airbnb property management software is like a virtual assistant that coordinates your vacation rental business workflow. It puts an end to careless mistakes, which are inevitable, as you juggle between different tasks. 

Many Airbnb owners can scale their businesses and reduce costs using property management software. Moreover, guests find their stay more enjoyable because they are attended to promptly, thanks to smart AI messaging tools, integrations, and chatbots. 

What are the important features when choosing Airbnb Management Software? 

When you choose Airbnb management software, make sure that it excels in these features because they’ll make your life easier. 

  • Channel management. This allows you to list, manage and receive reservations on Airbnb and other major platforms.
  • Automated inbox. You can read and respond to all messages from a single dashboard instead of switching between multiple vacation rental platforms. 
  • Dynamic pricing. This feature automatically adjusts the pricing of your listings on all platforms based on real-time demand, events, and other influencing factors. 
  • Website builder. A good website builder lets you create a brandable and professional vacation rental site for your Airbnb property management business.
  • Reporting and analytics. This helps you to make smart decisions as you plan your next steps to grow your business. 
  • Team management. A tool that lets you coordinate cleaners, managers, maintenance, and administrative staff with timely reminders. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) 

What is Airbnb automation?

Airbnb automation is AI technology that allows you to plan, schedule, and coordinate specific tasks and delegate the implementation part to cloud computing software. Vacation rental management systems use Airbnb automation to provide vacation rental owners access to seamless revenue management, advanced analytics and property listings on multiple channels.

How hard is it to run an Airbnb?

Like any business, being an Airbnb host has its challenges. It takes up a large part of your time to oversee cleaning, manage bookings, prepare tax payments, and ensure that your guests have a pleasant experience. You must also be prepared to deal with unexpected emergencies or, at times, demanding guests. 

Where do Airbnb hosts make the most money?

Airbnb hosts in North America earned an average of $41,026 in 2021. Meanwhile, their Asia Pacific counterparts recorded $14,629 per annum in the same year, followed by European Airbnb hosts with $13,567.

Does Airbnb have an API?

Yes. Airbnb launched its API in 2017. API is a software protocol that allows property management software such as Hospitable to synchronize your listing, reservations, and calendar on Airbnb. 

How do I automate Airbnb cleaning? 

You must work closely with your cleaning team to ensure that the next guest has a pleasant experience. This involves creating a checklist for cleaning chores, preparing cleaning items, and sharing the schedule with your cleaners. It is still manageable when you’re hosting a single property, but using AI-powered software helps as your business grows. 

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