Channel manager
The channel manager for Airbnb, Vrbo and Booking.com
Hostibly connects Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Stayz, Expedia and Tripadvisor to one calendar through two-way iCal feeds. Paste each channel's calendar link and the first import runs straight away. There is no API approval queue to wait in, no price-per-listing wall, and a conflict alert the moment two bookings overlap.
One manager for the channels you actually list on
Channel connections
2 listings · 6 channels
Two-wayAirbnb
2 listings
Two-wayBooking.com
2 listings
Two-wayVrbo
2 listings
Two-wayExpedia
1 listing
Two-wayStayz
1 listing
Two-wayTripadvisor
1 listing
- No FeesDirect bookings go straight to your own Stripe account
- Unified calendarSee all your bookings and track cleaning tasks in one place
- UnlimitedConnect as many calendars to your listings as you want
Connected in minutes, not an approval queue
The big channel managers connect through the booking sites' APIs. Those APIs are only open to approved partners, which is why their onboarding can feel like a loan application. Hostibly uses the calendar format every channel already gives you.
The API route
How Guesty and Hostaway connect your channels.
- Airbnb, Vrbo and Booking.com keep their APIs closed to approved software partners
- Approval is per channel, per market and sometimes per plan tier
- The tool, not you, decides which connections it has been granted
To be fair to it: once approved, an API connection updates in near real time and can carry rates, photos and messages. That speed is what you are paying the enterprise prices for.
The Hostibly route
Two-way iCal, the format every channel speaks already.
- Copy the calendar link out of the channel settings and paste it into the listing
- The first import runs immediately and backfills your existing bookings
- Works the same way for a portfolio of two listings or forty
What a channel manager costs
Ten listings turning over $25,000 in bookings a month pay Guesty Lite $340 on the pay-as-you-grow plan: $90 in subscriptions plus $250 in reservation fees, every month, before any add-ons. Hostibly charges your plan price and nothing per reservation that passes through the sync.
| Tool | How it is priced | Ten listings, $25,000 a month |
|---|---|---|
| Guesty Lite, pay as you grow | from $9 per listing a month, plus 1% of each reservation | $90 in subscriptions plus $250 in reservation fees |
| Guesty Lite, annual | from $20 per listing a month, billed annually | from $200 a month |
| Hostaway | no published price, quoted per portfolio | $125 to $175 a month for 1 to 4 listings |
| Hostibly | your plan price, nothing per reservation | no reservation fees, no commission on bookings that sync |
What you run from one dashboard
- Six channels, one calendar
- Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Stayz, Expedia and Tripadvisor bookings land in one multi-property calendar, colour-coded by channel.
- Two-way, not import only
- Hostibly pulls each channel feed and publishes its own back out, so direct bookings and owner blocks reach every OTA.
- Block once, close everywhere
- Block a date in Hostibly rather than in Airbnb, and it propagates to every connected channel instead of one.
- Conflict alerts
- When two reservations overlap inside a refresh window, the alert lands with you, not with the second guest at check-in.
- Anything that speaks iCal
- Niche listing sites, Google Calendar and owner block-outs all count as channels, with no cap on links per listing.
- Bookings start the work
- A synced booking can create the cleaning task, assign the team member and send the guest confirmation email.
Hosts running every channel from one place
I was a bit skeptical at first, but the setup service from Hostibly really delivered. All 14 listings were live in less than a month, and now my site genuinely reflects my brand and style.
Amy MorrisCohostHostibly has made running my business a lot easier. The cleaner scheduling especially saves me a ton of time. Direct bookings have also helped me keep more repeat customers. It's nice not losing money to fees.
Daniel KingmaSuper HostWe've booked over $50k directly through our website in eight months with Hostibly. Unsurprisingly, local businesses love booking directly because our prices are better, and we offer discounts for longer stays.
BrandonProperty Manager and Cohost
Channel manager questions
Need help? Contact us here
- What is a channel manager for vacation rentals?
- It keeps availability consistent across every site you list on. A date sells on Airbnb, and it closes on Vrbo, Booking.com and your direct booking site, all from one calendar instead of six tabs. Hostibly does this with two-way iCal feeds: it subscribes to each channel calendar and publishes its own feed that the channels subscribe to in turn. Hosts with two listings use it to stop double bookings. Hosts with twenty use it to stop tab switching.
- Do I need a channel manager with only one or two listings?
- Maybe not yet, and we would rather tell you that than sell you something you do not need. One listing on two channels can often run on the channels' own iCal imports, and plenty of hosts do exactly that. The case gets strong at three or more channels, a direct booking site, or multiple properties, because that is where refresh windows overlap and manual blocks start getting missed. Since the channel manager is part of your Hostibly plan rather than a separate subscription, there is no second invoice to justify.
- How is Hostibly different from Guesty and Hostaway?
- Connection method and price. Guesty and Hostaway connect through the booking sites' APIs, which are only open to approved software partners, and approval is per channel, per market and sometimes per plan tier. That is why their onboarding can feel like an application. Hostibly connects through iCal, the calendar format every channel already exposes in its settings, so setup is a pasted link with no eligibility gate. The honest trade: API connections update faster and can push rates, photos and guest messaging, while iCal carries availability. If you need dynamic rate pushes across a hundred listings, an API tool is the better fit. For small and mid portfolios, iCal covers the job that actually causes the pain.
- Can iCal sync still double book?
- Yes, inside a narrow window, and any tool that promises zero risk is overselling. Each OTA decides how often it pulls an iCal feed, and no iCal software can force a channel to refresh faster. Two guests can book the same dates on two platforms within that window; API connections narrow it further, which is their main advantage. What Hostibly does is flag the overlap the moment it receives both reservations, so you cancel or move one booking yourself instead of finding out at check-in.
- Which channels does Hostibly connect to?
- Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Stayz, Expedia and Tripadvisor, plus anything else that exposes an iCal link: smaller listing sites, Google Calendar for owner stays, or maintenance block-outs you keep elsewhere. There is no cap on the number of calendar links you can attach to a listing.
- Does it sync my rates, photos and listing descriptions?
- No, and we would rather say that up front. iCal feeds carry booked dates, a reservation reference and sometimes a partial guest name. Photos, nightly rates, listing copy and guest messages stay where you published them, so you keep editing those inside each channel. If pushing rates and content from one screen is most of your workload, an API-based tool is the better tool for that job.
- What does the Hostibly channel manager cost?
- It is part of your Hostibly plan, not a separate subscription, and we charge nothing per reservation that syncs through it and no commission on any booking. For comparison, Guesty Lite starts at $9 per listing a month plus 1% of every reservation on its pay-as-you-grow plan, or $20 per listing on annual billing. Hostaway prices by portfolio. Hostibly plan prices are on our pricing page, and the 14 day trial needs no card.
Connect your first channel today.
Start your 14 day free trial of the Team plan. No card required, and your first channel import runs in minutes.