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Booking Engine: Booking Engine Fee

Victor
  • Updated

What is the Booking Engine Fee?

  • The Booking Engine Fee or Guest Service Fee is a nominal charge of 1.8% of the base rate and fees, excluding taxes, applied to all reservations processed through the Hostaway Booking Engine, including  Google Vacation Rental ones which are finalized in the Booking Engine



By default, the first option is selected in the system.
paid by the guest is turned enabled
However, if you want to change this setting you just simply follow the next steps:
want
I would hyperlink both of these to the corresponding explanation in the current article if possible.

How it works?

  • The Guest Service Fee will be deducted from your Stripe payout under the "Hostaway Application fee"
  • The Booking Engine Fee can be paid by guest or paid by host
  • By default, paid by the guest is turned enabled
  • However, if you want this fee to be paid by the host you just simply follow the next steps:
    1. Go to your Hostaway Dashboard > Listings > Edit > Price & Fees > Guest service fee

      image (81).png
    2. Untick the checkbox Include in reservation total (paid by guest)
    3. Click on Save to apply the changes

 

Paid by guest vs. Paid by host

Paid by guest

  • If you decide to charge it to the guest, it will be applied at the reservation checkout and passed directly to the guest. This way it will not affect your net revenue, so you as a property manager will not be charged for this fee

    image (82).png

  • The price breakdown of the reservation will be something similar to:
    • Guest books for $1,000 (excluding taxes)
    • An additional 1.8% ($18) is added to the booking
    • The total (excluding taxes) for the guest becomes $1,018
  • If you include the fee in the price breakdown in the booking engine, the total price increases. This means that your payout stays the same since you pass on the fee to the guest. 

 

Paid by host

  • You assume the Guest Service Fee

    image (83).png

  • If you exclude the fee from the price breakdown in the booking engine, the total price stays the same. This means that your payout decreases since you don't pass the cost onto the guest.

 

Why Booking Engine Fee is being applied?

This fee is part of our ongoing commitment to driving more direct bookings for our property managers.

  • The fee is applied when a reservation is made through the Hostaway Booking Engine or is coming from Google Vacation Rental, ensuring alignment with your success
  • We've conducted guest research to ensure this fee remains acceptable and does not burden property managers directly
  • This year alone, we've made substantial investments in our Booking Engine, resulting in a 144% increase in conversion rates
  • The Booking Engine Fee is designed to cover the costs associated with booking engine use.

 

Finally, you must understand that this is not the only option. You can use any booking engine with Hostaway or even build your own through our integrations.

If you need any clarification about the Booking Engine Fee, please do not hesitate to contact our support team.

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