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STRStack

Comparison

Hostfully vs Kigo

Pricing, pros and cons, and buyer-fit side-by-side. Pick the one that matches your operation — or see why neither should.

Property Management Software

Hostfully

Vacation rental property management software with strong channel distribution and owner-facing tools

Best Overall

A strong all-around STR PMS for managers graduating into multi-channel operations

From $15/listing • No free trial

Full review →Is it worth it?

Property Management Software

Kigo

All-in-one vacation rental PMS with channel management, now a Guesty company

Solid Option

Comprehensive channel management hampered by per-booking commissions and reliability issues

From $59/mo • Free trial

Full review →Is it worth it?
Visit Hostfully →Visit Kigo →
✓Editorial verdict

Which Should You Pick: Hostfully or Kigo?

Pick Hostfully if you want published per-property pricing, a unified inbox with AI triage, and an owner portal built into the PMS — especially in the 5–200 listing range. Pick Kigo if you prioritize a lower entry price at $59/mo and can tolerate per-booking commissions that scale with volume, or if you need a free trial before committing.

Editorial perspective from the Hostfully side; factual claims about Kigo are drawn from its review.

Pricing Side-by-Side

Hostfully

Full pricing →

From $15/listing • No free trial

Growth

$15/property/mo

1-50 listings

  • Full-scale property management solution
  • Channel manager and direct booking site
  • Unified inbox with templates and triggers
  • Mobile app
  • Owner portal and owner financial reports
  • Platform fee applies (amount unconfirmed)
Try Hostfully

Pro

$25/property/mo

1-199 listings

  • Everything in Growth
  • Dedicated Customer Success Manager
  • Additional onboarding support
  • Annual business review
  • Better fit for growing multi-property teams
  • Platform fee applies (amount unconfirmed)
Try Hostfully

Enterprise

Custom quote

Custom

  • Everything in Pro
  • Tailored onboarding
  • Priority customer support
  • Additional 1:1 customer success meetings
Try Hostfully

Kigo

Full pricing →

From $59/mo • Free trial

Flat monthly

$59/mo flat rate subscription. Kigo charges 1.25% on non-payment bookings (e.g., Airbnb where the OTA collects payment) and 4% on paid bookings (e.g., VRBO, Booking.com, Direct) — the 4% includes credit card processing fees (~2.8% Stripe), making the effective platform commission ~1.2%. Commission is charged even on cancelled bookings. Free trial available, no credit card required.

View full pricing →
Try Kigo

What each tool does well — and where it falls short

What Hostfully does well

  • Broad STR-specific feature set without forcing separate channel manager and owner portal tools
  • Strong multi-channel distribution and direct API connectivity across major OTAs
  • Good fit for growing vacation rental managers that need owner-facing workflows

What Kigo does well

  • Extensive channel management and synchronization

    Kigo offers seamless integration to major third-party channels with synchronized availability, rates, and content across multiple listing sites, reducing risk of double bookings and opening up sales revenue opportunities.

  • User-friendly interface for daily operations

    Users with 30+ years in vacation rentals find Kigo the quickest and easiest to learn for getting daily tasks completed, with straightforward processes for payments, refunds, and customer communication.

  • Comprehensive feature coverage in one platform

    Kigo integrates reservation management, distribution, marketing, revenue management, eSignature, and website creation in one platform, streamlining operations for property managers.

Where Hostfully falls short

  • Higher starting cost than lightweight PMS options for solo hosts
  • Enterprise-grade breadth can be more software than a 1-3 listing host needs
  • Some advanced pricing and implementation details still require a sales conversation

Where Kigo falls short

  • High pricing burden on smaller operations

    Pricing is consistently noted as high for smaller businesses, with minimum monthly fees that can be prohibitive for operators with limited vacation rental inventory.

  • Technical complexity and reliability issues

    Users report frequent bugs and glitches affecting integrations, calendar syncing, and website functionality, with an average Ease of Use rating of 3.7 versus the 4.5 category average.

  • Commission charges on all bookings including direct

    Unlike many competitors, Kigo charges a percentage of all bookings including direct bookings not acquired through channels, and continues charging commission even on cancelled bookings.

Which Should You Pick

Pick Hostfully if

Small-to-mid-sized vacation rental managers running 5-200 listings across multiple channels who need a full STR operating system with channel distribution, owner-facing tools, and guest messaging in one platform.

Skip Hostfully if

You're a hobbyist with one or two listings who only needs basic messaging automation or simple calendar sync — Hostfully is more software than you need at that scale.

Pick Kigo if

Mid-to-large vacation rental managers seeking comprehensive channel distribution and established integrations

Skip Kigo if

Budget-conscious small operators or those prioritizing cost efficiency over extensive channel connectivity

Where Hostfully and Kigo actually differ

  • Hostfully charges per property starting at $15/property/mo on Growth (1–50 listings), before a platform fee whose amount Hostfully does not publish with no per-booking fees, while Kigo starts at $59/mo but adds 1.25–4% commissions on every booking — including cancellations.
  • Hostfully includes a built-in owner portal and digital guidebooks as part of its platform; Kigo focuses on channel distribution and reservation management without a comparable owner-facing layer.
  • Kigo offers a free trial with no credit card required, whereas Hostfully has no free trial and requires committing to at least the $15/property/mo Growth plan.
  • Hostfully's verdict among operators is 'best-overall' for multi-channel portfolio management, while Kigo carries a 'neutral' rating due to reported reliability issues with calendar syncing.
  • Kigo is now a Guesty subsidiary, which may affect its independent roadmap; Hostfully operates as a standalone PMS vendor with its own product direction.

Common objections

Kigo is half the base price — why pay more for Hostfully?
Kigo's $59/mo base is lower, but the 1.25–4% per-booking commissions add up quickly. A portfolio doing $20K/mo in paid-channel bookings would pay roughly $800/mo in Kigo commissions alone, pushing total cost well past Hostfully's $15/property/mo on Growth or $25/property/mo on Pro fixed plan.
Kigo has been around since 2008 — isn't it more proven?
Kigo has longevity, but its current owner-rating reflects reliability concerns around calendar sync and channel management bugs. Hostfully's fixed-price model and operator-focused tooling like InboxAI and the owner portal address workflow needs that Kigo's legacy architecture has been slower to modernize.
Does it matter that Kigo is now owned by Guesty?
It could. Guesty's acquisition means Kigo's roadmap may be shaped by Guesty's broader product strategy rather than independent development priorities. Operators who want a PMS with a self-directed product roadmap may prefer Hostfully's independence.

Keep Digging

Hostfully

A strong all-around STR PMS for managers graduating into multi-channel operations

Full Hostfully review →Is it worth it?

Kigo

Comprehensive channel management hampered by per-booking commissions and reliability issues

Full Kigo review →Is it worth it?