Property Management Systems (PMSs) are essential tools for vacation rental management companies of all sizes. The level of guest experience that today’s most successful property managers provide wouldn’t be possible without a PMS to make sure that things run smoothly and efficiently behind the scenes.
But with so many software products on the market, how do you find the best vacation rental PMS for business growth?
According to our research, 81% of property managers use a PMS to take care of their day-to-day operations. On top of that, 57% use a specialised Channel Manager to maximise their distribution potential.
At Rentals United, we believe that these two pieces of core tech can work together in a way that generates endless opportunities for property managers aiming to grow their businesses. We want to help you make sense of what’s out there – and find the best solution for you.
That’s why, every year, we ask our PMS partners to provide us with detailed information about their products. Then, we compile it into an ebook called The Who’s Who of Property Management Systems. And today, we’re proud to say the 2021 version is here!
Here’s what you’ll learn about each PMS in the ebook:
- Features
- Integrations
- Type of inventory accepted
- Supported languages
- Number of listings connected
- Business model (commission/flat fee)
- Starting price
- And much more!
Later on in this article, we’ll give you a glimpse into the ebook and talk about some of the PMS providers in it. But first, let’s take a look at what makes a truly great PMS.
What makes a vacation rental PMS stand out from the crowd?
Property Management Systems have one job: to make your day-to-day life easier. Of course, this job is neither easy nor simple. In the realm of property management, particularly in the domain of serviced accommodations, the demand for efficient systems is paramount. These systems are designed to streamline operations, enhance guest experiences, and ultimately optimize overall management processes. From booking management to housekeeping coordination, effective serviced accommodation management relies heavily on robust property management systems that can adapt to the dynamic needs of the industry
A vacation rental PMS must provide property managers with tools to efficiently manage bookings, guest/staff communication, accounting, payment processing, reporting, and a whole host of other operational tasks.
Hundreds of software providers around the world have taken on the challenge of building a Property Management System. As you might expect, some have been more successful at it than others.
So what are some of the qualities that distinguish a great vacation rental PMS from a second-tier one?
Outstanding operations management
First and foremost, your PMS should provide visibility and intuitive processes on and for essential operations to keep better track of tasks and schedules that have a direct impact on the guest experience.
Integration with a specialised Channel Manager
The best PMSs integrate with specialised Channel Management platforms to provide their clients with a large variety of channels to distribute their listings on through highly stable API connections.
Built-in CRM
Your PMS should help you get a clear picture of who your guests are, including their location, their preferences and their histories with your brand.
Integrations with RMSs and other tools
It’s essential that your vacation rental PMS integrates with a Revenue Management System in order to provide a basis for more accurate analysis and forecasting so you can confidently adjust your pricing. This should also help you define KPIs for sustainable and competitive strategies that’ll push you towards success.
Adaptability
Last but not least, your PMS must be able to adapt to your future growth in new locations and markets, as well as new technologies that might emerge.
Why do PMSs connect with specialised Channel Managers?
As the vacation rental industry grows, the competition between software providers intensifies. Many tech companies try to gain ground by coming out with hybrid or “all-in-one” tech solutions, but they often end up having too many balls in the air.
Most PMSs directly integrate with a couple of channels. However, the ones that truly focus on providing property managers with the best tools to manage their business also integrate with specialised Channel Managers. Why?
Because Channel Managers distribute to dozens of global OTAs and niche listing sites, providing property managers with a diverse marketing mix. Another reason is that Channel Managers use robust API connections and two-way synchronisation instead of one-way iCal connections.
The “leave distribution to the experts” approach has worked for some of the best PMS providers out there. This way, they can focus on what they do best, and property managers can experience a host of benefits, such as:
- A wide variety of distribution options
- Professional tools to manage distribution (advanced pricing options, etc.)
- Expert content optimisation
- No double bookings
- Less manual work
- Increased occupancy and bookings
Don’t take our word for it. As we learned from one of our PMS partners, Bookipro:
“We don’t want to connect directly to OTAs. Channel management has to be done by professionals and most all-in-one PMSs have lots of synchronization problems. The benefit of using channel managers like Rentals United is that the clients have the best professional tools available for every aspect of their business and they appreciate it.”
Bookipro
The Who’s Who of Vacation Rental PMS providers
There are so many vacation rental PMS providers out there, it’s almost impossible to choose the right one.
To help you narrow down your search, we’ve put together an ebook that contains vital information on 19 property management systems that integrate with Rentals United.
You’ll find out:
- What features the PMSs have
- How they compare in terms of pricing
- What integrations they have
- What languages they support
- How much investment they’ve received
These platforms are truly exceptional at what they do. Our goal at Rentals United is always to help property managers grow their businesses, and we hope we can do that by sharing this information with you.
To give you a taste, here are 10 examples of the PMSs featured in our ebook. You can find the rest and get access to exclusive data in your free copy of the Who’s Who of PMSs. Download it now!
10 of the best vacation rental PMSs for business growth
1. Anytime Booking
- Average size of property managers: N/A
Anytime Booking specialises in the outdoor holiday rental market. Their innovative booking management platform supports the holiday let, camping, glamping and motorhome hire sectors. It’s a platform rich in useful features that let you track direct bookings, manage guest communications and OTA reservations in one place.
Anytime Booking integrates with the Rentals United Channel Manager.
“Our connection with RU is an integral part of our drive to provide a competitive advantage to our users. By using the integration, our clients can tap seamlessly into a wide range of distribution opportunities, and make great strides in growing their business, both nationally and internationally.”
Anytime Booking
2. Bookipro
- Average size of property managers: 110 properties
BookiPro has more than ten years of experience in offering online services. They’ve developed an online PMS software for property managers and owners to help them administer their vacation rentals businesses, campsites or apart-hotels as effectively as possible.
“Only small companies want an all-in-one software. Professional companies with 10+ properties usually use a PMS with an external channel manager. With RU, our customers have an excellent channel manager that lets them synchronize and manage multiple OTAs without problems. And with Bookipro, our PMS, they have a powerful, complete and flexible PMS that integrates with the best external tools.”
Bookipro
3. Res:harmonics
- Average size of property managers: 20 properties
Res:harmonics was designed from the bottom up to help serviced apartment, private rental and holiday rental providers increase their profit. Their web-based property management system has all the features property managers need to maximise sales and reduce costs.
“We have integrated with Rentals United, which means clients can better manage their distribution and focus on revenue management and customer/guest experience.”
Res:harmonics
4. BookingStudio
- Average size of property managers: 100-200 properties
BookingStudio is a two-in-one booking system and ecommerce platform for accommodation rentals, including holiday homes and holiday apartments. Their software is easy-to-use and lets property managers set up automated workflows, so they can manage anything from a handful of properties to thousands.
“We have collaborations with RentalsUnited and NextPax. The benefit to the clients is access to the large OTAs (we don’t have any direct integrations yet). We are also preparing to serve PMs in more regions and therefore we expect the need/demand for a great channel management solution is a given.”
BookingStudio
5. LMPM
- Average size of property managers: 128 properties
LMPM (Lightmaker Property Manager) is a cloud-based, mobile, pre-scaled enterprise PMS that’s been in development for over six years. The platform was designed to help property managers and owners oversee booking, cleaning, maintenance, updates, guest services, and more.
“The reason we use channel management companies/tools is that for many OTAs, and especially local and niche sites, it’s simply better to use a channel manager to free up time for property managers to look after their guests and grow their businesses rather than deal with the idiosyncrasies of each channel. This is a really important point because if a PM is spending time on learning how to optimize each channel they are by definition taking time away from their guests and the growth of their business.”
LMPM
6. Hostfully
- Average size of property managers: 25-75 properties
Hostfully is a complete, end-to-end property management system that helps vacation rental property managers increase bookings and boost their revenue. They provide intuitive multi-account access, centralised reservation system, owner and guest management, among other features.
Hostfully integrates with the Rentals United Channel Manager.
“For our clients, channel managers are a critical component of their toolbelts. These tools display properties across a range of booking channels, listing sites, and OTAs. They reduce double bookings, reduce manual coordination, and ultimately help our managers grow and scale their businesses efficiently.”
Hostfully
7. Guesty
- Average size of property managers: between 5-3,000 properties
Guesty is an end-to-end solution that enables property managers to streamline and automate all operational tasks associated with short-term property management. With 13+ core features, the platform is the most robust on the market and the highest-funded in the short-term rental ecosystem.
Guesty integrates with the Rentals United Channel Manager.
“Channel Management services help clients gain additional visibility to travelers across the globe and in turn, deliver higher occupancy rates for property management companies. Channel distribution increases occupancy consistently throughout seasons (as this is global distribution, various seasons across the globe offer a chance for travelers to find listings).”
Guesty
8. Bookster
- Average size of property managers: 20+ properties
With over ten years of experience in both self-catering, camping & caravanning accommodation, Bookster created an easy-to-use property management system (PMS). The tool helps you increase bookings, take payments as well as create highly effective websites to market your properties.
Bookster integrates with the Rentals United Channel Manager.
“We’re integrated with Rentals United as well as offering some direct channels ourselves. This offers our clients a wide spectrum of choice for local, specialised and global channels at a cost that suits their business needs.”
Bookster
9. Hostify
- Average size of property managers: 60 properties
Hostify helps property managers run their vacation rental business by offering them a platform that includes all the tools needed to handle every aspect of their day-to-day operations. They streamline your vacation rental business and gather all your interactions in a single dashboard.
Hostify integrates with the Rentals United Channel Manager.
“Hostify is directly integrated with the main OTAs but we also have full integration with Rentals United. This gives our customers the freedom of choice and the opportunity to broaden their advertising and reach a vast number of potential clients. Content management is also made easy through Hostify’s integration with Rentals United. Being able to provide this service is really beneficial to our business as it completes our product really well.”
Hostify
10. Bookfull
- Average size of property managers: 7 properties
Bookful is a comprehensive vacation rental property management platform that helps short-term rental managers and owners distribute their business for an enhanced guest experience.
Bookfull integrates with the Rentals United Channel Manager.
“We have a direct integration with Airbnb and are working with Expedia, Booking.com and TripAdvisor this year. We also have an integration with Rentals United to connect to channels that we do not directly connect to. This gives our clients a wide variety of options to connect with channels.”
Bookfull
Download the Who’s Who of Property Management systems for exclusive data on 37 PMS providers that integrate with Rentals United.
Rentals United partners with 60+ PMS providers – check out the complete list here.
Further reading:
Property Management Systems: 5 Reasons You Need One
The Difference Between a PMS and a Channel Manager
PMS Channel Connections vs Dedicated Channel Manager
Want to learn more about connecting your PMS to a Channel Manager? Talk to one of our distribution experts!