Smoobu reviews show that this is a vacation rental management software designed with the aim to simplify the day-to-day management tasks for property owners and managers. It integrates various functionalities such as booking management, channel management, communication tools, and payment processing into a single platform.
Through this, Smoobu offers a streamlined approach to managing listings across multiple platforms like Airbnb, Booking.com, and Vrbo. This is supposed to not only enhance operational efficiency but also improve occupancy rates and revenue for property owners.
Market-wise, Smoobu positions itself as a user-friendly, cost-effective tool tailored for small to medium-sized property managers looking to optimize their rental business. Its competitive edge lies in its ability to offer a centralized system for managing bookings and operations, eliminating the need for multiple Airbnb tools. This makes Smoobu particularly relevant in the vacation rental market, where efficiency and ease of use are key to staying competitive.
In this Smoobu review, we will explore the features of this platform as well as its integrations and benefits to vacation rental owners. We will also explore the pros and cons of using the platform to help you decide whether or not it is right for you. Finally, we’ll offer you a few alternatives that might be better suited for your particular needs.
Review of Core Features of Smoobu
Smoobu core features for property hosts and property managers
Smoobu equips property managers and owners with the capabilities needed to manage their listings, streamline operations, and enhance guest experiences. To know whether this vacation rental software is right for you, you need to explore its available features.
Here are the core Smoobu features:
Channel Manager
The channel manager for vacation rentals is a critical feature that allows property managers and owners to synchronize their listings across multiple booking platforms such as Airbnb, Booking.com, and Vrbo. This ensures consistent availability information, reducing the risk of double bookings and increasing the property’s exposure to potential guests.
The Smoobu website claims that with the Airbnb channel manager, you can save up to three hours per listing per week because you won’t need to do manual work.
Rates Synchronization
The rates synchronization is another essential feature that works in tandem with the channel manager to ensure that pricing information is uniform across all platforms. This feature allows for real-time updates to pricing, enabling dynamic pricing strategies and promotions and ensuring competitiveness in the market.
To synchronize your rates on various portals seamlessly, you need to set the base price and add a markup rate per portal.
Reservation System (PMS)
Smoobu’s reservation system acts as the operational backbone, centralizing reservations, guest information, and property details. This system streamlines the booking process, from reservation to check-out, enhancing efficiency and reducing administrative overhead.
The reservation system also includes a central calendar that stores your bookings aggregated information. This includes the number of guests, contact details, when guests will arrive, their special requests, and more.
Free Website
The Smoobu property management system (PMS) offers a free website builder, enabling property owners to create online presence without additional costs. This feature helps with direct bookings, reducing dependency on third-party platforms and associated fees. Having your own website can also be an effective marketing channel to generate additional bookings while building your own brand.
Booking System
An online booking system is essential for a vacation rental business. Smoobu’s direct booking engine, iFrame, integrates with the provided website and other platforms, offering a smooth booking experience for guests. It supports various payment gateways, including Stripe and PayPal, ensuring secure and flexible payment options.
Availability Calendar
The availability calendar is a visual tool that displays the booking status of properties. It is a widget that can be embedded, facilitating the management of reservations and the identification of available dates. This calendar is integrated with the channel manager, so bookings are synchronized.
Guest Communications
The Smoobu guest communication tools improve communication with guests through automated messages, personalized emails, and SMS. This ensures timely and efficient interaction throughout the booking process and guest stays.
Automated Templates
Automated templates save time by providing pre-designed messages for common communications. These communication and guest management tools, such as booking confirmations, welcome messages, and check-out instructions, can be customized to add a personal touch.
Online Check-In
The online check-in feature simplifies the arrival process, allowing guests to check in digitally, reducing wait times and improving the guest experience. This feature also helps in collecting guest information in advance, in compliance with local regulations.
Guest Reviews
This feature enables the management of guest reviews across various platforms, providing insights into guest experiences and areas for improvement. You can directly read and reply to guest reviews on Smoobu, without the need to login into other platforms like Airbnb.
Guest Guide
The guest guide offers valuable information to guests about the property and local area and is available in over 40 languages. It helps enhance your guest stay with tips, recommendations, and essential details.
Statistics & KPIs
Smoobu provides revenue and performance analytics, offering insights into booking trends, revenue, occupancy rates, and more. This can help in strategic decision-making, revenue management for properties, and business growth.
Shares Accounts
Shared accounts allow multiple users to manage properties, facilitating teamwork for both property managers with small teams and professional property managers. The feature gives different roles within the organization the appropriate access to manage tasks.
Review of Smoobu Integrations
Smoobu offers seamless channel management and integration with various booking websites and third-party tools. This enhances its functionality and compatibility with existing systems.
Here are Smoobu’s key integrations:
- Booking Websites: Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia, and TripAdvisor
- Payment Gateways: Stripe, PayPal, Swikly, and Charge Automation
- Smart Pricing: Beyond, PriceLabs, Wheelhouse, and Smart Pricing
- Online Check-in: Checkin, Duve, Vikey, MyMaison, Edgar Smart Concierge, Checkin Scan, AVS, Feratel Deskline, Xdom BNB, and Yaago
- Smart Locks and Home: Nuki, KeyNest, Minut, Igloohome, OK Home, Keysoft Cloud, YourWelcome, SCLAK, Masunt, TheKeys, Codelocks, Operto, Social Wave, Remote Lock, and Tedee
- Cleaning and Maintenance: Do Inn, Properly, TurnoverBNB, VR Scheduler, Tidy, and TCare
- Luggage: Luggage Hero and NannyBag
- Others: Rental Ninja, Boostly, Roamlike, Lodgea, Revyoos, SMSfactor.com, Fewofy, Superhog, and RentAssistant
Smoobu Pricing Explained: Review
Smoobu offers a transparent pricing structure tailored to accommodate the needs of various property managers and owners. It charges no setup fees or commissions, and there is no minimum duration required for your subscriptions. Plus, the Pro plan is free for the first 14 days without commitment.
Smoobu reviews show that there are three plans available, and you have the option to pay either monthly, yearly, or every two years. Rates vary depending on the number of listings and the payment frequency.
Here are the Smoobu pricing plans:
- Basic: Free plan that includes reservation system, website (only subdomain), basic statistics, and self-setup
- Professional: Starts at $28.16 per month, which includes all basic features, channel manager, website, booking system, communication automation, dynamic guest guide, guest management, online check-in, financial overview, exports, statistics and Invoicing, full API access, and Smoobu-Marketplace connection, unlimited read-only accounts, additional write-access accounts (15€ per additional account per month), email and phone support, and integrations access
- Team: Starts at $193.24 per month, for all professional features, unlimited read-only accounts, unlimited write-access accounts, domain setup, booking system customization, prioritized customer support, and premium setup support service
Potential Benefits of Using Smoobu for Your Vacation Rental Management
Using Smoobu for vacation rental property management can yield a few advantages, similar to other such tools. Here are some potential benefits:
Operational Efficiency and Time Savings
Smoobu centralizes key management tasks such as booking management, channel synchronization, and guest communication. This reduces the need for manual interventions.
Automation features like automated messaging, online check-in, and availability calendars streamline operations. It helps save time and minimizes administrative overhead.
With all essential tools integrated into one platform, property managers can efficiently manage their listings and operations from a single dashboard, eliminating the need to juggle multiple systems.
Improved Guest Satisfaction and Review Management
Smoobu’s guest communication tools enable timely and personalized interactions with guests.
Automated guest messaging ensures guests receive important information promptly, such as booking confirmations, check-in instructions, and post-stay feedback requests.
The platform’s guest review management features allow property managers to monitor and respond to guest reviews across multiple platforms.
Increased Booking and Revenue Optimization
Smoobu’s channel management capabilities ensure that property listings are synchronized across multiple booking channels. It improves visibility and occupancy.
Real-time rate synchronization and dynamic pricing tools help property owners stay competitive in the market and optimize pricing strategies.
Advanced analytics and reporting features provide valuable insights into booking trends, occupancy rates, and revenue performance.
Smoobu Reviews by Customers
When deciding whether Smoobu is the right tool for you, you need to consider what other customers think about the product. Following are Smoobu reviews on reliable third-party websites:
- Capterra: 4.5/5 stars from 176 reviews
- Trustpilot: 3.1/5 stars from 170 reviews
- G2: 3.6/5 stars from 9 reviews
Positive Smoobu Reviews
Users enjoy the Smoobu user-friendly interface, making it easy to manage vacation rentals efficiently. Many customers appreciate the suite of features, including channel management, reservation system, and guest communication tools. Users highlight the platform’s ability to increase occupancy rates and streamline operations, ultimately leading to improved profitability for their rental businesses.
Negative Smoobu Reviews
Some users report glitches or technical issues with the platform, such as synchronization errors or delays in updating booking information. Other customers express concerns about the pricing structure, particularly for larger property management companies. Some users also complain about the customer service of this vacation rental software, stating that there are delays in addressing customer concerns.
Review of Smoobu Pros and Cons
Smoobu pros and cons
Before deciding whether Smoobu is right for you or you need to find other Smoobu alternatives that would suit your needs best, it’s crucial to explore this software’s pros and cons first.
Smoobu Pros
The most important advantages of Smoobu include:
- User-Friendly Interface: Smoobu offers an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface, making it accessible for users of all experience levels.
- Comprehensive Feature Set: The platform provides a range of features, including channel management, reservation system, guest communication tools, and analytics. It lets users manage their vacation rentals from one central dashboard.
- Automation: Smoobu’s automation features, such as automated messaging, online check-in, and availability calendars, streamline operations and save time for property managers.
- Increased Booking Opportunities: With its channel management capabilities, Smoobu helps users maximize booking opportunities by synchronizing listings across multiple booking platforms.
Smoobu Cons
Meanwhile, Smoobu reviews reveal the following inefficiencies:
- Occasional Technical Issues: Users have reported glitches or technical issues with the platform, such as synchronization errors or delays in updating booking information.
- Pricing Structure: While Smoobu offers various pricing plans to cater to different needs, users have expressed concerns about the pricing structure. For larger property management companies, for instance, certain features may require upgrading to higher-priced plans.
- Integration Challenges: While Smoobu integrates with major booking channels, users have encountered difficulties connecting to certain niche or regional platforms, limiting their reach in specific markets.
- Limited Customization: Users feel that Smoobu lacks certain customization options, particularly regarding website design and branding, which may be important for maintaining a unique brand identity.
Comparing Smoobu with Other Vacation Rental Software
In case your Smoobu review makes you think this might not be the best tool for your Airbnb business, let’s take a look at the main Smoobu competitors:
Mashvisor
Mashvisor stands out as a platform that supports vacation rental property investors throughout the entire investment journey, from market research and property selection to management and insurance.
With Mashvisor, you can easily find the best investment property after locating the best short term rental markets for your budget and expectations. The comprehensive neighborhood and property analysis will help you decide whether any listing for sale will make a good investment or not.
With regards to short term rental management, Mashvisor provides all the tools that features that you need to boost your revenue and ROI while minimizing the effort.
Our vacation rental property management software platform hosts dynamic pricing software, channel manager, multi-calendar, unified inbox, vacation rental website builder, short term rental insurance, Airbnb data, and Airbnb calculator.
With these tools, both property hosts and property managers can boost the performance of their rentals with less manual work. Meanwhile, owners can use the real estate analysis tools to continue growing their portfolios with the optimized income they get from their rentals.
Guesty
Guesty for Hosts focuses on the automation of Airbnb management, offering tools for automating guest communication, cleaning schedules, and more. It provides channel management capabilities, allowing users to synchronize listings across multiple platforms. However, a Guesty review shows that the Guesty pricing structure may not be advantageous for smaller property managers or those with limited budgets
Lodgify
According to Lodgify reviews, the platform offers customizable website templates tailored specifically for vacation rental properties so users can create a professional online presence. It also provides a direct booking engine, enabling users to accept bookings directly through their website. It reduces dependency on third-party platforms. However, Lodgify may have limited integration options compared to other platforms, which can potentially limit flexibility for users.
iGMS
iGMS focuses on streamlining operations for vacation rental managers, offering tools for automation, guest communication, and team management. While it specializes in integration with Airbnb, which provides tailored solutions for users operating on this platform, it may have limited integration options with other booking channels other than Airbnb.
Hospitable
According to Hospitable reviews, the platform prioritizes enhancing the guest experience through personalized communication and services. It offers additional concierge services for guests, such as airport transfers and activity bookings. Nevertheless, it may lack certain property management features compared to more comprehensive solutions like Smoobu.
Uplisting
Uplisting focuses on automating repetitive tasks for property managers, such as messaging guests and coordinating cleaning schedules. It provides reporting and analytics tools that offer insights into property performance and booking trends. However, Uplisting’s channel integration options may be limited compared to other platforms. This can adversely affect users’ ability to reach a wider audience.
Host Tools
Host Tools offers tools for simplifying vacation rental management tasks, such as reservation management and guest communication. It prioritizes ease of use, making it accessible for users of all experience levels. But it’s worth noting that it may lack certain advanced features offered by more comprehensive solutions, such as independent dynamic pricing and advanced channel management.
Final Words: Is Smoobu the Right Choice for Your Vacation Rental Business?
Choosing the best vacation rental software for your needs is crucial for optimizing operations, enhancing guest experiences, and maximizing revenue. While Smoobu offers a suite of features tailored to the needs of property managers and owners, it’s essential to consider how it compares to other platforms in the market.
Smoobu stands out for its user-friendly interface and good feature set. With functionalities such as channel management, reservation system, guest communication tools, and analytics, it provides a centralized solution for efficiently managing vacation rentals.
However, for those seeking an all-in-one platform that covers everything from property search to investment analysis and management, Mashvisor is a one-stop-shop to consider. Mashvisor’s unique advantage lies in its ability to assist with market analysis, property search, dynamic pricing with smart calendar, and management. The platform offers a comprehensive solution for vacation rental businesses, for both hosts and managers.