Side-by-Side Comparison

Q: Why does Mews cost more as I add dorms?

Mews was designed for hotels, so their per-room pricing balloons when you log beds instead of rooms. Twenty 8-bed dorms suddenly count as 160 ‘rooms’. Hostel Mate charges a flat, bed-based rate, so your budget survives peak season expansions.

Q: Do both systems integrate with Hostelworld and Booking.com?

Yes, but Hostel Mate refreshes inventory every 60 seconds by default, so last-bed skirmishes vanish. Many Mews hostels still report 10-minute lags on busy nights—double bookings love that gap.

Q: How painful is migrating from Mews to Hostel Mate?

We handle the midnight data shuffle. Your front desk keeps taking bookings; our migration crew flips the switch behind the scenes. Typical dorm giants are live in under four hours—no downtime, no groggy travellers waiting in corridors.

Q: Does Hostel Mate include dynamic dorm-bed pricing?

Absolutely. Rates flex hourly based on demand, festivals and even surf forecasts. Mews offers revenue tools, but most require pricey add-ons and a consultant to decode hotel jargon.

Q: Can volunteers learn the system quickly?

Hostel Mate is built for rotating backpacker crews—most pick it up in 25 minutes. Mews’ multi-screen workflow feels like flying a 747; expect two-day training and a printed manual.

We’ve lined up the metrics that matter—no fluff, just the numbers and workflows that impact hostel life every day.

Mews

Hostel Mate

Mews

Hostel Mate

$149+

Price (Monthly)

$37

Price (Monthly)

Mews

$149+

Hostel Mate

$37

Per-room tiers + extras

Pricing Transparency

Flat per-bed

Pricing Transparency

Mews

Per-room tiers + extras

Hostel Mate

Flat per-bed

≈1–3 weeks

Setup Time

Live in <4 h

Setup Time

Mews

≈1–3 weeks

Hostel Mate

Live in <4 h

$0–399 (consultant)

Setup Fee

Mews

$0–399 (consultant)

Hostel Mate

Hotel-centric

Hostel-Native Design

Yes

Hostel-Native Design

Mews

Hotel-centric

Hostel Mate

Yes

Tier + paid add-ons

Pricing Model

Flat subscription

Pricing Model

Mews

Tier + paid add-ons

Hostel Mate

Flat subscription

2–3 days

Staff Training Time

<30 min

Staff Training Time

Mews

2–3 days

Hostel Mate

<30 min

Why Hostels Aren’t Boutique Hotels

Dorm turnover is faster, check-ins bunch up around night buses, and your communal lounge probably doubles as tonight’s karaoke arena. Treating that like Room 204 at the Ritz? Cue reception tears.

7× average check-ins per hour vs hotels
Beds not rooms—40 beds = 1,820 nightly SKUs per year
Walk-ins spike after 10 p.m.
Inventory flips constantly across OTAs
Guests split bills and share links—payments must be painless
Event board is the heartbeat (sunrise hike at 5 a.m.)

Built by backpackers at 4 a.m. check-in, not revenue managers in suits

Hostel Mate was first scribbled on a surf-wax box in Bali when two hostel managers couldn’t find software that treated bunks as first-class citizens.

Mews has earned praise for automating hotel audits, but hostels need muscle-memory-friendly layouts built for 3 a.m. arrivals and 12-bed dorm turnovers.

12 Ways Hostel Mate Gives You Back Your Evenings

Bulk-edit dorm prices for an entire season—18-second revenue hack right in your PMS
Automatic pre-arrival WhatsApps with door codes, Wi-Fi and digital house rules—zero inbox chaos
Rock-solid staff permissions: night guard ≠ manager, front-desk ≠ owner (goodbye ‘oops’ edits)
Rolling 24-hour operational reports—because hostel life never clocks out at midnight
Smart overbooking guardrails squeeze last-minute revenue without dreaded walk-of-shame relocations
One-click inventory sync to Booking.com, Hostelworld, Airbnb & 50+ OTAs—no double-bookings
Self-service guest check-in nukes reception queues and auto-captures e-signatures
App-powered smart lockers unlock via Bluetooth or backup PIN—no lost keys, ever
Friendly deposit nudges slash no-show rates during peak season (fill every bed)
Granular audit logs track who changed what, when and why—perfect for accountability
Auto-managed waitlist: uncertain bookings jump to confirmed beds the second a spot opens
Return-guest recognition: CRM remembers profiles, perks and favourite dorms—hello loyalty

Real-World Hostel Problems We Fix

No hype, just everyday headaches our hostel PMS removes—so you can focus on good vibes, not admin.

Last-Bed Scramble

Auto-close OTAs when you’re down to a single bunk. No more 3 a.m. walk-ins fighting over it.

Split Bills Chaos

Guests pay their slice via one-tap links. Accounting stays clean; friendships stay intact.

Dorm Map Guesswork

Drag-and-drop bunks on a colour-coded plan. You’ll spot double bookings before they happen.

Slow Channel Manager

60-second inventory pushes keep Booking.com, Hostelworld and Airbnb synced in near-real-time.

Overbooking Roulette

Smart Buffer shields you with data-driven limits, not wishful thinking.

Seasonal Price Blindness

Hostel Mate raises rates for festival Fridays, lowers for rainy Tuesdays—automatically.

Frequently asked questions

Mews was designed for hotels, so their per-room pricing balloons when you log beds instead of rooms. Twenty 8-bed dorms suddenly count as 160 ‘rooms’. Hostel Mate charges a flat, bed-based rate, so your budget survives peak season expansions.

Yes, but Hostel Mate refreshes inventory every 60 seconds by default, so last-bed skirmishes vanish. Many Mews hostels still report 10-minute lags on busy nights—double bookings love that gap.

We handle the midnight data shuffle. Your front desk keeps taking bookings; our migration crew flips the switch behind the scenes. Typical dorm giants are live in under four hours—no downtime, no groggy travellers waiting in corridors.

Absolutely. Rates flex hourly based on demand, festivals and even surf forecasts. Mews offers revenue tools, but most require pricey add-ons and a consultant to decode hotel jargon.

Hostel Mate is built for rotating backpacker crews—most pick it up in 25 minutes. Mews’ multi-screen workflow feels like flying a 747; expect two-day training and a printed manual.

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All competitor information was gathered from publicly available sources as of July 16 2025. Pricing, features and trademarks belong to their respective owners and may change without notice. Hostel Mate is not affiliated with or endorsed by Mews.