Side-by-Side Comparison
We've compared key features, pricing and setup times to help you make an informed choice.
Mews
Hostel Mate
Mews
vsHostel Mate
Price (Monthly)
Price (Monthly)
Pricing Transparency
Pricing Transparency
Setup Time
Setup Time
Setup Fee
Setup Fee
Hostel-Native Design
Hostel-Native Design
Pricing Model
Pricing Model
Staff Training Time
Staff Training Time
Why Hostels Aren't Mini-Hotels
Dorms flip faster, guests arrive in clumps, and your 'lobby' might be a bean-bag zone doubling as tomorrow's yoga studio. Treating that like Room 204 at the Marriott? Recipe for reception tears.
- 7x 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
Reassign 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.
Ready to Manageyour dream Hostel?
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.