Timeshare Users Group

What Timeshare Users Group does

Timeshare Users Group (TUG), founded in 1993 and headquartered in Orange Park, Florida, is a veteran-founded, family-owned consumer advocacy platform serving individual timeshare owners worldwide. Operating for over 31 years as the first dedicated timeshare website on the internet, TUG positions itself as a trusted, scam-free alternative to traditional timeshare brokers and resale agents, addressing widespread fraud targeting owners seeking to exit their intervals. The platform serves users across the U.S., Mexico, Canada, the U.K., and Australia through a self-serve online marketplace at tug2.com and a separate BBS forum platform at tugbbs.com. No mobile app is offered, and the user base consists of individual consumers — there are no enterprise or B2B customers.

The core technology is a self-serve online marketplace paired with a vertically integrated suite of community features. The flagship product is the Owner Marketplace, a zero-commission classifieds platform for timeshare resales and rentals; complementary products include a database of more than 5,000 timeshare resorts with owner reviews, photos, and sales history; a long-running BBS discussion forum with tens of thousands of active participants; want ads for buyer requests; permanent-swap exchanges; a planning calendar; free exchange services; and an educational article library. The platform has facilitated over $79 million in cumulative completed listings, but this figure represents gross transaction value among members rather than company revenue.

TUG operates a zero-commission go-to-market motion: monetizing exclusively through membership fees and TUG Credits, an internal virtual currency purchased on a pay-as-you-go basis to place marketplace listings. The company has 1–10 employees, no disclosed funding, no parent company or institutional ownership, no public APIs or SDKs, no third-party integrations, and no documented AI/ML capabilities. Operating geographies span five countries with worldwide support infrastructure, and customer concentration is deliberately diffused across a long-tail of individual timeshare owners.

Name

Timeshare Users Group

Legal name

Timeshare Users Group

Website

https://tug2.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Timeshare Users Group is a veteran-founded, family-owned consumer advocacy platform, operating since 1993, that provides a zero-commission online marketplace, a 5,000-resort review database, and discussion forums for timeshare owners worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Orange Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Marketplace Facilitation: Platform facilitates peer-to-peer timeshare sales and rentals between owners with zero commissions. Revenue appears to come from membership fees and TUG Credits for marketplace listings.
2. Membership and Credits: The platform sells TUG Credits for marketplace listings and memberships. Contact information shows phone and email support for members.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Timeshare Users Group (TUG) operates an online consumer advocacy marketplace that enables timeshare owners to buy, sell, rent, and exchange timeshares directly with one another without paying commissions. The platform pairs a classified listing marketplace with a database of over 5,000 resort reviews, a discussion forum community, and an internal TUG Credits system used to post classified listings.

Product overview

Timeshare Users Group (TUG) is a veteran-founded consumer advocacy platform that has operated since 1993, offering a suite of interconnected services for timeshare owners. The core offering consists of the Owner Marketplace for direct sales and rentals without commissions, paired with a Resort Reviews database of over 5,000 properties. The platform also includes discussion forums, free educational advice articles, want ads for buyer requests, permanent swap exchanges, and a TUG Credits system. TUG positions itself as a scam-free alternative to traditional timeshare brokers, having facilitated over $77 million in successful transactions to date.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Timeshare Marketplace (Owner Marketplace) A classified listing platform enabling timeshare owners to buy, sell, rent, and exchange timeshares directly with other owners without paying commissions or large upfront fees.
• Resort Reviews and Ratings A searchable database of more than 5,000 timeshare resorts featuring owner-submitted reviews, ratings, photos, and classified sales history data for prospective buyers and renters.
• TUG BBS Discussion Forums A community forum platform where tens of thousands of timeshare owners discuss topics, share advice, and get peer support on timeshare ownership.
• TUG Credits An internal prepaid credit system purchased by members to place classified listings and access premium marketplace features.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $77 million in successful resales and rentals facilitated since 1993
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• RedWeek: RedWeek is the largest online marketplace for timeshare rentals and resales, directly competing with TUG's owner-to-owner marketplace model and serving the same SMB/consumer segment of timeshare owners and renters.
• Sell My Timeshare NOW: Sell My Timeshare NOW is an online timeshare resale and rental advertising platform that directly competes with TUG's classifieds marketplace, targeting the same timeshare owner exit and rental use cases.
• Timeshare Broker Associates: Timeshare Broker Associates is a licensed timeshare resale broker offering brokerage services to owners, comparable to TUG as a competing go-to for owners seeking to sell, though operating on a commission-based model rather than zero-commission.

Broad incumbents

• RCI: RCI is the world's largest timeshare exchange network, operated as part of Wyndham Destinations. It competes with TUG's exchange offering through a much larger affiliated resort inventory and member base.
• Interval International: Interval International is a leading global timeshare exchange network serving resort developers and owners. It overlaps with TUG's exchange and rental services through a broader affiliated resort portfolio.
• Vacasa: Vacasa is a large vacation rental management company. While not a timeshare marketplace, it overlaps with TUG in the broader vacation rental/booking category and competes for traveler demand adjacent to timeshare rentals.
• eBay: eBay operates general classifieds and resale listings, including timeshare listings, serving as a broader marketplace substitute for owners seeking to sell or rent timeshares.

Emerging players

• KOALA: KOALA is a newer timeshare marketplace platform focused on simplifying timeshare resales, comparable to TUG in serving owner-to-owner transactions but with a more modern product focus.
• Craigslist: Craigslist hosts free classifieds in the vacation/timeshare category and serves as a partial substitute for TUG's marketplace for owners seeking low-cost listings, though without TUG's curated trust or community features.

Others

• Airbnb: Airbnb is a leading peer-to-peer short-term rental marketplace. It does not directly trade in timeshares but competes for the broader vacation rental wallet and offers owners an alternative channel to monetize unused nights.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tugtimeshare
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/timeshareusersgroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/timeshareusersgroup
• Instagraminstagram.com/timeshareusersgroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Timeshare Users Group