GuestSmiles
GuestSmiles is a privately held US vacation rental marketplace connecting individual property owners and small property managers with travelers for direct bookings. It generates revenue through 9% provider commissions and $40/month or $384/year subscriptions, charging no guest fees.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersKnoxville, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What GuestSmiles does
GuestSmiles is a privately held vacation rental marketplace operated by GuestSmiles.com, LLC and headquartered at 2210 Sycamore Drive, Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded and led by CEO Ron Holcomb, the company launched its marketplace in 2019 after the founder's personal experience as both a vacation rental guest and homeowner exposed him to what he characterized as the increasing intermediation and fee extraction of online travel agencies. The platform connects individual property owners and small-to-mid-market property managers with travelers, enabling either instant online booking or pre-booking direct communication, with no guest fees charged. Its customer base is concentrated among SMB providers of short-term rental properties across US destinations including the Smoky Mountains, Rocky Mountains, Texas Hill Country, Emerald Coast Florida, Maine, Oregon, Missouri, and Utah.
The platform's technology stack is built around an online marketplace with API-level integrations to ten third-party property management systems (CiiRUS, Lodgify, Streamline, Escapia, OwnerRez, TRACK, Virtual Resort Manager, Rental Network Solution, Priceline, and Guesty), enabling real-time synchronization of rates, availability, and bookings. For owners not already using PMS software, GuestSmiles offers a Reservation Management System powered by Lodgify.com, a free Owner's Club tier, and an Online Booking Engine for vertical partner channels. The company also operates a Toolbox subscription with bundled software and an Affiliate Program for group bookings. Payment processing is secured via SecurityMetrics PCI DSS certification. No AI/ML capabilities, patents, or proprietary algorithmic features are disclosed.
GuestSmiles generates revenue through three streams: a 9% commission on net reservation fees for commission-plan providers, a 1% service fee on reservations booked through the Owner's Club, and recurring subscription revenue from the Toolbox tier priced at $40/month or $384/year (which carries zero reservation commission). The company charges no guest fees, a deliberate positioning point against OTAs. It is privately held, bootstrapped (no external funding rounds recorded), and operates with a team of 11-50 employees.
GuestSmiles firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- GuestSmiles
- Legal name
- GuestSmiles.com, LLC
- Website
- https://guestsmiles.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- GuestSmiles is a privately held US vacation rental marketplace connecting individual property owners and small property managers with travelers for direct bookings. It generates revenue through 9% provider commissions and $40/month or $384/year subscriptions, charging no guest fees.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
GuestSmiles industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Vacation Rental Marketplace
- akta.pro primary industry
- Direct Booking Platforms & Booking Engines for Hosts/Managers (THAMALAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Guest Experience & Concierge Services (THAMAKAJ), Lodging Reservations (Hotels, Vacation Rentals) (HSACALAI)
Keywords
Where GuestSmiles is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Knoxville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
GuestSmiles business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Provider Commission: 9% commission on net reservation fees for online bookings. Non-refundable unless provider delivers cancellation agreement within 7 days.
- Listing Fees: Monthly or annual subscription fees for direct booking listings: $40/month or $384/year. Non-refundable.
- Service Fees: 1% service fee on total reservation amount (excluding cleaning fees, security deposits, and taxes) for bookings facilitated by the GuestSmiles Reservation Management System.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Commission Plan - 9% per reservation |
| Subscription | Monthly | Monthly Subscription |
| Subscription | Annual | Annual Subscription |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
GuestSmiles product offering
Product offeringCore offering
GuestSmiles operates an online vacation rental marketplace that connects property owners and managers with guests seeking short-term rentals, enabling direct booking and communication without traditional OTA intermediation. The platform offers a Reservation Management System with real-time API integrations to major property management systems, and provides two pricing models: a 9% commission per reservation or a $40/month (or $384/year) subscription plan with zero reservation commission.
Product overview
GuestSmiles is a vacation rental marketplace platform that connects property owners and managers with guests seeking short-term rentals. The core product consists of the GuestSmiles Marketplace where Providers list Properties for Guests to book directly. The platform offers two pricing models: the Toolbox subscription plan (monthly/annual at $40/$384) with zero commission and includes free reservation software, and the Commission plan at 9% per reservation. Key modules include the Online Booking Engine for instant reservations, the GuestSmiles Reservation Management System for calendar and booking management, Owner's Club for individual property owners, Vertical Partners for property manager integrations, and an Affiliate Program for group bookings. The platform integrates with multiple reservation software systems (CiiRUS, Lodgify, Streamline, Escapia, OwnerRez, TRACK, Virtual Resort Manager, Rental Network Solution, Priceline, Guesty) via API for real-time rate and availability synchronization. Featured areas include Smoky Mountains, Rocky Mountains, and Emerald Coast Florida.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- GuestSmiles Marketplace Online vacation rental marketplace enabling property owners and managers to list properties and communicate directly with guests for bookings without middleman involvement. Targets both property providers (supply) and vacation travelers (demand).
- Online Booking Engine Instant online reservation service enabling property listings to support real-time booking with automatic confirmation. Provided to property owners as a vertical partner add-on service.
- GuestSmiles Reservation Management System Centralized reservation software for property owners to manage listings and calendar availability across different platforms from a single account, with API connections to multiple property management systems. 100% mobile-friendly.
- Owner's Club Free reservation software for individual property owners without existing reservation systems, enabling management of bookings from one place for a 1% service fee per reservation.
Quantifiable outcome
- 9% commission rate vs industry average
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use GuestSmiles
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
GuestSmiles technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration11 records
Feature3 records
GuestSmiles partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- CiiRUScoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling real-time synchronization of property listings, rates, and availability with GuestSmiles marketplace.
- LodgifycoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity. GuestSmiles Reservation Management System is powered by Lodgify.com according to terms of service.
- StreamlinecoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling property managers to sync listings across platforms.
- EscapiacoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling property managers to sync listings across platforms.
- OwnerRezcoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling property managers to sync listings across platforms.
- TRACKcoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling property managers to sync listings across platforms.
- Virtual Resort ManagercoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling property managers to sync listings across platforms.
- Rental Network SolutioncoreIntegration partner for reservation software connectivity, enabling property managers to sync listings across platforms.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
GuestSmiles competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lodgify: Lodgify enables hosts to build direct-booking websites — directly comparable to GuestSmiles' core 'direct booking without middleman' proposition. Also currently powers GuestSmiles' reservation management software under the platform's terms.
- Airbnb: The dominant vacation rental marketplace and the primary incumbent GuestSmiles positions against with its lower-commission, direct-relationship pitch. Same product category (short-term rental marketplace), same core function (host-guest matching and booking), vastly larger scale.
- Guesty: End-to-end PMS for short-term rental managers with channel manager and distribution tools. Listed as one of GuestSmiles' API integration partners and competes for the same property-manager customer.
- Vrbo: Expedia-owned vacation rental marketplace competing directly for the same hosts and guests GuestSmiles targets. Part of an integrated OTA stack with subscription booking tools.
- OwnerRez: Reservation and channel management software for vacation rentals, integrated into GuestSmiles. Targets the same individual and SMB host segment with direct-booking-enabled software.
- Hostaway: Vacation rental PMS and channel manager serving professional property managers with marketplace distribution features. Comparable in PMS-and-distribution wedge and an integration partner of GuestSmiles.
- Evolve: Vacation rental management company with low-fee, direct-rental positioning similar to GuestSmiles' value proposition, providing full-service hosting for individual property owners.
Emerging players
- Hospitable: Automation platform for short-term rental hosts focused on messaging and operations, an emerging alternative path for hosts seeking to manage direct guest relationships without a marketplace.
Broad incumbents
- Vacasa: Largest US vacation rental management company operating its own booking site and distribution. Competes for hosts in many of the same leisure destinations (Smoky Mountains, Colorado, Florida Panhandle).
- Tripadvisor (Rentals): Tripadvisor's vacation rental marketplace overlaps directly with GuestSmiles' marketplace offering, but operates as part of a much broader travel review and booking platform.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
GuestSmiles social profiles
Digital presenceGuestSmiles compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
GuestSmiles financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
GuestSmiles leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
GuestSmiles funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
GuestSmiles M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about GuestSmiles
What does GuestSmiles do?
GuestSmiles operates an online vacation rental marketplace that connects property owners and managers with guests seeking short-term rentals, enabling direct booking and communication without traditional OTA intermediation. The platform offers a Reservation Management System with real-time API integrations to major property management systems, and provides two pricing models: a 9% commission per reservation or a $40/month (or $384/year) subscription plan with zero reservation commission.
Is GuestSmiles a public or private company?
GuestSmiles is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was GuestSmiles founded?
GuestSmiles was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is GuestSmiles based?
GuestSmiles is headquartered in Knoxville, United States, in the North America region.
How does GuestSmiles make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Provider Commission is the primary driver. The others are listing Fees and service Fees.
Who are GuestSmiles's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lodgify, Airbnb, Guesty, Vrbo, OwnerRez, Hostaway and Evolve. Hospitable is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Vacasa and Tripadvisor (Rentals).
Does GuestSmiles have an API?
No public API is recorded for GuestSmiles.
What industry is GuestSmiles in?
GuestSmiles's product category is Vacation Rental Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAMALAE, Direct Booking Platforms & Booking Engines for Hosts/Managers, with a secondary code of THAMAKAJ, Guest Experience & Concierge Services.