Comparison

Keycafe vs Hostaway

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Keycafe

This app facilitates secure key management for various organizations and individuals. It integrates with smart lockboxes to control access, track usage, and verify users in real-time. It's useful for businesses needing to grant temporary access and for individuals participating in the sharing economy.

Highlights
  • Control access to keys by minute
  • Provide anytime access to staff/guests
  • Complete access history tracking
  • Real-time photo ID verification
  • Manage fleets of keys
  • Utilize public smart lockbox network
Features
Read full description

Keycafe is a key management system. Ideal to manage fleets of keys for property management, auto dealerships, car rental agencies, trucking companies, facilities, universities, hospitals, municipalities, commercial and retail offices. This app works with an IOT connected key lockbox called a Keycafe SmartBox. You can purchase your own SmartBox or use our publicly distributed SmartBoxes in 50 cities around the world. - Control who has access to your keys down to the minute - Provide anytime access to your staff, contractors and guests - Complete history of who accessed your keys - Never lose track of keys again - Real-time photo ID verification The distributed network of public locations is ideal for busy urbanites participating in the on-demand economy for cleaning, dog walking, package delivery, Home services, property management and real estate. As well as for the sharing economy, for Airbnb and Guesty. Who do you need to let in? The service is currently available in the following cities: New York, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Victoria, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Diego, Paris, Lyon, Marseille, London, Edinburgh, Amsterdam, Rome, Florence, Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon, Copenhagen, Tokyo, Nagasaki, Miami, Washington DC, Koloa, Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Indianapolis, Oakland, Portland, Austin, Sydney, Melbourne. More cities coming soon. Sign up on our site at www.keycafe.com/locations to be notified when we launch a location near you!

About

Hostaway

This AI-powered platform helps professional short-term rental operators manage bookings, automate guest communication, and sync listings across multiple channels. It streamlines operations to increase efficiency and business growth, offering features like dynamic pricing and owner portals.

Highlights
  • AI-powered vacation rental management
  • Sync listings across channels (Airbnb, Vrbo)
  • Automate guest communication
  • Dynamic pricing for increased earnings
  • Unified inbox for reservations and conversations
  • Direct booking website creation
  • Owner portals and automated statements
Features
Read full description

Trusted by 20,000+ property managers worldwide, Hostaway is an industry leading, AI-powered vacation rental management platform designed for professional short-term rental operators. Hostaway brings everything together for greater efficiency and faster growth. Grow your business, manage all reservations, automate guest communication, sync listings across channels like Airbnb and Vrbo, and boost direct bookings from one unified platform, saving you up to 60 minutes per reservation. WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH HOSTAWAY Grow and manage bookings across major channels (Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Google) – Real-time sync on availability, pricing, and calendars across all connected channels. – Manage all reservations and conversations in one unified inbox. – Automate 93% of repetitive guest communication with AI Replies. – Increase earnings by 25%+ with Dynamic Pricing. – Track performance with advanced reporting and insights. – Self-serve Owner Portals and automated statements for professional, transparent owner reporting – Connect your 200+ tools through powerful integrations. – Create or connect your own direct booking website to cut OTA commissions – Available in 6 languages (and growing!) Everything works together, so you don’t have to. WHY HOSTS CHOOSE HOSTAWAY Built for property managers and hospitality brands scaling from 5 to 500+ properties, Hostaway grows with you. Knowing that 24/7 hospitality needs immediate assistance, Hostaway provides: – Award winning 24/7 phone support, with help always a call away. – A comprehensive Help Center for self-service. – A 97%+ customer satisfaction rating. – Global, multi-language team coverage for local understanding. When something matters, you get real help, fast. GET STARTED Get Hostaway and experience a smarter way to manage your vacation rental business, one that’s built to scale with you.

Screenshots

Keycafe4 screens
Hostaway4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Hostaway at 77% against Keycafe's 28%. Hostaway also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 6 months). Keycafe's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.3) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 16.4). On price, ratings volume, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Keycafe holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 385 and 449 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 28% of Keycafe's written reviews are positive against 77% of Hostaway's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Keycafe ships an update every 6 months, Hostaway weekly. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Keycafe versus Hostaway: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKeycafeHostaway
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (385 ratings) — better4.3 (449 ratings)
Positive reviews28.2% of reviews76.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings385449 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsWeekly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS10.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB91 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKeycafe Inc.Hostaway

Customer experience

Keycafe

All ratings330 ratings
Positive92.7%
Neutral1.2%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews39 reviews
Positive28.2%
Neutral5.1%
Negative66.7%

Hostaway

All ratings449 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral4.5%
Negative15.6%
Written reviews372 reviews
Positive76.9%
Neutral4.6%
Negative18.5%

User reviews

Keycafe

From 385 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great idea for service
  • 👍 Works flawlessly sometimes
  • 👍 Good for contactless key exchange
  • 👍 Simplifies key exchanges

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Clunky auto-refill
  • 🐛 Impossible to connect/authenticate
  • 💰 Very expensive
  • 👎 Horrendous user interface
  • 👎 System is unreliable

Hostaway

From 449 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great features
  • 👍 Excellent onboarding and customer support
  • 💡 Powerful channel management capabilities
  • 🔒 Reliable and secure platform

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
  • 📱 Limited functionality in mobile app compared to web version
  • ⏱️ Slow response times from support in some cases

Bugs and requests

Keycafe

Reported bugs

13 issues
  • Bug to authenticate when opening account
  • System offline frequently
  • Touchscreen unresponsive
  • Codes not working
  • Box disconnected multiple times
Show 8 more
  • Fob not scanning
  • App doesn't import key from host
  • App doesn't open/stuck on loading screen
  • App not working most of the time
  • 24/7 chat link not working
  • Customer service calls on hold indefinitely
  • App doesn't load on iOS
  • Locker would not scan fob when returning

Requested features

7 requests
  • Option to turn off auto-refill
  • Improve app interface design
  • Provide better instructions for setup
  • Allow offline functionality for codes
  • Improve customer support responsiveness
Show 2 more
  • Clarify payment terms and conditions
  • Allow guests to see PIN without app download

Hostaway

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Notifications not working consistently
  • Calendar view issues after recent updates
  • Integration problems with certain OTAs

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved mobile app with more features
  • Easier cancellation and refund process
  • Better multi-property management tools
  • Enhanced reporting and analytics

In-app purchases

None

Keycafe

No in-app purchases

None

Hostaway

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Keycafe free?
Keycafe is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Hostaway free?
Hostaway is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Keycafe or Hostaway?
Keycafe is rated higher. Keycafe averages 4.7 out of 5 from 385 ratings, while Hostaway averages 4.3 from 449 ratings.
Do Keycafe or Hostaway have ads?
Keycafe shows ads; Hostaway does not.
Which is updated more often, Keycafe or Hostaway?
Keycafe ships an update every 6 months, and Hostaway weekly. Most recently, Keycafe was updated on October 29, 2026 and Hostaway on October 29, 2026.

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