1 – Biloki or Lodgify: Which One Actually Costs Less Once Everything Is Added Up?
The price shown on a pricing page says nothing about the real cost. What matters is what you pay once everything works: channel manager, messaging, booking website, field tools. And above all, what you pay as you grow.
1.1: The Bill That Climbs as Soon as You Activate a Module
The classic "starting from" trap is the module. You choose software for its entry price, connect your properties, then discover that advanced messaging, the website, or online payments are extra. You activate them because you need them. The bill doubles. With a percentage commission on direct bookings, every booking outside OTAs costs you too — yet that's precisely the channel where you wanted to save money. For a concierge service trying to forecast its software budget for the year, this is a concrete problem.
1.2: What This Means Over a Peak Season
A missed cleaning means a negative review on Airbnb and usually a goodwill gesture. On a property at €120 per night, a partial refund of €180 plus the loss of positioning in the Airbnb algorithm adds up fast. For the owner, it's proof that the concierge service doesn't have its operations under control. For you, it's an uncomfortable phone call and trust to rebuild. Multiply by three or four incidents in a season, and the cost far exceeds any software subscription. The real price isn't the PMS. It's the cleaning that never happened.
1.3: Marc, 22 Properties in Biarritz, Runs the Numbers in April
Marc manages 22 properties on the Basque coast. He has been using Lodgify for two years. His booking website works well and he captures around 30% of his stays directly. In April, he lays out the figures: his Lodgify subscription on the Professional plan (the only one that includes the full channel manager), the commission on direct bookings, and the time spent piecing together his field automations in a separate spreadsheet. He realizes he is paying for a solid distribution and website tool, but still has to manage his providers elsewhere. He wonders whether a tool that brings everything together — field operations included — might actually cost him less overall.
2 – Who Actually Manages Housekeeping and On-Site Providers?
A PMS that doesn't manage field operations is half a tool. The booking comes in, the calendar blocks, the message goes out. But who notifies the housekeeper? Who checks it's done? Who sends proof to the owner? This is where software splits into two categories.
2.1: The Missed Cleaning Between Two Turnovers on a Saturday in August
Saturday morning, check-out at 10am, check-in at 4pm. Your provider didn't see the WhatsApp message sent on Tuesday. The guest arrives at a property that isn't ready. You find out because they call you — not because your software alerted you. Every concierge service has lived through this scenario. The problem isn't the provider. The problem is the absence of an automatic link between the booking and the field task. When you manage 5 properties, you compensate with memory. At 15 or 20, you can't anymore.
2.2: A Two-Star Review and a €180 Refund
A missed cleaning means a negative review on Airbnb and usually a goodwill gesture. On a property at €120 per night, a partial refund of €180 plus the loss of positioning in the Airbnb algorithm adds up fast. For the owner, it's proof that the concierge service doesn't have its operations under control. For you, it's an uncomfortable phone call and trust to rebuild. Multiply by three or four incidents in a season, and the cost far exceeds any software subscription. The real price isn't the PMS. It's the cleaning that never happened.
2.3: Nadia, 14 Properties in Montpellier, a Bank Holiday Weekend
Nadia manages 14 properties with three housekeeping providers. Over the May bank holiday weekend, she has eleven turnovers in two days. With Lodgify, her bookings are well synchronized and guest messages go out automatically. But for housekeeping, she uses a WhatsApp group and a Google Sheets spreadsheet. She assigns tasks manually, checks by SMS that they're done, and logs feedback in her file. Two tasks were missed because the WhatsApp message got buried under a personal conversation. She's looking for a tool where the booking automatically creates the task, assigns it to the right provider, and sends them an alert.
3 – Which Tool Actually Gives Concierge Services a Real Owner Portal?
When you manage other people's properties, transparency isn't a bonus. It's what makes an owner stay or take their property back and hand it to a competitor. The owner portal is your professional showcase as much as your management tool.
3.1: The Owner Who Calls on the 15th to Find Out How Much They Earned
You know this call. "I saw a booking on Airbnb, but I don't know how much I get after your commission." You open your spreadsheet, recalculate, send an email. The owner has three properties with you and a fourth with a competitor who sends an automatic statement. They compare. Not the software: the level of service. The absence of an owner portal means wasted time for you and a signal of amateurism for the owner. When you want to sign a new management agreement, the first question is often: "How do I track my property's income?"
3.2: One Lost Owner Means Twelve Months of Lost Revenue
An owner who leaves isn't just one fewer property in your portfolio. It's the management income for the entire following year. It's also negative word of mouth: "They didn't even send me a statement." On the other hand, an owner who can see their bookings, net income, guest reviews, and housekeeping photos in a dedicated portal is an owner who recommends your concierge service. The owner portal isn't a gimmick. It's your retention tool and your number-one commercial argument when prospecting.
3.3: Thomas, 30 Properties in Bordeaux, Loses Two Contracts in March
Thomas manages 30 properties on behalf of owners in Bordeaux. He uses Lodgify for distribution. For owner statements, he exports an Excel file every month, calculates commissions by hand, and sends a PDF by email. In March, two owners tell him they are switching to a competitor "who has an online portal where you can see everything". Thomas didn't lose these contracts because of the quality of his housekeeping or his rates. He lost them because his software didn't allow him to show his work. He starts looking for a tool with a real integrated owner portal.
Conclusion: Lodgify or Biloki — the Choice Depends on What You Do After the Booking
Lodgify may have helped you with direct bookings. But your business today is about coordinating service providers, reassuring property owners, and managing access, which is exactly what Biloki was built for.
Sticking with a tool designed for direct sales means paying for the top-tier plan just to get task management and statements, or continuing to do them manually. That’s over 70 hours a year, and a property owner who eventually starts listening to the concierge service next door.
Take three properties, one service provider, and one owner, and run them for a month. The Biloki free trial lasts 30 days, no credit card required, with onboarding included. And if you’d prefer us to show you around, book a demo.
