The Apartop team
In this article
If you own a holiday flat in Spain and are looking for Smoobu alternatives, the usual candidates are Lodgify (for your own booking website and online payments), Beds24 (pay only for what you use, lots of channels), Hostify (5 or more properties, automatic guest registration), Avantio and Icnea (software for larger agencies) and Apartop (1 or 2 flats, with the focus on Spanish paperwork: online check-in, police guest registration and the regional tourist licence).
Smoobu is good software and widely used for a reason. This is not a takedown: it is a fair look at what each alternative offers, with prices taken from their official websites in October 2026, and at who each one suits best, especially if you do not live in Spain.
Why owners look beyond Smoobu
Smoobu bundles a channel manager, booking engine, website builder and online check-in. People usually look elsewhere for one of these reasons:
- Cost for a single flat. Its Professional Prepaid plan for 1 unit is €35 a month on monthly billing (€31.50 on annual billing and €28 on a two-year commitment), and each extra unit costs €9.60 a month. If you only let your flat for part of the year, that fixed cost adds up.
- Spain's guest registration. Every guest must be reported to the Ministry of the Interior through SES.Hospedajes, the national online register that replaced the old police forms. Smoobu covers this through its integration with Chekin, a partner service. Some owners prefer everything in one tool.
- Local rules. Tourist licence numbers, the signed check-in document and tourist taxes differ between Spanish regions, and some owners want software built around that.
- Scale. Agencies with dozens of properties sometimes need owner statements, operations and staff tools, and look at agency-focused software.
Comparison table (October 2026)
Prices checked on each provider's official website in October 2026. They can change, so confirm before you sign up.
| Software | Published entry price | Direct channel manager | Guest registration (SES.Hospedajes) | Booking website |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smoobu | €35/month for 1 unit (Prepaid, monthly); Flex €29/month plus 0.9% per booking | ✅ | Via the Chekin integration | ✅ website builder and booking engine |
| Lodgify | €16/month for 1 property (€13 billed annually), Basic plan | ✅ Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo | ✅ automatic on the Ultimate plan (also Catalonia and Basque Country) | ✅ from the Starter plan |
| Beds24 | From €15.50/month, pay as you go; channel manager €0.55/month plus €0.55 per link | ✅ two-way XML with Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, Vrbo and more | Not stated on its website | ✅ booking engine included |
| Hostify | $20 per property per month, from 5 properties | ✅ Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia and more | ✅ automatic with its MrGG check-in | ✅ website included |
| Avantio | €295/month + VAT minimum fee (up to 20 properties) | ✅ over 40 portals, according to its website | States "data export to the police and authorities" in Spain; online check-in is an extra | Paid extra |
| Icnea | €150/month up to 10 properties (PMS and channel manager) | ✅ Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo | Not stated on its website | Website from €1,650; widgets from €70 |
| Apartop | Free up to 2 flats; Pro €9 per flat per month + VAT | ❌ syncs via iCal calendars | ✅ file to upload (Free) and automatic submission (Pro) | ✅ direct bookings (Free: 1 flat) |
The alternatives one by one
Lodgify: for owners who want their own booking website
Lodgify is probably the closest alternative to Smoobu. Its strength is the no-code website builder with a booking engine and guest payments, plus a direct channel manager for Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, and listing on Google Vacation Rentals from the Professional plan.
For Spain it has a real advantage: its automatic guest registration sends data to SES.Hospedajes and also to the separate systems used in Catalonia (Mossos d'Esquadra) and the Basque Country (Ertzaintza). On its pricing page this sits in the Ultimate plan (€70/month for 1 property, €56 billed annually). Basic is limited to 1 property and Starter to 2. There is a 7-day free trial. We compare it in detail in Apartop vs Lodgify.
Beds24: for owners who want to pay only for what they use
Beds24 has no fixed plans: the monthly fee depends on your units and the channel links you switch on, from €15.50 a month, with no contract and no booking commission. It has two-way XML connections with Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, the Vrbo group, Agoda and many more, a commission-free booking engine, payments and automation.
It is very flexible: you choose which units and links to switch on. Its pricing and channel manager pages do not mention a built-in SES.Hospedajes submission (checked 11 Oct 2026), so ask before you rely on it.
Hostify: for managers with 5 properties or more
Hostify charges per property in tiers: $20 a month per property from 5 to 19, $16 from 20 to 49, $13 from 50 to 99 and $10 from 100 to 199. It includes a channel manager for Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia, Agoda and others, a booking website and an API. For Spain, its MrGG check-in tool submits guest data to SES.Hospedajes automatically using your Ministry credentials. Its price calculator starts at 5 properties, and instead of a free trial it offers a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Avantio: for medium and large agencies
Avantio is agency software with more than 24 years in the sector, according to its website: PMS, a channel manager with over 40 portal connections, an owner area, operations and payments. Its website quotes from €14 to €15 per property, but with a minimum fee of €295 a month + VAT for portfolios of up to 20 properties. Website design, booking engine and online check-in cost extra. It does not advertise a free trial, offering personalised demos instead. For Spain it mentions data export to the police and authorities. Not designed for a single flat.
Icnea: another option for agencies
Icnea offers a PMS with a channel manager (full sync of prices, availability and bookings with Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo), check-in, cleaning and maintenance apps, and bespoke websites. Published PMS and channel manager prices: €150 a month up to 10 properties, €260 up to 20 and €370 up to 50. A website starts at €1,650 and booking widgets at €70. Its pricing and channel manager pages do not mention SES.Hospedajes submission (checked 11 Oct 2026), so check with them.
Apartop: for small owners and Spanish compliance
Apartop is our own software, so read this with that in mind. It is built in Andalusia for Spanish holiday lets: free forever for up to 2 flats, and above that the Pro plan at €9 per flat per month + VAT, with a 30-day Pro trial for new accounts. See pricing.
What it does well:
- Online check-in with ID and passport scanning and signature on the guest's phone, plus the SES.Hospedajes guest report: on Free you download the file and upload it yourself; on Pro it is submitted automatically through the Ministry's web service, with checks and retries.
- Andalusian rules: your Andalusia tourist register number (the VUT number on your licence) on every flat and a signed check-in document that serves as the rental contract.
- Automatic tourist tax by region and municipality on every booking.
- Automatic cleaning jobs after each check-out, and the Apartop Cleaning & Keys app, free for your cleaner or key holder (cleaning management). Handy when you are not in Spain to hand over keys yourself.
- Commission-free direct bookings, paid by bank transfer or Bizum (Free: 1 flat).
What you should know: Apartop is not an API channel manager. It syncs Airbnb, Booking.com and VRBO through iCal calendars, which block dates but do not send prices or content. It does not submit reports in Catalonia or the Basque Country, and its booking page does not take card payments. If you manage prices daily across platforms, Smoobu, Lodgify or Beds24 will do more for you.
How to choose
- How many properties, now and later? With 1 or 2, a free or cheap entry plan makes sense. From 20, Avantio or Icnea start to pay off.
- Do you change prices often on several platforms? Then you need an API or XML connection, not just iCal.
- Do you want direct bookings? Lodgify and Smoobu stand out for websites; Beds24 includes a booking engine; Apartop gives you a booking page paid by transfer or Bizum.
- Where is the flat? In most of Spain guest reports go to SES.Hospedajes, but Catalonia and the Basque Country use their own police systems. Make sure the software covers your region. More in our guide to guest registration software for SES.HOSPEDAJES.
- Who cleans and hands over keys? If you live abroad, this matters a lot. Check whether your team gets an app and what extra users cost (on Smoobu, extra accounts with write access cost €12 a month).
The software is only part of the picture for a non-resident owner. You will also need an NIE (your Spanish tax identification number) and, as a rule, you must declare your Spanish rental income on Modelo 210, the non-resident income tax (IRNR) return, whatever software you use. See how to declare holiday rental income.
If Apartop fits, you can start free with your first two flats and try the check-in with your next guests.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free alternative to Smoobu?
Apartop is free forever for up to 2 flats, including online check-in, the SES.Hospedajes guest file, iCal calendar sync and cleaning jobs. Smoobu, Lodgify and Beds24 offer free trials (14 days, 7 days and a no-obligation trial whose length is not stated on its pricing page, respectively), but no permanent free plan.
Do I need an API channel manager or is iCal enough?
With one or two flats and prices set on each platform, iCal usually prevents double bookings, though with some delay. If you change prices daily, use dynamic pricing or list on many portals, you need a direct connection: Smoobu, Lodgify, Beds24, Hostify, Avantio and Icnea all have one.
Which alternatives submit guest data to SES.Hospedajes automatically?
According to their official websites, Lodgify (Ultimate plan) and Hostify (with MrGG) submit automatically, as does Apartop Pro. Smoobu does it through Chekin. Avantio mentions data export to the police and authorities in Spain. We did not find it on the Beds24 or Icnea websites (checked 11 Oct 2026). For the process itself, see SES.HOSPEDAJES guest registration step by step.
Does guest registration apply if I live outside Spain?
Yes. The obligation comes from Royal Decree 933/2021 and applies to the accommodation, not to where the owner lives. If you let your flat, the guests must be registered, whether you do it yourself, through software or through a local manager.
Can I switch from Smoobu without losing bookings?
Yes, if you do it in order: connect the new software to your platforms, check that future bookings appear, and only then disconnect Smoobu. Your bookings remain on Airbnb or Booking.com whatever software you use. In Apartop you can import your flats from a spreadsheet and bookings arrive through the iCal calendars.
Sources
- Smoobu: pricing: Prepaid and Flex plans, 10% (annual) and 20% (two-year) discounts, extra unit €9.60, write-access accounts €12, 14-day trial (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Smoobu: SES.HOSPEDAJES and the Chekin integration and Smoobu help on Chekin (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Lodgify: plans and pricing: Basic, Starter, Professional and Ultimate, 7-day trial (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Lodgify: guest registration: SES.Hospedajes, Mossos d'Esquadra and Ertzaintza, Ultimate plan only (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Beds24: pricing and channel manager (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Hostify: pricing and SES Hospedajes setup with MrGG (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Avantio: pricing and Avantio website (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Icnea: prices, channel manager and Icnea website (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Apartop: pricing
- Royal Decree 933/2021 of 26 October (BOE, in Spanish) (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Ministry of the Interior: guest registration obligations (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Spanish Tax Agency: Modelo 210, non-resident income tax
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Free forever for up to 2 apartments, no card needed. With Pro, €9 per apartment per month.
