What does commission-free booking software really cost an Irish hotel?
A zero-commission claim tells you about one fee, not the full cost of winning a guest. Build a direct-booking cost per reservation before comparing suppliers or deciding how much to spend on marketing.
Commission-free booking software removes the booking-engine commission specified in your agreement; it does not make direct bookings free. Add allocated subscription and website costs, payment processing and guest acquisition, then divide by completed direct reservations. In the hypothetical Irish hotel example below, a €300 booking costs €14.75 to acquire and process, or 4.92% of its value, before the stated exclusions.
What does commission-free actually cover?
A booking commission is a charge tied to securing a reservation, often a percentage of its value. A subscription buys access to software; a processing fee pays for handling a payment; acquisition spending brings guests to your website. A percentage-based card fee is therefore not automatically a booking commission.
When comparing commission-free booking software in Ireland, separate these costs in every quote:
- Booking charges: confirm zero booking-engine commission in writing and check for per-reservation, referral or distribution charges.
- Fixed costs: record the subscription, website, hosting and optional services. For a property management system (PMS) bundle, allocate a documented share to direct bookings without counting it twice.
- Variable costs: request the payment tariff, including card categories, fixed transaction charges, currency conversion, refunds and disputes.
- Guest acquisition: include advertising, agency work, content, email tools and staff time where relevant. Separate paid-campaign results from your blended direct-booking average.
A transparent €300 direct-booking example
Hypothetical example, not a supplier quote or customer result: an independent Galway hotel records 60 completed website reservations in one month, each worth €300, giving €18,000 in guest receipts. Each reservation has one successful card payment. There are no cancellations, refunds, disputes or currency-conversion charges in this illustration.
The hotel allocates €120 of a fictional €300 monthly software bundle to direct bookings: 40%, chosen for this example only. The remaining €180 sits outside this channel calculation. Website costs are €120 and acquisition spending is €360. The assumed card tariff is 1.5% plus €0.25 per payment; this is not a RoomRaccoon rate.
| Cost item | Calculation for the period | Per booking |
|---|---|---|
| Booking-engine commission | 0% × €18,000 = €0 | €0.00 |
| Allocated subscription | €120 ÷ 60 | €2.00 |
| Website and hosting | €120 ÷ 60 | €2.00 |
| Guest acquisition | €360 ÷ 60 | €6.00 |
| Card processing | (€300 × 1.5% + €0.25) × 60 = €285 | €4.75 |
| Total included costs | €120 + €120 + €360 + €285 = €885 | €14.75 |
Cost per completed direct booking = included direct-channel costs ÷ completed direct bookings. Here, €885 ÷ 60 = €14.75. Dividing €14.75 by €300 gives 4.92%, rounded to two decimal places. The €285.25 remaining from each receipt is not profit: accommodation operating costs and taxes still need accounting for.
All inputs are assumptions. Supplier costs are shown before any applicable VAT; guest receipts are the amounts paid. This is a channel-cost illustration, not a net-revenue margin. Setup, staff time and direct-booking perks are excluded; add them when applicable.
Stress-test a quieter month. If bookings fall to 30 while the €600 combined subscription allocation, website and acquisition spend stays unchanged, the cost becomes €600 ÷ 30 + €4.75 = €24.75 per booking, or 8.25% of €300. Zero commission does not remove the effect of seasonality.
Make the calculation fit your actual bookings
- Match the period: reconcile booking IDs, final stays and payments. For campaign analysis, follow the same booking cohort through cancellations; do not divide today's advertising spend by unrelated stays.
- Count payment events: a deposit and balance may create two fixed transaction charges. Under the example tariff, €100 plus €200 costs €5.00 in total, rather than €4.75.
- Check attribution: €360 spread over 60 bookings is a €6 blended acquisition cost. If only 20 completed bookings came from that paid campaign, its acquisition cost is €18 each.
- Add missing costs: spread setup costs across a stated period and include website work, staff time, refunds and perks. Use actual incurred costs where the illustration assumes none.
- Compare equivalent stays: use the same room, dates and cancellation terms when comparing an online travel agency (OTA). Include its actual commission, payment charges and discounts, and keep tax treatment consistent.
Keep two views: the fully allocated cost for channel budgeting, and the extra cost of accepting one more reservation. Fixed subscriptions do not necessarily increase with that next booking, but they still need funding across the year.
Apply the model to a RoomRaccoon quote
The RoomRaccoon hotel booking engine is advertised as commission-free and supports partial or full prepayments. The Irish pricing comparison lists the booking engine in Entry, Essential, Premium and Pro; it places the price checker and Google Tag Manager integration in Premium and Pro.
Ask for a property-specific euro quote covering your plan, optional tools, payment tariff, implementation and billing term. Confirm which costs are included and which are charged separately. The allocation and reconciliation above are a management exercise; they are not a claim that RoomRaccoon automatically calculates this exact cost model.
Bring your direct-booking volume, average reservation value and payment mix to see how the quote fits your hotel.
Book a demo for your propertyDirect-booking cost questions
Are repeat guests free to acquire?
They may require no new advertising spend, but email tools, loyalty benefits and staff time can still cost money. Record those costs without assigning a fictional advertising charge to every returning guest.
Should I divide costs by bookings or room nights?
Use reservations for cost per booking. For cost per room night, divide by the room nights those completed reservations generated. Keep both labelled; a two-night reservation is one booking.
Does a cancelled booking disappear from the costs?
No. Remove it from the completed-booking count, but retain any advertising or processing costs that were actually incurred and not refunded. Check the supplier's refund terms before assuming a fee is returned.
Is direct always cheaper than an OTA?
No. Heavy acquisition spending, low conversion or expensive perks can erode the difference. Compare the money retained from equivalent completed stays, using your own contracts and costs.
Sources and checks
Product information checked on 13 November 2026. Example figures are hypothetical and calculated for this guide; confirm contractual charges in your quote.
- RoomRaccoon Ireland: booking engine — commission-free positioning and prepayment options.
- RoomRaccoon Ireland: pricing and plan comparison — included features and plan differences.
