The big sites Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com and Trip.com usually show the same price for the same room. Agoda was cheaper at some hotels, and smaller sites such as Vio.com, Pilot and Traveluro were cheapest most often.
"Is Booking.com or Expedia cheaper?" is one of the most common questions about hotels. We looked at 15 hotels and compared the total price on every site that showed an offer.
The short version
Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com, Priceline and Trip.com are often owned by the same few companies or use the same hotel rates, and for many hotels they show an identical price. That is why comparing only these big names often gives no savings. The difference came from three other groups:
- Agoda, which was cheapest at several Asian and US hotels (for example Tremont New York, about 30 % below Booking.com).
- Smaller sites such as Vio.com (Novotel Bangkok, 23 % below), Pilot (Novotel Paris, 14 % below), klook (Hard Rock Bali, 20 % below) and Traveluro or trivago deals.
- The hotel's own website, which beat Booking.com at NH Collection Barcelona by 20 %.
What this means for you
- Do not stop after comparing Booking.com and Expedia, they are often identical.
- Add Agoda and at least one smaller site to your comparison.
- Always compare the total price including taxes and fees, see taxes and fees explained.
- Check the hotel's website, especially for chains with a free member rate.
Good to know: The same hotel can look cheaper on one site because its price shows without taxes. That is not a real saving. Compare totals.
Why do the prices differ at all?
Each site gets its rate from the hotel or from a wholesaler and adds its own margin or discount. Some small sites buy rooms from wholesalers at a lower price, or they accept a smaller margin. Some offers are non-refundable, which is cheaper for the same room.
Questions
Is Booking.com always the cheapest? No. In our test it was cheapest or equal for 2 of 15 hotels and more expensive for the other 13.
Is Agoda cheaper than Booking.com? Often in Asia and for some US hotels. In Europe it was usually the same price.
Is Expedia cheaper than Booking.com? Mostly the same price. Expedia, Hotels.com and Priceline showed identical totals in most cases.
Are the differences always there? No. Prices change daily. Compare again before you book.