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Know before you book6 min read

Why the same hotel room costs different amounts on every site — and how to compare properly before you book

Ever opened two apps side by side — same hotel, same night — and seen prices a thousand baht apart? It's not necessarily anyone lying. The price on each screen is assembled differently. This article breaks down the main causes one by one, so you can compare properly and stop being fooled by the first number you see.

The 5 main reasons the numbers don't match

  • Taxes and fees show up at different moments — some sites show the price before 7% tax and 10% service charge and add them at checkout; others include them from the start. First-glance prices simply aren't comparable until you reach the summary page.
  • Exchange rates and your currency setting — some hotels price in USD, and each site converts to baht at its own rate at its own time. A small per-night difference becomes hundreds when multiplied across nights.
  • Channel-exclusive promos — app-only discounts, member rates, coupon codes and time-limited flash sales mean the same price is never still, and usually carry conditions such as pay-now, non-refundable.
  • Different room types with near-identical names — one site's "Deluxe Double" and another's may be genuinely different rooms: different view, breakfast included or not, different cancellation policy. Comparing prices without comparing conditions is the most common trap of all.
  • Slash-through prices anchored high — 70% off a price nobody ever actually paid is not a deal. The number that matters is the final amount you actually pay, compared with the final amounts of the other options in the same search.

The quick check to run before every booking

One — compare only the final all-in total; walk to the summary page before judging. Two — always read the room name together with its conditions: breakfast, cancellation policy, when you pay. Three — if a discount looks unusually large, ask "discounted from what price?". Four — use a metasearch to see several providers side by side first, so you know the night's real price range, then drill into the cheapest one.

rooozt does step four for you: it pulls prices from multiple providers into one honest side-by-side view without adding anything on top, ranks results by a fully published formula that no property can pay to climb, and only counts discounts the provider actually confirms — fake slash-through prices are never shown as deals.

Frequently asked questions

Should I always book the cheapest site?
Not always — the cheapest price usually carries the hardest conditions (pay now, non-refundable). If your plan isn't locked, paying a few hundred baht more for free cancellation is often the better deal.
Why is booking direct with the hotel sometimes cheaper than an OTA?
Many hotels offer perks to direct bookers — member rates, room upgrades, late checkout — because they save the commission they'd pay a middleman. Once a metasearch shows you a price you like, checking the hotel's own website one more time before deciding is a good habit.

Keep reading / next steps