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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Hotels.com vs Hilton Honors

Hotels.com 4.8★ · Free to download 60
Winner Hilton Honors
Hilton Honors 4.9★ · Free to download 75

Hilton Honors is the better choice for those who frequently stay at Hilton properties, offering a more integrated experience, while Hotels.com is suitable for broader hotel searches despite its app's performance and customer service issues.

Full reviews: Hotels.com · Hilton Honors

Hilton Honors generally provides a smoother booking and in-stay experience for its brand, though recent updates have introduced some bugs. Hotels.com offers a wider selection of hotels but struggles with app performance, customer support, and reward program clarity.

Head to head

App Performance & Reliability tieR1R3R21R37
Hotels.com Hotels.com users frequently report the app is slow, frustrating, and prone to issues after updates R1R3R21. Some users experience difficulty logging in or finding reservations R21R37.
Hilton Honors Hilton Honors users also report significant app performance issues, with frequent 'That was unexpected' error messages, crashes, and unreliability, especially after recent updates R67. The digital key feature, while a selling point, often fails to work .
Booking & Reservation Management edge: Hilton HonorsR10R22R25R31
Hotels.com Users report problems with booking accuracy, such as incorrect dates or charges, and difficulty making changes or cancellations R10R22R25R31. Some reservations booked through Hotels.com are not found by the hotel directly R37.
Hilton Honors Hilton Honors generally offers a smooth and simple booking process . However, some users report difficulty finding their reservations within the app or issues with the search function .
Customer Service & Support tieR13R16R22R23
Hotels.com Hotels.com users frequently complain about the inability to reach a human for assistance, being stuck in phone trees or with unhelpful AI chatbots R13R16R23R25. Issues like bedbugs or incorrect bookings are not resolved satisfactorily by customer service R22R31.
Hilton Honors Hilton Honors users also express frustration with customer service, particularly the ineffectiveness of AI chat and difficulty reaching a live person . Some users report customer service being unable to help with account access issues .
Rewards & Value tieR1R4R12R19
Hotels.com Hotels.com's reward program is criticized for being fake or offering higher prices R1. Users also report rewards expiring R4 and changes to the rewards system R27R42. Some feel prices are over-inflated compared to direct booking or competitors R12R19.
Hilton Honors Hilton Honors members sometimes find better pricing on competitor sites like Booking.com, even for Hilton properties, questioning the value of their membership . Some users report that their eligible benefits are not displayed correctly in the app .
In-App Features & Usability tieR7R57R61R62
Hotels.com Users find the Hotels.com app design poor, lacking useful information like location, phone contact, or paid price R57. There are also complaints about hidden bad reviews R7.
Hilton Honors Hilton Honors has improved its app interface, making it cleaner and more modern . However, recent updates removed the ability to add reservations to a calendar, a feature users miss R62. The digital key is a valued feature, but its unreliability is a major drawback . The app also has issues with push notifications being used for ads despite user preferences R61 and problems with VPN support .
Pick Hotels.com if

you prioritize a wider selection of hotels from various brands and are willing to tolerate potential app performance and customer service frustrations R19.

Pick Hilton Honors if

you frequently stay at Hilton properties and value brand-specific features like digital keys (when working) and loyalty program integration, despite recent app bugs .

Evidence note: Both apps have a significant number of recent negative reviews related to app performance and customer service, which contrasts with their high lifetime ratings. For Hotels.com, many negative reviews are about the third-party booking experience itself, rather than solely the app. For Hilton Honors, the 'That was unexpected' error message is a recurring and widespread complaint.

Frequently asked

Do these apps offer good customer support?
Neither app consistently provides good customer support; users of Hotels.com frequently report difficulty reaching a human and being stuck with unhelpful AI or phone trees R13R16R23R33, while Hilton Honors users also find their AI support useless and struggle to get a real person .
Are the reward programs valuable?
The value of both reward programs is questionable according to users; Hotels.com's rewards are sometimes seen as fake or leading to higher prices, with frequent changes and expirations R1R4R27R42, and Hilton Honors members occasionally find better rates on competitor sites for the same hotels .
Do the apps have performance issues?
Yes, both apps have significant performance issues; Hotels.com is frequently described as slow and frustrating after updates R1R3R21, and Hilton Honors users consistently report 'That was unexpected' error messages, crashes, and unreliable digital keys, especially with recent updates R67.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R1] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Slowest App Ever!: Don’t download the app it’s frustrating and a joke. It offers rewards that are fake and only rewards themselves by offering higher prices. Use this site on your browser to book anything. The app is the slowest app of all apps. My Motel 6 booking on 7/7/26 was denied due to the kiosk being down. Motel 6 no longer has real reps on site. I would avoid Motel 6 altogether. I got refu
  2. [R3] Hotels.com 3/5 · US Slow App: I have been using this app for several years now with no issues up until recently, I have an iPhone 17 Pro Max and have all iOS updates and the app’s updates. It has been running slow for a month or so and I have already deleted the app and installed it again.
  3. [R21] Hotels.com 3/5 · GB What’s happened.?: Was working great till a recent update. Now I can’t log back in to my account despite resetting password . Keeps saying a problem your end . When will this be fixed? Have to keep logging in via web which is a pain retrieving bookings
  4. [R37] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Disappointed: I tried to book a room this past week but didn't receive a text with my confirmation. I called the hotel and was told there was no reservation in my name. My bank had a pending payment listed. on my account. When I was finally able to locate a phone number for Hotels. com, I was told the reservation had not gone through because the bank didn't accept it. So they canceled it but never
  5. [R10] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Cancel: No place did it say it was booking was no available to may changes so I will Never use them again
  6. [R22] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Problematic: I have one problem after another, first I didn’t get the room selected nor could I change it or get a refund after. Then I was charged after it was confirmed it was to be paid when I was to check in they wouldn’t do anything about that either!
  7. [R25] Hotels.com 1/5 · US I hate this app!: I cannot stand this app. I am going to find a different one! I wanted one night I keyed in the dates and location and went to check on one thing it changed the dates and made it 2 nights. I wish to speak to a real person and there is no phone number!!! The problem is this is not the first time. I use this app a lot for my business also but no more.
  8. [R31] Hotels.com 2/5 · US Date misconception: When booking my husband did not realize the date was preset to a date in the future so he continued on and saved the hotel (which he wanted that night since I am In the hospital 1 1/2 hours away). When he realized his mistake hotels.com refused to issue a refund. We have now been charged double For one night. I will NEVER USE THIS SITE AGAIN AND I RECOMMEND YOU ALL DONT EITHER!
  9. [R13] Hotels.com 1/5 · US A.I. BLOCKS ACTUAL ASSISTANCE.: HOTEL FULL OF ROACHES AND NO HUMAN TO ASSIST,
  10. [R16] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Can’t get to a human.: App is ridiculous. I need a live person not an endless phone tree.
  11. [R23] Hotels.com 4/5 · US Terrible: They have no one to contact for customer service. This is a terrible app.
  12. [R4] Hotels.com 1/5 · US All rewards expired: Never using the app again
  13. [R12] Hotels.com 3/5 · US Way over priced: $389 for 1 night. Not even a free coffee. When I asked about having a continental breakfast for the cost the manager said “We’re a business hotel, our sister one next door is a family one!” What kind of answer is that? We’ve been coming here for a couple years and this is the most expensive it’s ever been and the rooms are getting musky and the decorations inside rooms and hot
  14. [R19] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Do Not Use: Do not use hotels.com. Make your reservations with the property directly. You will get better rates, better service, and responsiveness if there is a problem. Properties treat guests who reserve through third party apps like dirt. They get the crappiest rooms and if there is a problem, they won’t solve it because the reservation was made through a third party.
  15. [R7] Hotels.com 1/5 · US Untrue Reviews: You hide the bad recent reviews further down in the review thread and push the good ones to the top. People need to see what the hotel is like most recently so that they can make the right choice for them and their families. I recently had a horrible experience at one of the hotels on this site and went back to see how I managed to pick that horrible place and discovered the recen
  16. [R57] Hotels.com 1/5 · US This app has useless information but doesn’t have much useful information: You can’t find the location, phone contact, the price you paid on it. It is just a horrible design.
  17. [R61] Hilton Honors 1/5 · US App does not respect push notifications settings: I would like app notifications about my stay so I did not block notifications on the ios level but I disabled all notifications in the app settings, and yet I still get ads.
  18. [R62] Hilton Honors 4/5 · US App improved, Please Add Wallet Support of Digital Key: This is my updated review. Current version of Hilton Honors app (new edition) is a significant improvement. Calendar support for reservations is now enabled and works flawlessly (just as in the old edition). Thank you. Link to download Wallet cards for the reservations is still missing. Please add Wallet Support for the reservations. As a ver
  19. [R33] Hotels.com 3/5 · GB Help doesn’t help: I’ve been really struggling to get a sensible answer from the chatbot. Please can you have the option of asking for a human when it’s not working. Not impressed.
  20. [R27] Hotels.com 3/5 · GB App: Good app, but they keep changing the rewards
  21. [R42] Hotels.com 3/5 · GB Not happy as can’t use promotional codes no more: I’m a little bit annoyed that you don’t accept promotional codes no more from different agents which I think is wrong as I have never had a problem up to now. So I don’t know why you have stopped it. I have used this app for a long time booking trips away I really liked it but now I’m not sure I will be using it unless you do something about it.
  22. [R67] Hilton Honors 1/5 · US A flying piano…: Just downloaded the most recent Hilton Honors Application update effective 07/07/2026 and yes folks, it continues to be a hot mess, in a dumpster fire, on a train wreck. Why so subterranean in my assessment you may ask? Let’s review together. 1. Upon opening the App; after deleting reinstalling of course. The ubiquitous, “That was unexpected”. Sorry for the interruption. Let’s tr

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store