Every hotel needs a PMS (Property Management System, the core software that runs your hotel). Before you compare screens and features, there’s a simpler decision to make: where the system will run. Stayligent runs both ways, in the cloud or on-premise, with the same core for front desk, guest bills, housekeeping, and reports.
The right choice depends less on the software and more on how your hotel works. These five questions will point you the right way.
1. What happens at your front desk when the internet drops?
If your connection is patchy, this question matters most. On cloud, the internet is needed to use the system. On-premise runs on your own Windows PC or server, so check-ins, folios (the guest’s bill for a stay), and housekeeping carry on fully offline.
On-premise needs the internet once to activate your subscription. After that, daily operations run with or without a connection.
2. Where should your guest data live?
On cloud, Stayligent is hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS), with hotel data stored in the United States region. On-premise keeps operational data on your own hardware, and only your hotel can reach it. Our support team connects remotely only when you give permission.
If your group’s IT policy or your country’s rules require in-house storage, on-premise is the clear fit. Either way, hotel data is encrypted, and every important change records who made it and when.
3. Do you sell on OTAs or want automated guest messages?
Some features depend on outside platforms and a live connection, so they run on cloud only. They are Price Intelligence for demand-based rates, Reviews & Reputation for a single review inbox, WhatsApp Messaging, and channel distribution to OTAs (Online Travel Agencies such as Booking.com, Expedia, Agoda, and MakeMyTrip).
OTA connections are coming soon, expected November 2026. If these tools shape how you sell rooms, cloud is the better choice.
4. Who will look after updates and backups?
On cloud, our team handles updates, backups, and security patches, and we commit to 99.9% uptime. On-premise, new versions are available online whenever you’re connected. Backups are managed by your hotel, or by our team for an additional fee.
A small team with no IT person usually prefers cloud. A property with its own IT staff may be happy running on-premise.
5. Do you run more than one property?
On cloud, a multi-property dashboard gives you one view across all your hotels. On-premise hotels can switch on optional cloud sync for group reporting and remote access by the GM.
One rule to know: every property in a group runs on the same version. Cloud and on-premise use different licensing and data setups, so the two can’t be mixed.
What stays the same either way
Pricing works the same on both versions: per room, on a plan based on the number of modules you use, billed monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or annually. Both go live in 1 to 5 days, with your data migrated by our team, and on-premise adds an online-supported installation of about two hours.
You’re not locked in, either. You can move from one version to the other later, and we migrate your existing data. The time and cost depend on how much data you have.
The bottom line
Choose cloud for every connected feature and no IT work on your side. Choose on-premise if keeping data inside your building, or working through internet outages, matters most. To see the details point by point, read our cloud and on-premise comparison, or book a demo and we’ll show you both running.