What is the cheapest hotel booking site for budget travelers?

Booking sites like Kayak and Trivago actually don't directly sell hotel rooms.

They are "metasearch engines" that aggregate deals from various online travel agencies (OTAs) and hotel websites, allowing users to compare prices in one place.

The "best price guarantee" claims on many booking sites are often misleading.

They typically only match the lowest price if you find it on their own site within a short time window, not across the entire internet.

Hotels sometimes offer their lowest rates directly on their own websites to avoid paying commission fees to third-party booking sites.

Checking hotel sites directly can sometimes yield better deals.

Dynamic pricing is extensively used by hotel booking sites.

Prices for the same room can fluctuate daily based on factors like demand, available inventory, and competitor pricing.

Booking sites make money primarily through commission fees paid by hotels, usually around 15-30% of the booking price.

This incentivizes them to steer customers towards higher-priced rooms.

Many booking sites now offer "opaque pricing" where the hotel name is hidden until after you book.

This makes it harder to compare prices across sites.

Loyalty programs and membership discounts offered by some booking sites can provide significant savings, but require ongoing commitment from the user.

The location of the hotel within a city can drastically impact the price.

Booking a hotel slightly outside the main tourist areas can lead to big savings.

Certain booking sites negotiate exclusive rates with select hotel chains, which can sometimes beat the best available public rates.

Time of year and day of the week can influence hotel prices significantly.

Midweek and off-season bookings often yield lower rates.

Prepaid, non-refundable rates are usually cheaper than flexible booking options, but carry more risk if travel plans change.

Using a virtual private network (VPN) to appear as though you're booking from a different country can occasionally uncover lower hotel prices.

Last-minute bookings can sometimes result in deeply discounted "distressed inventory" rates, but availability is limited.

Booking sites may show inflated "original prices" to make their discounts seem more substantial than they actually are.

Cookies and browsing history can affect the prices shown on hotel booking sites, as they may assume repeat visitors are willing to pay more.

Booking sites may prioritize higher-priced hotels in search results, even if lower-cost options are available, to maximize their own commissions.

Packages that bundle flights, hotels, and rental cars can occasionally provide greater savings than booking each component separately.

The number of beds, room size, and amenities offered can vary significantly even among rooms with the same base price at the same hotel.

Hotel star ratings are mostly subjective and not always reliable indicators of quality, as they are self-reported by the hotels themselves.

Cancellation and modification policies can have a big impact on the total cost of a hotel booking, so it's important to review the fine print.