SOLV.INGWhat we found reviewing 199 small US lodging websites (2026)
Published November 2, 2026 · Oscar Rowe, SOLV.ING
In October 2026 we looked at the websites of small, independently run cabins, motels, inns, B&Bs and vacation rentals across the US, and kept short notes on what was wrong with each one. This page counts what those notes say.
Every number here is a floor, not an estimate. We wrote down two or three problems per site, not a full audit. If a site isn't counted under a problem, that only means we didn't note it. So read each figure as "at least X of 199".
Key findings
- At least 90 of 199 (45%)showed no rates or prices on the site. Another 38 had no rates on the homepage, which we didn't count.
- At least 75 of 199 (38%)still had leftovers from a website template or builder, such as placeholder text, default slide captions or a free-builder banner.
- At least 75 of 199 (38%)had typos we noted, often in headings, room names or the page title that shows up on Google.
- At least 56 of 199 (28%)showed an old copyright year or content that was out of date, like a past season or a COVID-era notice.
- At least 47 of 199 (24%)had buttons, menu links or forms that went nowhere or to the wrong page.
- 139 of 199 (70%)had two or more of the problems below in our notes.
At a glance
Share of 199 small US lodging websites where our notes name each problem. Lower bounds. A site can appear in several rows.
No rates or prices shown
At least 90 of 199 (45%)
These sites gave no nightly or weekly rate anywhere, or showed a rates page with no numbers on it. In 12 of the 90, the site sends guests to an outside booking page or platform, where a price may appear, but the owner's own site shows none. Another 38 sites had no rates on the homepage, and 4 showed rates for only some units or on some pages. We left those out of the 90.
What it costs the owner: a guest who can't see a price has to write or call and then wait for an answer. Many will check a place that shows a price first, and some of those will book there. It also means more "how much is it?" messages to answer by hand.
One-line fix: put a "from $X per night" line for each unit, with the season it applies to, on the page guests land on.
Template or builder leftovers
At least 75 of 199 (38%)
Default text that came with the website template was still live: placeholder paragraphs, slider captions that were never replaced, buttons labelled just "Button", "under construction" banners, footers with the template's sample name, image file names shown as text, or the free-builder banner at the top of the page.
What it costs the owner: leftovers make a real, open business look abandoned. Guests are about to send money to a place they've never seen, and a page that looks unfinished gives them a reason to hesitate.
One-line fix: read every page top to bottom once, on a phone, and replace or delete anything you didn't write yourself.
Typos
At least 75 of 199 (38%)
Spelling mistakes and garbled sentences, often in the places guests read first: headings, room and cabin names, menus, and the page title that Google shows in search results.
What it costs the owner: one typo won't lose a booking. Several, in the headline or the business name on Google, make the whole place feel less cared for, and that is what guests are judging.
One-line fix: paste each page's text into a spell checker, and search your business name on Google to check the title it shows.
Outdated copyright year or old content
At least 56 of 199 (28%)
A copyright year of 2024 or earlier in the footer, a copyright line that was never finished, or content that was clearly old: a past season's dates, expired specials, events that already happened, COVID-era rules, storm notices from years ago, or links to Google+, which closed in 2019.
What it costs the owner: guests use these clues to guess whether a place is still open. An old year or last season's dates raises that doubt right when they are deciding.
One-line fix: update the footer year, take down anything about a season that's over, and put this season's dates where guests will see them.
Broken buttons, links or forms
At least 47 of 199 (24%)
Menu items and buttons that went nowhere or just reloaded the homepage, "Book Now" links with dates that had already passed, social icons pointing at the website builder's own pages instead of the business, an email link that opened a web address instead of an email, and form fields with no labels.
What it costs the owner: a broken "Book" or "Contact" button stops the guest at the exact moment they want to reach you. Most won't go looking for another way in.
One-line fix: tap every button and menu item on your own site once a season, on a phone, and fix the ones that don't land where they say.
No online booking or request form
At least 40 of 199 (20%)
The only way to book was to call or email: no booking calendar and no form to ask for dates. In 26 of the 40, the note names the phone specifically, for example "call to book". We did not count sites that had a request form or contact form, even a basic one, or sites whose only booking route was Airbnb or Vrbo.
What it costs the owner: many people plan trips in the evening, when the office line goes to voicemail. A guest who can't leave their dates somewhere may book the next place that lets them.
One-line fix: add a short form that asks for dates, number of guests and an email, and sends it straight to you.
Inconsistent info between pages or vs. Google
At least 24 of 199 (12%)
Two different phone numbers or addresses on one site, different minimum stays or cancellation terms on different pages, rates that didn't match between a list and a table, a different number of units on two pages, or a site that said one thing while its Google description said another.
What it costs the owner: guests don't know which version to trust, so they ask, or they leave. When the mismatch is about money or rules, it can also turn into a dispute after the stay.
One-line fix: keep phone, address, rates and policies in one place on the site, and copy them from there into your Google profile.
Booking needs a PDF, a mailed deposit or a check
At least 9 of 199 (5%)
To reserve, guests had to download and fill in a PDF form, mail a deposit to a postal address, or pay by check.
What it costs the owner: every extra step between "I want these dates" and "it's booked" loses some guests, and mailing a check is a big step for anyone used to booking a room in a few taps.
One-line fix: offer at least one way to pay the deposit online, and keep the check option for guests who prefer it.
For comparison: local service businesses
We reviewed 142 local service businesses the same way, mostly pet groomers, auto shops, vets, dental offices, salons and trades. They are not part of the 199 above. The same caveats apply: lower bounds, and not a random sample.
| Problem noted | At least |
|---|---|
| Template or builder leftovers | 74 of 142 (52%) |
| No prices shown | 69 of 142 (49%) |
| Typos | 65 of 142 (46%) |
| No online booking or request form | 61 of 142 (43%) |
| Outdated year or old content | 55 of 142 (39%) |
| Broken buttons, links or forms | 52 of 142 (37%) |
| Inconsistent info | 12 of 142 (8%) |
How we did this
- What we looked at. Websites of small, independently run US lodging: cabins, motels, inns, B&Bs, cottage resorts and vacation rentals, found through web searches by region and state. We were looking for owners we might be able to help, and we later emailed many of them about two of the problems we found.
- When. October 2026. The last notes were finished on November 1, 2026. Sites change, so some of these problems may already be fixed.
- How. We opened each site and wrote down a few concrete problems, often with a direct quote from the page. In the earlier batches we mostly looked at the homepage. In the later ones we also opened the rates, rooms, booking and contact pages. We used AI-assisted browsing tools to open pages and pull exact quotes.
- Who is counted. One entry per business. We merged duplicates across our lead lists, emails and notes by email domain, web address and name. That left 199 lodging businesses. The 142 local service businesses are counted separately.
- What counts. A problem counts for a site only when our notes say it in plain words. We sorted the notes into the eight groups above with a script, using narrow rules. For rates, we counted only notes saying a site shows no rates at all, not notes about the homepage only. Where we corrected a note before emailing an owner, we used the corrected version and dropped the claim we took back (this happened once in this set).
- Why these are lower bounds. Our notes list two or three problems per site, picked because they were easy to explain, not every problem on the page. The real share for each problem is very likely higher.
- Why this is not a random sample. We skipped sites that already showed prices with online booking, sites with no public email, sites with no sign of being open in 2025 or 2026, and property management companies. So sites with problems are overrepresented. Please don't read these figures as a share of all US lodging websites.
- No one is named. We don't name or describe any business here, and we left out any quote that could point to one. The examples above are generic.