There’s a comfortable story hospitality brands tell about feedback: guests are busy, they don’t want to be bothered, low response is just how it is. The 2026 data takes that story apart.
According to Alchemer’s 2026 Hospitality Benchmark Study, 97.8% of guests who gave feedback found it easy to do. And nearly one in four hotel guests — 23.4% — say they were never asked in the first place. The willingness is there. The invitation isn’t.
TL;DR — key takeaways
- 97.8% of guests who gave feedback found it easy to do, per Alchemer’s 2026 Hospitality Benchmark Study.
- 23.4% of hotel guests say they were never asked for feedback at all — vs. 13.8% for rentals.
- Rentals out-collect hotels 71.1% to 54.9%, largely because platforms bake the ask into the booking flow.
- Among guests who were asked, response rate is 72% for hotels and 82% for rentals.
- The easiest win in the report: simply ask more consistently.
Do guests actually want to give feedback?
Yes, and they find it effortless. Per Alchemer’s 2026 Hospitality Benchmark Study, 97.8% of guests who provided feedback said it was easy, with three-quarters calling it “very easy.” This isn’t a reluctant audience. When guests are asked, they answer. That makes the participation problem a sending problem, not a willingness problem.
Why don’t some guests give feedback?
Because no one asked them. Here’s how collection breaks down across the two categories, from the report:
| Feedback collection | Overall | Hotel | Rental |
|---|---|---|---|
| Provided feedback | 62.6% | 54.9% | 71.1% |
| Asked, but didn’t respond | 18.6% | 21.8% | 15.1% |
| Never been asked | 18.8% | 23.4% | 13.8% |
Look at the bottom row. Nearly a quarter of hotel guests were never even invited to give feedback. That’s not apathy — it’s a missed ask. And it’s the single easiest gap in the entire report to close.
Why do rentals collect so much more feedback?
Workflow, not willingness. Rental guests provide feedback at 71.1% versus 54.9% for hotels, almost certainly because Airbnb, Vrbo and similar platforms bake review prompts and host follow-up directly into the booking flow. The prompt fires automatically. Hotels, by contrast, depend on a staff member remembering to send the survey — and 23.4% of the time, it doesn’t happen.
If you’re not asking, you’re guessing. Alchemer makes it easy to ask guests for feedback at the moments that matter — email, mobile app, in-stay QR codes, post-stay surveys and kiosks — so the willing majority actually gets the chance. Explore Alchemer for Hospitality →
Isn’t survey fatigue the real problem?
It’s a real concern, but the data says it’s overstated as the primary blocker. Ease isn’t the issue — 97.8% of guests find giving feedback easy. The friction lives in being asked at all, and in what happens afterward. Fatigue comes from too many bad surveys and too little follow-through, not from being asked once at the right moment. The fix isn’t fewer requests; it’s well-timed, relevant ones that respect the guest’s time.
What should hospitality brands do about it?
Start asking, consistently and in the moment. The single biggest lever in this report costs almost nothing: close the “never asked” gap. Add a prompt at check-out, in the app, on the in-room QR code, in the post-stay email. Match the channel to the guest. The willingness is already there for nearly every traveler. Every guest you don’t ask is insight you’re leaving on the table — and a relationship you’re not deepening.
Want the full report? Read the complete 2026 Hospitality Benchmark Report for every breakdown, table and takeaway across loyalty, cleanliness, feedback follow-through, discovery and hotel-vs-rental comparisons.
Methodology: Alchemer’s Research Solutions team surveyed 1,014 U.S. travelers — 540 recent hotel guests and 474 recent vacation-rental guests — in 2026.
FAQ
Q: Do guests find it hard to give feedback?
A: No. 97.8% of guests who gave feedback said it was easy to do, according to Alchemer’s 2026 Hospitality Benchmark Study.
Q: Why don’t hotel guests give feedback?
A: The top reason is simply not being asked — 23.4% of hotel guests say they were never asked at all, versus 13.8% for rentals.
Q: Why do rentals collect more feedback than hotels?
A: Rental platforms bake review prompts and host follow-up into the booking flow, so rentals collect feedback from 71.1% of guests versus 54.9% for hotels.
Q: What’s the easiest way to improve guest feedback participation?
A: Ask more consistently and in the moments that matter. The willingness is already there for the vast majority of guests.