Net Rates for Hotels: B2B Pricing Without Parity Risk
Short answer: a net rate is the price a hotel agrees to charge a B2B buyer, such as a bedbank, wholesaler, travel agency or tour operator, before that buyer adds its own margin. It is confidential, it is written into a contract, and it is meant for packages, company stays and direct client quotes, not for publishing as a bare room price. Handled that way, a hotel can sell to the trade without undercutting its own public rate.
Part of our guide for hotels selling rooms to B2B buyers in Vietnam.
Net rate, public rate and commissionable rate
Hotels usually work with three kinds of price. They are easy to mix up in a contract, so it helps to name them clearly.
| Public rate | Commissionable rate | Net rate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who sees it | Everyone | Everyone, as a selling price | Only the contracted buyer |
| Who sets the selling price | The hotel | The hotel | The buyer, on top of the net rate |
| How the intermediary earns | Not applicable | Commission paid by the hotel after the stay | Its own margin, added at the time of sale |
| Where it is used | Hotel website, consumer channels | Agencies selling room-only | Packages, company stays, groups, wholesale resale |
Why hotels offer net rates to B2B buyers
Demand you do not reach directly
Companies booking staff travel, agencies building packages and tour operators planning groups often buy through a supplier rather than hotel by hotel.
Less visible pricing
A net rate sold inside a package or a company quote does not appear online as a room-only price next to your public rate.
Planned volume
Group room blocks and company trips come with dates, deposits and release schedules agreed in advance, which helps revenue planning.
How to set B2B net rates
Start from your rate structure
Decide which public rates the net rate relates to, by season and by room type, so the contract follows the way you already price.
Define what is included
State the inclusions per rate, such as breakfast, occupancy and extra-bed rules, so the buyer quotes the right product.
Write the conditions
Cancellation and amendment conditions, payment terms and any group terms belong in the written agreement, not in an email thread.
Set parity conditions
If you require public-rate or parity conditions, put them in the contract so the buyer applies them to its public pricing.
Keeping rate parity intact
Rate parity means a room is offered at the same public price across channels. The risk with net rates is not the rate itself but where it ends up. A net rate becomes a parity problem when it is published online as a room-only price below the hotel's own rate, or when it is passed on to third parties who do that.
- Sell net rates only to buyers who sign a written agreement that keeps them confidential.
- Limit use to packages, company quotes and group business, under the conditions in that agreement.
- Ask buyers to resell under their own brand, not as a discount on your hotel's name.
- Write public-rate or parity conditions into the contract where you need them.
- Check who the end buyers are. A supplier that sells to individual travellers is a different channel from a B2B supplier.
How net rates work with Bedtara
Bedtara is a B2B hotel supplier for Vietnam, operated by Dong Thi Co., Ltd, which has worked in Vietnamese travel and accommodation since 2008. Hotels contract room types, net rates by season, inclusions, cancellation conditions and payment terms in a written agreement with Dong Thi Co., Ltd. Bedtara then loads the hotel, room types and conditions so business buyers can request and book them.
Buyers are companies, including HR, admin and finance staff booking employee and guest stays, often with a VAT invoice, as well as travel agencies, tour operators and OTA partners, plus company trips and group room blocks. Bedtara sells to businesses only, not to individual travellers. Net rates are confidential and are never published or disclosed to third parties. Partners resell under their own brand, and where an agreement sets public-rate or parity conditions, partners apply them to their public pricing. Bookings are confirmed with the hotel in writing, and payments follow the agreement.
Questions
What is a net rate in a hotel contract?
The confidential price a hotel charges a B2B buyer for a room, before the buyer adds its margin. The buyer sets its own selling price on top of it.
Do net rates break rate parity?
Not when they stay confidential and are sold inside packages, company quotes or group business. Parity is at risk when a net rate is published as a room-only price below the hotel's public rate.
What is the difference between a net rate and a commission rate for hotels?
With a net rate the buyer sets the selling price and keeps its margin. With a commissionable rate the hotel sets the selling price and pays the intermediary a commission after the stay.
Questions to ask a bedbank Hotel distribution channels What is a channel manager Hotel extranet explained For hotels
Sell to B2B buyers at confidential net rates
Send your room types, seasonal net rates and conditions to start a written agreement.