BAR (Best Available Rate)

BAR (Best Available Rate) is the lowest publicly available, non-restricted rate a hotel offers for a given date. It is the rate that any guest can book without belonging to a corporate program, loyalty tier, or promotional campaign — and it serves as the reference price for nearly all distribution.

Characteristics

• Public — visible on the hotel website, OTAs, and metasearch
• Non-restricted — no membership, advance-purchase, or stay-length requirements
• Dynamic — changes daily (or hourly) based on demand and pricing strategy
• Parity-anchored — typically the rate against which channel parity is enforced

BAR vs other rates

• BAR — the lowest unrestricted public rate
• Member rate — usually 5–15% below BAR, only visible after login
• Corporate / negotiated rate — fixed contracted rates for specific accounts
• Promo / advance-purchase rate — discounted rate with restrictions like non-refundable or 14-day advance

Why it matters

BAR is the central anchor of a hotel's pricing strategy and the rate most often used in rate-parity agreements with OTAs. Revenue managers spend a significant portion of their time setting and adjusting BAR across the booking calendar.