Best available rate (BAR)

The best available rate (BAR) is a pricing model used in hospitality to determine and offer guests the lowest publicly available rate for a room or property at a given time. It’s the standard rate that helps balance the need to fill rooms while also focusing on profitability.

By establishing the BAR, accommodation providers ensure they are not underpricing their services, thus maximizing revenue per available room (RevPAR). To set an optimal price, businesses analyze market conditions, including factors like current demand, seasonality, location popularity, etc.

Suppose the hotel’s website displays different rate plans for the same room type, ranging from non-refundable to flexible options with amenities like breakfast included. The best available rate would be the lowest rate for the dates a guest is interested in, typically non-refundable, without any additional discounts or special offers applied.

Hotels use BAR as a reference point to calculate all other rates, applying different modifiers—predetermined amounts added to the base rate as a percentage or fixed fee.