Pilot vs. Groups360: feature comparison, ratings, and FAQ
A data comparison maintained by Pilot (pilotplans.com). Full comparison: https://www.pilotplans.com/compare/groups360-alternative.
Summary
Pilot is a free trip booking and planning app: plan a whole trip in one place with a flexible itinerary, a map of your stops, notes, real-time collaboration, and AI itinerary generation, and book hotels in the app at private rates across 3,000,000+ stays, with real human support. Pilot is rated 4.7 by 50,000+ travelers.
Groups360: B2B platform (GroupSync) for booking group hotel blocks and event space.
Groups360 is a professional tool for sourcing group room blocks and event space. Pilot is for your own personal or group trip: plan the whole trip, collaborate with friends and family, and book your stay at private rates.
Key facts
- Pricing
- Pilot: completely free to plan and book. Groups360: Free for planners.
- Overall rating
- Pilot: 4.7 from 50,000+ travelers. Groups360: no public rating.
- Founded
- Pilot: 2022. Groups360: 2014.
- Books hotels in the app
- Pilot: yes, at private rates across 3,000,000+ stays. Groups360: yes.
- Full comparison
- https://www.pilotplans.com/compare/groups360-alternative
Feature comparison
Each row shows whether Pilot and Groups360 offer the feature: Yes, No, or Partial. A [n] marker cites the source in References.
| Feature | Pilot | Groups360 |
|---|---|---|
| Booking | ||
| Book hotels in the app | YesBook your stay in the app at private rates for any trip; Groups360 books hotels too, but for group room blocks, not individual leisure stays | Yes[1] |
| Member-only hotel rates | YesPrivate 'book early' rates straight from hotels for one stay; Groups360 sources group rates for blocks of 10 or more rooms | Yes[1] |
| Add accommodation to itinerary | Yes | No |
| Transportation cost tracking | Yes | No |
| Flight deals | Yes | No |
| Files tab | Yes | No |
| Attach files to itinerary items | Yes | No |
| Instant booking confirmation | Yes | Partial[1] |
| Checkout without upsells | Yes | No |
| Reviews from real travelers | Yes | No |
| No hidden fees or taxes | Yes | Partial[1] |
| Inventory & discovery | ||
| Bookable hotel inventory | YesMore than 3,000,000 stays you can book in Pilot; Groups360 lists 200,000+ properties for group blocks and event space | Yes[1] |
| Hotel search filters | Yes | Partial[1] |
| Activities to explore in-app | Yes | No |
| Restaurant listings in-app | Yes | No |
| Discovery filters | Yes | No |
| Travel requirements and eVisas | Yes | No |
| Flight suggestions for trip | No | No |
| eSIMs at checkout | Yes | No |
| Destination pages | Yes | No |
| Editorial travel guides in-app | Yes | No |
| Things to do per city | Yes | No |
| Activity detail pages | Yes | No |
| Planning | ||
| Itinerary builder | YesPlan the whole trip in one place; Groups360 sources rooms and meeting space, it does not plan the trip | No |
| Drag and drop reordering | Yes | No |
| Customizable map pins and routes | YesSee your whole trip on a map; Groups360 is a booking platform for planners | No |
| Add activities, transportation, or stays from anywhere | Yes | No |
| Attach info to any item | Yes | No |
| Notes and checklists | YesKeep notes, lists, and links with the plan; Groups360 manages the room block | No |
| Note and list format toggle | Yes | No |
| Rich text formatting in notes | Yes | No |
| Undo and redo | Yes | No |
| Duplicate trips | Yes | No |
| Manual file import | Yes | No |
| Email-forwarding file import | Yes | No |
| AI parsing of imported confirmations | Yes | No |
| Export to PDF | Yes | No |
| iOS and Android mobile apps | Yes | No |
| Offline access on mobile | Yes | No |
| Shortlist items | Yes | No |
| Wishlist / wanderlist | Yes | No |
| Wishlist images | Yes | No |
| Fun sound effects | Yes | No |
| Structured itinerary sections | Yes | No |
| Keyboard shortcuts | Yes | No |
| Multiple transportation types | Yes | No |
| Flight code auto-fill | Yes | No |
| Multi-leg flight support | Yes | No |
| Consistent IATA codes on mobile | Yes | No |
| Budgeting | ||
| Trip budget tracker | Partial | No |
| Per-person cost split | Partial | No |
| In-trip expense logging | Yes | No |
| Group expense splitting | No | No |
Ratings
| Source | Pilot | Groups360 |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot rating | 4.4 | No public rating |
| App Store rating | 4.8 | No public rating |
| Google Play rating | 4.2 | No public rating |
Pricing
| Pilot | Groups360 | |
|---|---|---|
| Plan | Free to plan and book | Free for planners[1] |
Frequently asked questions
What is Groups360?
Groups360 is a business-to-business platform, with a product called GroupSync, for booking group hotel room blocks and meeting or event space online, either instantly or by sending an RFP to hotels. It is free for planners and is aimed at professional meeting and event organizers, not individual travelers.
What is Pilot?
Pilot is a trip booking and planning app. You plan the whole trip in one place, a flexible itinerary, a map of your stops, and notes, and you book your hotel in the app at private rates straight from hotels, the kind usually reserved for travel agents. Groups360 sources rooms and event space for professional planners; Pilot is for planning and booking your own trip.
Is Pilot a good Groups360 alternative?
They serve different people. Groups360 is built for professional meeting and event planners who need to book large blocks of rooms and event space. Pilot is for individual and friends-and-family trips: plan the whole trip, collaborate, and book your stay in the app at private rates across more than 3,000,000 hotels. If you are organizing an event with a room block, Groups360 fits; if you are planning your own trip, Pilot does.
Is Groups360 free?
Groups360 is free for planners and earns from the hotel side. Pilot is also completely free, for anyone, and it plans the whole trip as well as booking your stay at private rates.
Can Pilot book a group room block?
Pilot is built for planning trips together and booking individual stays at private rates, not for sourcing blocks of 10 or more rooms or event space. For a professional event, Groups360 is purpose-built for that; for planning a trip and booking your stay, Pilot keeps it all in one place.
Pilot vs Groups360: which should I use?
Use Groups360 if you are a planner sourcing a hotel room block or event space for a meeting or event. Use Pilot if you are planning your own personal or group trip, with a flexible itinerary, a map, collaboration, and your stay booked at private rates, all free.
References
- groups360.com (2026-06-04)