Hoku vs TripIt
These two are often searched together but they solve different problems. TripIt files the bookings you already made into one tidy itinerary. Hoku helps a group decide, book and pay for a trip together. Here is how to tell which one you need.
Group planner: RSVPs, chat, splits, Discover, AI
Solo organiser: forward emails, get a master itinerary and alerts
We make Hoku, so this is an informed opinion, not a neutral review. TripIt facts are as of September 2026, from SAP Concur's published TripIt pricing and public app store listings. Spot an error? Email support@hoku.travel and we will correct it.
An organiser for one traveller, or a planner for the whole group.
TripIt, owned by SAP Concur, has one very good trick. Forward every confirmation email to it and it assembles a chronological master itinerary: flights, hotels, cars, restaurants, all in order with confirmation numbers. TripIt Pro, at $49 a year per their published pricing, layers on flight alerts, seat and fare tracking and airport maps. For a frequent business traveller who books everything alone, that is a mature and genuinely useful setup, and Hoku does not try to replace it for that person.
Where TripIt stops is the part before the bookings exist. It is a solo-traveller product with limited collaboration and no shared expenses. It does not help six friends agree on dates, see who has committed, vote on the Saturday plan, or work out who owes whom for the house. That is the whole of Hoku's job: one shared day-by-day itinerary with up to 100 members, an RSVP on the trip, chat plus reactions and comments on each activity, expense splitting with settle-up, AI planning on Premium, and a Discover tab with tours, sights and restaurants for your destination. Hoku also imports bookings from Gmail on Premium, though TripIt's email parsing is the more established of the two.
What each app does, as of September 2026.
| Feature | Hoku | TripIt |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | iOS, Android and web. | iOS, Android and web. |
| Shared itinerary with a group | Up to 10 members free, 100 on Premium, all editing one plan. | Limited collaboration; built around one traveller's itinerary. |
| RSVP / who's in | Per trip: in, maybe or can't go. Reactions on each activity show who is up for what. | Not a feature. |
| Group chat, reactions, comments | Trip chat plus reactions and comments on each activity. | Not a feature. |
| Shared expenses and settle up | Even or custom splits, per-person balances, settle-up view. | No shared expenses. |
| Itinerary from confirmation emails | Connect Gmail and Hoku scans it for confirmations; Premium feature. | Its core strength: forward any confirmation and it is filed in order. |
| Flight status and alerts | No live status or alerts. Flights sit on the shared plan; an iOS widget counts down to the trip. | Pro adds alerts, seat and fare tracking, airport maps. Alert accuracy is a common review complaint. |
| AI planning | AI itinerary generation and Trip Genie chat, on Premium. | Not a planning tool; no itinerary generation that we can find. |
| Discover: tours, sights, restaurants | Viator tours and experiences, sights and restaurants for your destination. | Not a feature. |
| Public shareable trips, PDF export | Public trips; PDF export on Premium. | Itineraries can be shared with others; not a public feed. |
| Free plan | 2 active trips, 10 members per trip, with ads. | Email-based itinerary building. |
| Paid plan | $4.99/month or $70/year. Up to 20 active trips, 100 members, Gmail import, AI planning, PDF export, no ads. | Pro is $49/year per their published pricing. |
| Common complaints | Young product with a smaller user base; no offline maps or flight alerts. | Alert accuracy and a dated interface come up often in reviews. |
Who should pick which.
Pick Hoku if
- More than one person is going and you need to agree on the plan, not just record it.
- You want to know who is actually in before you book the house.
- Splitting costs is part of the trip: rentals, group dinners, tickets, the rental car.
- You want tours, sights and restaurants suggested in the same place as the itinerary.
- The trip is a bachelor weekend, a reunion, a festival or a family holiday.
Pick TripIt if
- You travel alone, often for work, and mostly need bookings in one tidy timeline.
- You already live in email confirmations and want them parsed automatically from any source.
- Seat tracking, fare-drop alerts and airport maps are worth $49 a year to you.
- Your company uses SAP Concur and you want the two to sit together.
Plenty of people will end up using both: TripIt for the solo work trips, Hoku for the trip with friends. There is no conflict between them.
Common questions.
Is TripIt free?
As of September 2026, TripIt's free plan builds an itinerary from confirmation emails you forward to it. TripIt Pro is $49 a year per their published pricing and adds flight alerts, seat and fare tracking and airport maps.
Can TripIt split expenses or plan with a group?
TripIt is a solo-traveller itinerary organiser. It has no shared expenses and limited collaboration. Hoku is built for groups: up to 100 members on one itinerary, RSVPs, chat and expense splitting.
Does Hoku import confirmation emails like TripIt?
Yes, on Premium. Connect Gmail and Hoku scans it for booking confirmations and files them on the right day. TripIt's forwarding-based import is more mature and supports more sources, and it remains the best reason to choose TripIt.
Does Hoku track flights like TripIt Pro?
No. TripIt Pro's flight alerts, seat and fare tracking and airport maps have no equivalent in Hoku, though alert accuracy is a common complaint in reviews. Hoku keeps flights on the shared plan so the group can see who lands when, and on iOS a home and lock-screen widget counts down to the trip.
Planning with other people? Start here.
Free for 2 active trips. Invite the group with a link and see who's in.