RV park management software: what to look for when you run nightly and long-term guests
RV park management software is the program that holds your site map, books nightly, weekly, monthly and seasonal guests, collects payment, and shows you who owes what. The test for an RV park is whether one system can handle both the two-night traveler and the winter guest who stays five months, at a price that does not punish you for either.
Why an RV park is not a tent campground
A tent campground sells nights. An RV park often sells nights, weeks, months and whole seasons, all on the same grid, and it sells them by site type: pull-through, back-in, full hookup, 50-amp, 30-amp, big rig.
That changes what you need from software. A system built only around the weekend booking can be fine for a lake campground and awkward for a park where many of the sites are rented by the month.
Here is the mix many RV parks juggle:
| Guest type | Typical stay | What the office needs |
|---|---|---|
| Overnight traveler | 1 to 3 nights | Fast online booking, pull-through filters, early and late arrival notes |
| Weekly guest | 7 nights | Weekly rate, deposit, balance due on arrival |
| Monthly guest | 28 to 30+ nights | Monthly rate, recurring invoice, utility charges, late fees |
| Seasonal guest | 3 to 6 months | Same site every year, payment schedule, renewal list |
| Workamper or contractor | Open ended | Month-to-month billing, balance tracking, clear move-out date |
One data point on the short end of that table. Campspot's own 2025 year in review says the median length of stay across its parks was 3 nights, and 77% of reservations were RV or camper (checked 2026-10-25). That is one vendor's data from its own parks, so treat it as a rough picture of overnight demand, not a measure of your park. It also says nothing about monthly guests, which is why the long-term side deserves its own questions.
What RV park management software should do
Site types and rates
You need to set up each site once with its length limit, amperage, hookups, pull-through or back-in, and any rule such as "no rigs over 40 feet." Then the software should price by site type and by season. A guest searching for a 45-foot pull-through with 50 amp should see only sites that fit.
Ask to see how the system handles a rate that changes by length of stay. Many parks charge less per night for a week, and less per day again for a month.
The reservation grid
The grid is a calendar with sites down the side and dates across the top. At an RV park it has to show a three-month stay and a one-night stay on the same screen without turning into a mess. Check that you can move a guest to another site, split a stay across two sites for a holiday weekend, and block a site for repairs.
Online booking that matches the grid
Guests book and pay on your website at any hour. The booking lands on the same grid as phone and walk-in bookings, so you never double book. For an RV park, the guest should be able to pick the site type that fits their rig, not just "RV site."
Payments
The software should take a deposit or full payment by card, record it against the reservation, and handle refunds. Card processing is a separate cost from the software. Stripe, for example, lists 2.9% + 30 cents per successful domestic card transaction (checked 2026-10-25). On a $1,200 monthly rent, that percentage is real money, so ask every vendor what the card rate is and whether a bank transfer option exists. RoverPass, for one, lists ACH payments with lower processing fees (checked 2026-10-25).
Reports
Occupancy by site type, revenue by month, arrivals and departures, and money owed. For a park with long-term guests, the "money owed" report matters most. It tells you who is behind before the month is over.
The long-term side: where to test hard
This is the part of RV park software that varies the most between products, and it is the part we would test first. We are describing what to ask any vendor here. Do not assume a feature exists because a product page says "monthly."
Recurring billing for monthly guests
A monthly guest should not need an invoice typed by hand each month. Ask the vendor to show you, live, how to set a guest up so rent is invoiced on the same day each month, how a payment is applied, and what happens when a card is declined.
Then ask the price. Some vendors charge extra for recurring invoices. CampLife's pricing page lists recurring billing as an add-on at $3 per recurring invoice, though the same page also shows "Only $1.00 per invoice" on the add-on card, so the page is inconsistent (checked 2026-10-25). Firefly lists long-term reservations (one month or longer) at $3.50 per month for each current long-term reservation (checked 2026-10-25). Ask whichever vendor you are looking at to put the long-term cost in writing.
Utility metering
Many parks bill monthly guests for electric, and sometimes water and propane, on top of rent. Ask the vendor:
- Can I enter a meter reading for each site each month?
- Does the software calculate the charge from my rate per kilowatt-hour?
- Does the charge land on the guest's invoice automatically, or do I add it by hand?
- Can I see the previous reading and the difference?
- Is there a charge for this feature?
We have not confirmed utility metering as a CampStack feature, so we are not claiming it. If metering matters to your park, make it a pass or fail question for every vendor, including us. Ask before you start a trial, so you do not spend two weeks finding out.
Balances, late fees and deposits
Long-term guests make late balances. Check that the software shows a running balance per guest, lets you set a late fee rule, and keeps a record of every payment. Ask how a security deposit is held and returned at move-out.
Renewals for seasonal guests
Seasonal guests often come back to the same site. Ask whether you can copy last year's reservation forward, hold a site for a returning guest, and send a renewal reminder. If the answer is "export to a spreadsheet and do it yourself," you have learned something.
Lease and tax questions
Whether a long stay is taxed as lodging depends on your state and sometimes your city. As one example, the Minnesota Department of Revenue lists campgrounds as taxable lodging when the rental is less than 30 days, or 30 days or more without an enforceable written lease agreement (page last updated May 15, 2024, checked 2026-10-25). Other states differ. Ask your state revenue department or your accountant, and ask the software vendor whether tax can be set per stay length and per guest.
What RV park software costs
Vendors price in four ways: a flat monthly fee, a fee on each reservation, a guest-paid booking fee, or a one-time license. For an RV park with monthly guests, the question is how each model treats a long stay. Everything below was published on each vendor's own page and checked 2026-10-25. Prices can change, so confirm before you decide.
| Vendor | What the page says | Long-term note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Campspot | Monthly software price is not published on the pricing page. Lists a "Guest-paid booking fee for online reservations only." The fee amount is not published on the pages checked. Says it serves more than 3,500 parks. | Not stated on the pricing page | Campspot pricing |
| Firefly Reservations | $3.50 per unit service fee for each new unit booked in a reservation. Park pays or passes it to the guest. | $3.50 per month per current long-term reservation (one month or longer) | Firefly pricing |
| CampLife | $3.00 per reservation. Standard starts at $99 a month, Premium at $249 a month. | Recurring billing add-on at $3 per recurring invoice (page also shows $1.00) | CampLife pricing |
| RoverPass | Small parks: $99 monthly minimum, with $3.50 per reservation counting toward it. | Not stated on the pricing page | RoverPass pricing |
| Campground Master | $795 one-time for a standalone desktop system. Support and updates included the first year, then $100 a year. No monthly fees. | Not stated | Campground Master, buying page |
| Park With Us | Software described as free. Guests who book online pay a small service fee, amount not published on the page checked. | Not stated | Park With Us |
| CampStack | $49 a month or $490 a year. Unlimited reservations and users. No booking fees. | Flat fee, so a six-month stay is not billed per reservation | CampStack owners page |
An illustration: a park with monthly guests
This is an illustration with assumptions, not real data from any park.
Assume a park keeps 10 sites rented to monthly guests for 12 months, so there are 10 long-term reservations running all year. These are the only numbers we are testing.
| Published long-term charge | Math | Cost for the year |
|---|---|---|
| Firefly, $3.50 per month per long-term reservation | 10 x $3.50 x 12 | $420 |
| CampLife recurring billing add-on, $3 per recurring invoice | 10 x $3 x 12 | $360 |
| CampStack, yearly plan | Flat | $490 |
On these assumptions the long-term charge alone is not what decides the price. The point of the table is to show what to ask: what does each vendor charge for the monthly guest, on top of the base software and the nightly bookings? Add the nightly fees, the minimums and the add-ons for your own volume before comparing. The booking fee calculator will do that math with your numbers.
Card processing is left out because Stripe's rate applies to card payments under any of these options.
Can one system run both nightly and long-term sites?
It should, and you should check it in a demo. The signs of a system that can:
- Nightly, weekly and monthly rates can live on the same site.
- A monthly reservation does not need a new booking every 30 days.
- Online booking can be limited to the sites you want sold by the night. You can keep your monthly sites off the public calendar if you choose.
- Reports can split revenue between short stays and long stays.
The signs of a system that cannot:
- Long stays have to be entered as a string of separate reservations.
- Recurring billing is a manual export.
- The vendor's answer to "how do I bill electric?" is "we do not do that."
Fee models and long stays
A fee on each reservation is easy to understand when guests stay three nights. It is harder to read when the same guest stays six months. Some vendors count a long stay as one reservation. Some add a monthly charge for each long-term reservation, as Firefly's page does. Some charge per invoice. Ask each vendor to explain, in dollars, what a single guest who stays from November through March costs you.
A flat fee removes the question. With CampStack, the fee is $49 a month or $490 a year whether you have 20 bookings or 2,000, and nothing is added at guest checkout. That is a pricing fact, not a promise about every feature an RV park might want. Check the long-term and metering questions in this article against any vendor, ours included.
A checklist to take to demos
- Fee model in dollars for a year. Include nightly, long-term, add-ons, minimums and setup.
- Site types. Pull-through, back-in, amperage, length limits, hookups.
- Rates by length of stay. Nightly, weekly, monthly, seasonal.
- Recurring billing. Live demo, declined card behavior, cost per invoice.
- Utility metering. Meter readings, rate per unit, invoice line, cost.
- Balances and late fees. Running balance, late fee rule, payment history.
- Seasonal renewals. Copy forward, hold a site, reminders.
- Payments. Processor, card rate, bank transfer option, who holds the money, payout speed.
- Contract and cancel terms. Get it in writing, not just on the website.
- Data export. Can you take your guest list, reservations and payment history with you?
- Support. Who answers on a Saturday in July?
- Taxes. Can tax change by stay length?
If you are moving from another system, see the switching guide before you set a date. CampStack can import sites, guests and future reservations from CSV files, so you do not retype them. If your park is in Arizona, you can find and claim your free listing in the Arizona campground directory.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best software to run an RV park?
The best one is the one that handles your mix of guests at a price you can predict. If most of your income is overnight, a clean grid and online booking matter most. If you rent a lot of sites by the month, test recurring billing and utility charges before anything else. Use the checklist above, and get fees in writing.
Does RV park software handle monthly and seasonal guests?
Some does, and some is built mostly for short stays. Look for recurring invoices, running balances, late fee rules and renewals. Vendors price this differently: Firefly lists a monthly charge for each long-term reservation, and CampLife lists a per-invoice charge for recurring billing (both checked 2026-10-25). Ask any vendor to show it live.
Can one system run both nightly and long-term sites?
It should be able to. Look for different rates on the same site, monthly stays that do not need to be rebooked, and the option to keep monthly sites off the public online calendar. If the vendor tells you to use a separate tool for long-term guests, add that cost to your comparison.
How do I bill monthly guests for electric?
First decide your method: a flat utility fee, or a charge based on the meter reading. Then ask the vendor whether it supports meter readings and a rate per unit, or whether you add the charge by hand. We have not confirmed metering as a CampStack feature, so ask us the same question you ask everyone else.
How much does RV park management software cost?
On the pages we checked on 2026-10-25, prices range from a $795 one-time desktop license to per-reservation fees of $3.00 to $3.50 and monthly minimums of $99 on some plans. Campspot does not publish a software price or booking fee amount on the pages we checked. CampStack is $49 a month or $490 a year, flat.
Do I pay a fee on every booking?
Not with every vendor. Some charge per reservation, some add a guest-paid booking fee, and some charge a flat fee or a one-time license. Campground Master and CampStack have no per-booking fee. Run your own volume through the booking fee calculator.
Is there free RV park software?
Park With Us describes its software as free, with a small service fee paid by guests who book online (checked 2026-10-25). The fee amount is not published on the page we checked. When software is free, ask who pays and how much.
What should I ask before I sign up?
Ask for the yearly cost in dollars, setup fees, cancel terms, data export, who holds the money, support hours, recurring billing, utility metering and tax handling. Get the answers in writing. Then try the software with a real monthly guest before you move your whole park.
Try CampStack
CampStack is flat-fee reservation software for small independent campgrounds and RV parks: $49 a month or $490 a year, unlimited reservations and users, no booking fees. The launch offer is free until your first 25 online bookings, then your rate is locked for life, and there is a 14-day trial. See the details on the owners page.
Sources
All checked 2026-10-25.
- Campspot pricing: https://software.campspot.com/pricing/ (checked 2026-10-25)
- Campspot 2025 year in review: https://software.campspot.com/about-campspot/year-in-review/ (checked 2026-10-25)
- Firefly Reservations pricing: https://fireflyreservations.com/pricing (checked 2026-10-25)
- CampLife pricing: https://software.camplife.com/pricing (checked 2026-10-25)
- RoverPass pricing: https://software.roverpass.com/pricing (checked 2026-10-25)
- Campground Master: https://www.campgroundmaster.com/ (checked 2026-10-25)
- Campground Master buying page: https://www.campgroundmaster.com/buying.html (checked 2026-10-25)
- Park With Us: https://parkwith.us/ (checked 2026-10-25)
- Stripe pricing: https://stripe.com/pricing (checked 2026-10-25)
- Minnesota Department of Revenue, Sales, Lodging and Related Services: https://www.revenue.state.mn.us/guide/sales-lodging-and-related-services (page last updated May 15, 2024; checked 2026-10-25)
Sources
Facts about other companies come from their own public pages. Prices change, so open the source before you decide.
- Campspot pricing, checked October 25, 2026.
- Campspot 2025 year in review, checked October 25, 2026.
- Firefly Reservations pricing, checked October 25, 2026.
- CampLife pricing, checked October 25, 2026.
- RoverPass pricing, checked October 25, 2026.
- Campground Master, checked October 25, 2026.
- Campground Master buying page, checked October 25, 2026.
- Park With Us, checked October 25, 2026.
- Stripe pricing, checked October 25, 2026.
- Minnesota Department of Revenue, Sales, Lodging and Related Services, checked October 25, 2026.