---
title: What Is BAR (Best Available Rate) in Hotels? | bedsKey
description: BAR is a hotel's standard public rate for a night, and the parent other rates are derived from. How BAR works, derived-rate examples and BAR vs ADR.
canonical: https://bedskey.com/glossary/best-available-rate/
updated: 2026-10-03
publisher: bedsKey (Innovate Solution)
---

# What is BAR (best available rate)?

**In short:** BAR, the best available rate, is the standard public price a hotel sells a room type for on a given night, open to anyone without conditions. It changes by date and demand, and it usually acts as the parent rate from which non-refundable, member, package and corporate rates are derived.

Updated October 2026

## How BAR works

BAR is set per room type and per night. It is typically the flexible rate: free cancellation up to a deadline, no prepayment rules beyond the property's standard deposit. As demand rises for a date, BAR rises; in quiet periods it falls.

## Derived rates follow BAR

Instead of maintaining every rate plan by hand, most hotels derive plans from BAR so that one price change updates them all:

| Rate plan | Rule | BAR $100 | BAR $140 |
|---|---|---|---|
| BAR (parent) | Set by the hotel | $100 | $140 |
| Non-refundable | BAR − 10% | $90 | $126 |
| Weekly stay | BAR − $8 | $92 | $132 |
| Breakfast included | BAR + $12 | $112 | $152 |

## BAR vs ADR

BAR is a published price for one night. [ADR](https://bedskey.com/glossary/adr/) is what guests actually paid on average across every rate plan, discount and channel. A hotel with a BAR of $100 might report an ADR of $86 because of non-refundable, corporate and promotional bookings.

## BAR and restrictions

BAR is usually combined with stay rules such as minimum length of stay and [closed to arrival or departure](https://bedskey.com/glossary/cta-ctd/) on peak dates, so that a high-demand night is not sold as an isolated one-night stay.

## How bedsKey handles BAR

In bedsKey you set prices per room type and rate plan with seasonal and date-range rates, then create child plans that follow a parent by a percentage or fixed amount (for example Non-refundable = BAR − 10%). Occupancy-based pricing adds single, double, triple and quad rates with extra-adult and child tiers. Auto-yield rules can move the rate as the hotel fills and arrival approaches, always inside a floor and a ceiling, and the rates grid pushes changes across a date range, room types and plans in one operation. Breakfast or transfer inclusions can also be bundled into a plan.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is BAR the lowest price a hotel offers?

Not necessarily. BAR is the best unconditional public rate. Non-refundable, advance-purchase, member and corporate rates are often lower because they come with conditions.

### Does BAR change every day?

It can. Many hotels change BAR by season, day of week, events and demand, and some adjust it automatically as occupancy rises.

### Can each channel sell at a different BAR?

Hotels can set channel-specific prices, but they should know exactly what each channel was sent. bedsKey supports per-channel pricing and checks every channel booking against the rate that channel received.

## Related terms

- [ADR](https://bedskey.com/glossary/adr/)
- [CTA / CTD](https://bedskey.com/glossary/cta-ctd/)
- [Rate parity](https://bedskey.com/glossary/rate-parity/)
- [Channel manager](https://bedskey.com/glossary/channel-manager/)
- [bedsKey Rates & Revenue](https://bedskey.com/features/rate-management/)
- [Full glossary](https://bedskey.com/glossary/)

## Talk to bedsKey

Book a demo: https://bedskey.com/contact/ · sales@bedskey.com