A hostel's position in Hostelworld's search results can depend on how much it pays Hostelworld. Through a programme called Elevate, properties can agree to higher commission in exchange for more visibility. Hostelworld explains this in its own ranking disclosure.
So before you treat the first result as the best-reviewed hostel, check the actual rating and review count. Payment is part of the ordering.
What Hostelworld says
The clearest sentence is on its "Transparency in Ranking" page:
When we are displaying properties with a similar offer, we may feature properties that offer more commission or compensation higher in the search results listing compared to properties that offer less.
The same page names Elevate and says partners can temporarily increase their compensation for greater visibility among similar properties. It also lists guest scores, review counts, location, prices, availability and past bookings as ranking factors. There is no published weighting on that page telling you how much each contributes.
That "similar offer" qualification matters. Hostelworld describes a system that combines several inputs, including money. Its disclosure does not promise that the hostel with the highest rating, or the most reviews, will appear first.
The 2025 annual report is equally direct. On printed page 227, its definition of Elevate says hostels can increase their prominence in search lists in exchange for higher commission.
Your attention has a price
For a traveler, moving a hostel up the results means you encounter it earlier. For Hostelworld, the programme increases what it earns from bookings. In its 2026 interim results, the company credits Elevate with lifting its effective commission rate to 17.7% in the first half of 2026, compared with 15.8% a year earlier. Those are reported company-level rates, not the commission charged to every hostel.
The Santiago screenshot below also shows the disclosure, directly beneath "All properties":
Property's positioning is based on commission paid and other factors.
There's a "Read More" link to the ranking disclosure. The information is there. The useful question when you're booking is whether you've accounted for it before giving the first few results most of your attention.
Santiago: 9.9, still down the list
In this Hostelworld capture, Ventana Sur Hostal has 9.9 from 1,355 reviews. It appears in the lower section of the supplied image. The main list at the top starts with Hostal Forestal at 8.8, then Merced 88 at 9.4 and Guanako Rooftop Hostel at 9.0.
Merced has 733 reviews. So here is a concrete comparison: a hostel with both a lower displayed rating and fewer reviews appears ahead of Ventana. Ventana's 9.9 is the highest rating visible in this Hostelworld image.
Hostelworld screenshot supplied on 11 September 2026. The visible search is Santiago, 23–25 September, one guest, with prices in CLP and 39 properties. Featured Properties is a separate strip above All properties. The selected sort and Ventana's exact numbered position are not visible.
The commission data beside those positions
The HostelPunk dashboard gives a second view of Santiago, this time for two nights from 18 September, with the search checked on 11 September at 11:01 UTC. It puts Ventana at Hostelworld position 11, with a 9.8 Hostelworld rating, 15% total commission and 0% in the Elevate field. Ventana is also number 1 in the dashboard's HostelPunk fun/social ranking.
All ten properties above Ventana have lower Hostelworld ratings and higher displayed total commission, ranging from 19% to 30%. Nine show a positive Elevate component. These are selected rows from the screenshot:
| HW position | Hostel | HW rating | Total commission | Elevate component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hostal Forestal | 8.8 | 25% | 10 points |
| 2 | Guanako Rooftop Hostel | 9.0 | 23% | 3 points |
| 3 | Merced 88 | 9.4 | 22% | 0 points |
| 5 | Chile Chico Hostel | 6.1 | 30% | 15 points |
| 10 | BBCasita | 5.1 | 22% | 7 points |
| 11 | Ventana Sur Hostal | 9.8 | 15% | 0 points |
The Elevate component is included in total commission. Forestal's row shows 25% total, of which 10 percentage points are Elevate. Adding them again would double-count that payment component.
HostelPunk dashboard supplied on 11 September 2026. Selected stay starts 18 September, two nights, USD. The commission values are reported rates; their observation and applicable stay dates are not expanded in this image and can differ from the search dates. A displayed 0% Elevate can be explicitly reported or inferred from a complete commission breakdown.
Merced is worth keeping in the comparison: it shows 0% Elevate, 22% total commission and "Yes" under HW featured. Hostelworld's annual report describes Featured Listing separately from Elevate. Extra commission and featured status shouldn't all be relabelled Elevate.
The two images show different stays, different currencies and slightly different ratings and orders. They illustrate the pattern; they don't measure how many positions a particular Elevate payment bought. What they do show is a highly rated hostel below lower-rated options, with higher commission alongside every one of the ten properties above it in the dashboard. Hostelworld's own policy explains why payment belongs in that comparison.
How I'd use the results
Check the selected sort before comparing positions, then look at the scores and sample sizes yourself. A higher average and a larger review sample answer different questions. Neither can tell you, alone, whether you'll have fun there.
Read recent reviews for the things you actually want from a hostel. Do people meet over dinner? Do staff get a group together for a hike? Does the bar turn into a night out with people you just met? Compare that evidence across a few places, including ones further down the list. Paying Hostelworld more commission doesn't answer any of those questions.