Sources and matching methodology

StayMatch Asia helps travelers compare Agoda hotel offers and location references. It publishes provider facts separately from editorial planning advice. We do not claim to have inspected the hotels.

Which information comes from Agoda?

Hotel IDs, names, photos, star ratings, aggregate guest scores, review counts and hotel coordinates come from the Agoda Affiliate Lite API. The matcher also requests offer rates, availability and booking URLs for your dates, occupancy, currency and optional nightly-rate ceiling.

Agoda Affiliate Lite API documentation. A source name and retrieval timestamp appear alongside results and directory facts. The timestamp records retrieval, not an independent StayMatch inspection.

What does the match percentage mean?

The percentage is StayMatch’s preference index, calculated from available provider facts and your selections. It is not Agoda’s own match score, a probability of satisfaction, or a guarantee of suitability. Hotels are ordered by this index; equal scores retain the provider or directory order.

The baseline uses guest score divided by 10 (weight 35) and star rating divided by 5 (weight 15). Your selected priority receives weight 50: guest score, stars, price competitiveness (the lowest returned nightly rate divided by the hotel’s nightly rate), or landmark proximity. Proximity uses 1/(1 + distance in km / 3). A selected landmark adds weight 20 when it is not the primary priority. A budget adds weight 20: full credit within the ceiling; otherwise the ceiling divided by the returned rate. All components are capped between zero and one.

The final percentage is the weighted average of available components, rounded to the nearest whole number. Missing data is excluded rather than invented, and the hotel explanation identifies unchecked prices or budgets. Guest feedback is used only when a review count is present. If there is no usable scoring data, no percentage is shown. Travel style, quietness, accessibility and family suitability are not independently scored from aggregate ratings.

Live API requests use the selected Agoda price, review or star sorting to retrieve up to 30 offers. StayMatch then calculates the preference index for that subset. Results are not an exhaustive ranking. The form searches for the selected adults and one room. Both dates are optional for directory comparisons; both are needed for current API offers. Rates exclude taxes and fees; Agoda’s final offer governs availability, capacity and booking conditions.

What happens if current offers are unavailable?

The matcher continues with dated Agoda hotel facts, clearly labeled as a directory sample. It does not claim availability, apply the requested budget ceiling, or show current rates. Dated guest scores and stars can be compared, and landmark distances can be calculated. Agoda’s documented property search URL is updated with any supplied dates, adult count and currency so you can check availability on Agoda. In live mode, the returned Agoda offer URL is preserved unchanged.

What is a dated directory snapshot?

Destination and hotel pages are rendered on the server and remain readable without JavaScript. They publish the timestamped sample’s hotel facts, with no sample price presented as current. These pages do not promise current availability. Live matches can include hotels outside the directory; those hotels link to their Agoda offer without an invented profile.

How are landmark distances calculated?

Agoda supplies hotel coordinates. OpenStreetMap supplies the linked landmark coordinates. StayMatch uses the Haversine formula with a 6,371 km Earth radius and rounds distances to one decimal place. These are straight-line estimates, not walking routes or travel times. A missing coordinate produces “Unavailable,” rather than a guessed distance.

How is destination advice written?

Bangkok, Tokyo and Bali include original itinerary-based planning advice synthesized from linked destination or location sources. Context is sourced; recommendations are StayMatch’s editorial interpretation. We do not infer noise, safety, accessibility, family suitability or permanent amenities from hotel names, star ratings or API sorting.

Commercial relationship and corrections

StayMatch may earn a commission from qualifying Agoda bookings. Agoda supplies the booking links. Commission amounts are not used as a ranking input. StayMatch Asia is responsible for the comparisons and explanations published here. When a provider value changes, refresh the source snapshot; when a guide source changes, review the editorial advice and its review date.