TripRelay vs TripIt
This one is barely a rivalry: TripIt starts working after everything is booked. TripRelay works on the part before — deciding. Most groups could use both.
Published · Facts checked
People compare these two because both say "itinerary," but they mean opposite ends of the trip. TripIt assembles an itinerary out of bookings that already exist. TripRelay produces the plan that tells you what to book.
So the honest comparison is mostly a map of which phase of your trip needs help.
What TripIt is
TripIt, made by SAP Concur, does one thing exceptionally well: you forward confirmation emails — flights, hotels, restaurants, rental cars — and it automatically assembles them into a clean master itinerary, with everything in one timeline. The free tier does this reliably. TripIt Pro ($49/year after a 30-day trial, verified August 2026) adds real-time flight alerts, gate changes, seat tracking, and fare-refund monitoring.
For frequent flyers and business travelers it is close to essential. Nothing in this category, TripRelay included, touches its reservation-organizing depth.
Head to head
| Feature | TripRelay | TripIt |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free · Pro $49/yr |
| Group voting on places |  |  |
| Join without an account | | |
| Generated day-by-day itinerary | | From bookings |
| Booking email import | | Excellent |
| Flight alerts | | Pro |
| Built for groups | | Solo-first |
| Native mobile apps | Web app | |
Where each one wins
Where TripIt is better
- Organizing confirmed bookings — automatic email import is the best in travel
- Flight alerts, delays, and gate changes (Pro)
- Business travel and frequent-flyer workflows
- A single reliable timeline of everything you’ve booked
- Native mobile apps with offline access to your itinerary
Where TripRelay is better
- The phase before bookings exist: deciding where to go and what to do, as a group
- Group voting with intent levels — TripIt has no group decision features
- Joining friction: friends vote from a link with no account
- Generating a day-by-day plan from preferences rather than from confirmation emails
- Getting a group excited with a shareable trip teaser
Which should you pick?
Pick TripIt if:
- Your trip is booked and you want every reservation in one timeline
- You fly often and want alerts for delays and gate changes
- You travel for business and live out of confirmation emails
Pick TripRelay if:
- Nothing is booked because the group can’t agree on what to book
- You want everyone’s preferences collected fairly, not one organizer deciding
- Friends need to participate without installing or signing up for anything
This is the clearest "use both" pairing on our comparison list: decide and generate the plan in TripRelay, book what the plan calls for, then forward the confirmations to TripIt so the booked trip lives in one timeline with flight alerts.
Frequently asked questions
- Is TripIt good for group trip planning?
- Not for the planning phase. TripIt is built to organize reservations that already exist — it has no voting, no group decision tools, and sharing an itinerary is view-oriented. It becomes very useful after a group trip is booked, especially for tracking everyone’s flights.
- How much does TripIt Pro cost?
- TripIt Pro costs $49 per year after a 30-day free trial (verified August 2026). The free tier handles the core email-to-itinerary organizing; Pro adds real-time flight alerts, seat tracking, and refund monitoring.
- Can TripRelay import my flight bookings?
- No. TripRelay does not import booking emails and does not book anything — it covers the decision phase: group voting on places and generating the day-by-day plan. Pair it with TripIt if you want booking organization afterward.