Hotel owners often treat OTA ranking like a black box. But while Booking.com and Expedia don't publish their exact algorithms, we can reverse-engineer what matters based on observable patterns and publicly available documentation. Here's what actually moves the needle. Factors That Matter Most 1. Conversion Rate This is the single most important factor. OTAs make money when guests book. If your listing gets 1,000 views but only 10 bookings, that's a 1% conversion rate — and the algorithm will push you down in favor of properties that convert better. Price, photos, reviews, and content quality all feed into conversion. 2. Guest Review Score Both the score itself and the volume of recent reviews matter. A property with a 8.2 and 200 reviews will generally outrank a property with 8.5 and 15 reviews. Recency matters too — reviews from the last 90 days carry more weight than reviews from two years ago. 3. Content Completeness Fill out every field. Room descriptions, amenity lists, policies, photos (at least 20+ high-quality images), and property descriptions all signal to the algorithm that your listing is complete and trustworthy. Incomplete listings get deprioritized.