Version 2026.1 · 3 of 21 rows · Select service & essentials
The living matrix
Every brand measured on the same five dimensions, with the evidence behind each number. Scored at brand‑standard level, re‑checked annually, archived rather than overwritten.
| Brand | Bed .30 |
Ambiance .20 |
Space .20 |
Bathroom .20 |
Ideal‑For .10 |
Overall | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hampton by Hilton Hilton |
8.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.25 | Medium |
| Holiday Inn Express IHG |
6.5 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.80 | Medium |
| Fairfield by Marriott Marriott |
7.0 | 6.0 | 4.0 | 6.0 | 6.5 | 5.95 | Low |
| 18 further brands in this tier — scored and published as each row is completed. | |||||||
Dimension winners: Bed — Hampton by Hilton · Ambiance — Holiday Inn Express · Space — Holiday Inn Express · Bathroom — tie, broken in commentary only · Ideal‑For — Hampton by Hilton.
Hampton by Hilton
Score card
Consistency: medium 7.25- Bed8.5
- Ambiance6.5
- Space6.5
- Bathroom7.0
- Ideal‑For7.0
Vintage: 2024 North American prototype plus system‑wide programs.
- Bed 8.5 Custom branded mattress documented through official retail — 12″ plush‑top innerspring with reinforced edges (Tier B) — plus an official bedding set documenting pillow choice and a layered linen package (Tier B). Held below 9 by undocumented linen spec detail and the platform sub‑criterion.
- Ambiance 6.5 Current prototype coherence and larger‑window lineage (Tier B); noise, blackout, and climate undocumented brand‑wide (Tier C/D). Cap zone.
- Space 6.5 Sample of 10 standard‑king listings; cluster 299–312, median 303 → band 7 · Tier‑C‑decisive cap 7.0 · minus 0.5 for a sampling spread of 441 over 199 → 6.5.
- Bathroom 7.0 Prototype‑documented larger bathrooms, improved lighting and fixtures (Tier B); walk‑in showers appearing in listings (Tier C); no named fixture.
- Ideal‑For 7.0 Solo 7.5 (Ideal) · Couple 7.0 · Family 7.0 — suites in roughly a quarter of hotels (Tier B). Versatility index 7.17.
Holiday Inn Express
Score card
Consistency: medium 6.80- Bed6.5
- Ambiance7.0
- Space7.0
- Bathroom7.0
- Ideal‑For6.5
Vintage: Formula Blue 2.2 (December 2023) plus the SimplySmart and IHG Bedding programs.
- Bed 6.5 Linen and pillow‑choice program documented and current (Tier B), but no brand‑wide mattress standard is published — individual hotels name mattresses; the brand does not — and the bedding supplier notes that franchised properties vary. Conservative under the cap rule. Your property may vary.
- Ambiance 7.0 Acoustic materials in the headboard and sliding entry door documented at Tier B in the 2014 design generation, with continuity into the current generation carried as a D‑flagged inference; the current design program is the brand's highest‑penetration. Blackout and climate undocumented. At cap.
- Space 7.0 Sample of 8 standard‑king listings after deduplication; median 298.5 → band 7 · spread 324 over 199, below the deduction threshold → 7.0. Three properties list an identical 322, which reads like a prototype standard.
- Bathroom 7.0 The only named proprietary fixture in the tier — a branded showerhead and signature curved rod (Tier B). Vintage stated honestly: the program dates to the 2000s; no retirement found, and no recent reconfirmation found either.
- Ideal‑For 6.5 Solo 7.0 (documented workspace and luggage storage, Tier B) · Couple 6.5 · Family 6.5. Versatility index 6.67.
Fairfield by Marriott
Score card
Consistency: low 5.95- Bed7.0
- Ambiance6.0
- Space4.0
- Bathroom6.0
- Ideal‑For6.5
Vintage: current calm design language plus the 2026 renovation evolution.
- Bed 7.0 Branded innerspring mattress and plush topper documented through official retail (Tier B). Sources conflict on the manufacturer, so no maker is asserted. Pillowtop bedding appears at property level (Tier C).
- Ambiance 6.0 Current design language and the 2026 renovation rollout (Tier B); acoustic, blackout, and climate specifications undocumented (Tier C/D).
- Space 4.0 Sample of 10 standard‑king listings; median 245.5 → band 4 · spread below the deduction threshold → 4.0. Market‑mix note, stated rather than buried: four of the ten points are New York City urban infill, where every brand's rooms shrink. Excluding them, the median rises to about 267.5, which reads a 5. We score the full sample for method parity with the other brands and disclose the mix. Thin‑evidence flag applies.
- Bathroom 6.0 A shower and tub combination is standard across US property listings (Tier C pattern) — the 6 anchor, anchored by observed pattern rather than defaulted. If you need a bathtub, this is a quiet point in Fairfield's favour.
- Ideal‑For 6.5 Solo 6.5 · Couple 6.0 · Family 6.5. Versatility index 6.33.
Corrections
28 July 2026 — reported statistic corrected. The Hampton by Hilton Space sample median was first reported as 309.5; the correct median of the ten sampled listings is 303. The band, the spread deduction, and the final score of 6.5 are all unchanged — only the reported statistic was wrong. Corrections are published at the same size as the original claim.
Sources
Scores rest on official brand documentation, official retail listings of in‑room programs, corroborated third‑party listings with sample sizes stated, and — where flagged — inference. Two examples of retail‑documented bed programs referenced above:
- Hampton by Hilton — the branded bed and bedding set, sold through Hilton's official retail store.
- Fairfield by Marriott — the branded innerspring mattress and plush topper, sold through Marriott's official retail store.
Square‑footage samples are drawn from aggregator and booking‑site property listings; every sample size is stated with its score. Full per‑claim sourcing ships with each brand's video.
What comes next
This tier holds 21 brands. Rows already committed to the schedule: Courtyard by Marriott, Hilton Garden Inn, Holiday Inn, Tru by Hilton, Spark by Hilton, and avid hotels. The rest follow as each is scored.