Best Short-Term Rental Insurance, Compared

Short-term rental protection comes in three types

Search for coverage and you'll meet three products that get grouped together as short-term rental insurance. They're not the same, and the differences decide what gets paid after something goes wrong.

• Insurance is a policy from a regulated insurer. It can cover the building, its contents, lost rental income, and liability insurance for guest injuries. Proper, Safely, and Steadily sit here.
• A damage waiver reimburses guest-caused damage to your property. It isn't liability insurance on its own. Waivo describes its core plans this way and sells liability as a separate product.
• A protection program is insurance-backed but stops short of being an insurance policy. Truvi says outright that it isn't insurance but is insurance-backed, and Airbnb says its Host damage protection isn't an insurance policy either.

The comparison below lays these out side by side so the product type is visible at a glance, because that label shapes everything else.

Match the product to the risk you are covering

Start from the risk that keeps you up at night, not from a brand.

If your worry is a guest getting hurt and holding you responsible, you need liability insurance. Damage waivers and most protection programs won't answer that claim. Policies in this space commonly carry $1,000,000 in liability, and some reach $2,000,000.

If your worry is a guest breaking or staining your furnishings, a damage waiver or protection program can reimburse that damage without the cost of a full policy. Waivo covers guest-caused damage from $500 to $20,000, with $1,500 and $5,000 the most commonly chosen limits and a $0 deductible. Truvi lets you set damage protection from $0 to $1,000,000.

If your worry is the building itself, fire, water, storm, or a long stretch with no rentable nights, you need property insurance with the right dwelling limit and, ideally, business interruption insurance or loss-of-rent coverage. A landlord carrier like Steadily writes $300,000 to $2,000,000 of liability into every landlord policy and includes lost rental income, while Proper offers replacement cost coverage on building and contents.

Many hosts end up combining products: a policy for liability and the structure, plus a waiver or protection program that shifts guest-damage costs to the booking. There's no single correct stack, only the one that matches how you host.

Platform and lender rules can settle the question for you. Some listing sites and mortgage holders require proof of a set liability limit and will ask for a certificate of insurance before you host. A damage waiver or protection program can't produce that document, because it isn't a liability policy. If a channel you rely on demands proof of insurance, that requirement points you toward an actual policy regardless of how the rest of your risks line up.

Two features that cut across all three

Guest screening, offered by Safely and Truvi, checks who's booking before they arrive and can include ID verification and background checks. Some hosts use these tools to lean less on a large security deposit, since a waiver or protection program can stand in for money held against damage. Neither screening nor a deposit is a substitute for liability insurance.

Questions to ask any provider

Before you buy, get these answers in writing:

1. Is this insurance, a damage waiver, or a protection program?
2. What is the liability limit, and does it meet my platform or lender requirements?
3. What are the contents and dwelling limits, and what is the deductible?
4. Which states or countries is it sold in?
5. How are claims filed and paid, and how fast?
6. Can I get a certificate of insurance if a platform or landlord asks for one?

If a provider can't answer one of these clearly, treat it as a gap to close before you rely on the coverage.

Why cheapest is the wrong axis

Price is easy to compare, which is why it pulls attention. It also hides the most risk.

A damage waiver almost always costs less per stay than a full policy, because it covers less. It reimburses property damage and leaves guest-injury liability uncovered. Ranking options by price alone rewards the products that protect you least.

A better axis is coverage per risk. Line up what each product pays for against the risks you face, then look at price only among products that clear that bar. A cheaper policy that excludes your biggest exposure isn't a saving.

What the comparison cannot capture

The table shows product type, coverage summary, limits, purchase model, and where each option is sold. A few things sit outside it and deserve a direct look.

Availability isn't always published. Waivo's state and country availability is not stated on its public pages, and Truvi lists multiple countries without enumerating them. Confirm your location is covered before you count on either.

Fit for short-term rentals is not universal. Obie sells online landlord dwelling policies, including DP3 coverage with loss of rental income, but its public pages don't explicitly state that these policies cover short-term rentals. Verify short-term use with Obie directly.

Pricing detail is thin across the category. Most providers quote per property, and Truvi's per-booking pricing sits behind its platform pages. Expect to request a quote rather than read a rate card.

These questions won't pick a provider for you, but they turn the comparison table into a decision, and they explain why the strongest fit for one host is the wrong choice for another. When the stakes are high, confirm the terms with the provider and a licensed agent.