There is almost every kind of rental on Airbnb from treehouses and tents to villas and castles, Airbnb has it all. Airbnb’s reputation as a global OTA has given property owners and managers the confidence to list their properties on the platform. And that is why Airbnb is unequivocally the first solution most hosts choose to list their property.  

Along with being a global platform Airbnb which allows listings to attract local and international guests to your listing Airbnb has many other benefits for hosts such as: 

Additionally, Airbnb is one of the biggest online travel portals in recent history with over seven million listings around the world with an average of over 2 million guests staying on its listings every night. This unparalleled success is in part due to its ease of entry, but what about their commission? How much does Airbnb take? 

Running an Airbnb property involves various costs — from utilities, maintenance and HOA fees to team salaries. One crucial element in your cost structure is the Airbnb host service fee, which is charged on every booking you receive. This fee can vary based on multiple factors, such as the fee model, listing location, type of listing, use of third-party software, etc. So it’s essential to track your payout details and understand what influences the amount you pay.

If your payout doesn’t look as expected, review the “Fees Breakdown” in your Airbnb account dashboard. This section will detail the service fee charged, along with any other deductions such as taxes, VAT or applicable adjustments.

Airbnb offers its hosts two fee models:

This is most commonly opted for by individual hosts where the Airbnb service fee is split between the host and the guest. It is also quite common in most countries outside of the U.S.

Also known as Simplified Pricing, in this model, the host takes full responsibility for paying the Airbnb service fee. This is more common among professional property managers and property management companies.

There are a number of factors that determine the percentage of your total booking value that you, as a host, must Airbnb for each completed reservation.

Other factors like local taxes/VAT, guest discounts, exchange rates and payment processing fees affect your Airbnb payout but are not part of the Airbnb service fee.

You should now be able to view your fee overview. Airbnb provides a clear fee breakdown so you’ll be able to see exactly what was deducted.

Airbnb deducts the host service fee from your payout after a booking is completed. Once a guest has checked out of a listing Airbnb releases the payment due to the host after deducting the service fee.

As Airbnb doesn’t charge a flat fee, it can be a bit tricky to determine the true cost of listing on Airbnb.

Airbnb charges a percentage of the total booking value, so the higher you price your listing (including fees), the higher it costs to list on Airbnb. Other factors that can affect your Airbnb service fee include where the property is located—for example, the host fee is 10% is Mainland China—and your cancellation policy (stricter policies can result in a higher fee percentage).