Airbnb host fees explained for 2026

Airbnb charges a host either 3% of the price under its split-fee structure or 15.5% under its single fee, and which one you are on decides whether your guest sees the same number you set. This guide walks through both structures as Airbnb publishes them, with worked examples computed by the same engine as the Airbnb fee calculator. Every rate below is quoted from Airbnb's service fee article and was verified on 3 September 2026.

The two fee structures

Airbnb puts it plainly: "There are 2 different fee structures for stays: a split fee and single fee." Which one applies to you is mostly not your choice, and it changes both what you pay and what your guest sees.

Both percentages are charged on the price you set, which Airbnb defines as the nightly price plus any fees you charge, such as a cleaning fee, and which never includes taxes or the guest service fee. Both are deducted from your payout rather than invoiced, so you never pay Airbnb separately. The money simply arrives smaller.

The split fee: 3% from you, 14.1% to 16.5% from the guest

Under the split fee, "Most hosts pay a 3% service fee, but some pay more." The fee is "automatically deducted from the total price … to calculate the host payout." For a host on the split fee, the fee on $100.00 is $3.00 and you keep $97.00, an effective rate of 3%.

Your guest pays their own service fee on top of that. Airbnb charges guests "a service fee ranging from 14.1% to 16.5% of the booking subtotal", says it "varies based on a variety of factors and may be higher or lower depending on the booking", and adds that cross-currency bookings — where the guest pays in a different currency from the one you set — carry an extra amount that pushes the fee up to the 16.5% ceiling.

That fee never touches your payout, which is why the calculator does not subtract it: it is money the guest hands to Airbnb, not money taken out of yours. It still matters to you, because it is the gap between the price you chose and the price a guest compares against other listings. Airbnb's own illustration of the gap is this: "if you set your price at $100 USD, you earn $97 and your guests pay about $115."

The single fee: 15.5% out of your payout

Airbnb calls the second structure the single fee, and elsewhere the host-only fee. "With this structure, the entire fee is deducted from the host's payout. Most hosts pay 15.5%, remaining hosts typically pay 14%-16%." For a host on the single fee, the fee on $115.00 is $17.83 and you keep $97.17, an effective rate of 15.5%.

Airbnb's own worked example for that same booking reads "$97.18" rather than the cent shown above. Both are right about the rate. Airbnb rounds the payout; this site rounds each fee line to the cent first, the way a platform bills it, and applies that rule to every platform it covers. The methodology sets it out.

The single fee is not optional for everyone. Airbnb says it "is mandatory for certain hosts, including traditional hospitality listings (e.g., hotels, serviced apartments, etc.), hosts who use property management software, and hosts in countries subject to this fee structure." It also warns that the split fee "will no longer be available to certain hosts", who "will migrate to the single-fee structure".

Comparing the two on the same booking

The two structures are closer than 3% and 15.5% make them sound, because they are charged on different numbers. Under the split fee the guest's total is your price plus their own fee; under the single fee the guest's total is your price. Airbnb's two published examples are deliberately matched: a $100 price under the split fee and a $115 price under the single fee both leave the host about $97 and cost the guest about $115.

So moving from the split fee to the single fee is not a pay cut if you raise your price to what the guest was already paying. Airbnb says it "built a new price adjustment tool in the app" for exactly that transition. What does change is who sees the number. On the single fee, the price in your calendar is the price in search results, which makes the listing easier to compare and easier to discount by accident.

Pricing to a target payout

Because the fee is a straight percentage with no fixed amount, the price that leaves you a given payout is your target divided by whatever is left after the fee. On the split fee that is a small adjustment: To keep $100.00 you charge $103.09, and the fee is $3.09. On the single fee it is a much larger one: To keep $100.00 you charge $118.34, and the fee is $18.34.

The calculator's "I want to net" mode solves this for either structure, finding the smallest price whose payout lands within one cent of your target. Under the split fee, remember that your guest then pays that price plus their own service fee, so the number they compare against other listings is higher again.

When your fee is higher than the headline

Airbnb hedges both headline rates, and in each case it publishes the caveat without publishing a number you can plan around.

• Some split-fee hosts pay more than 3%. Airbnb says so directly, and names 4% for listings in Brazil and Mexico. Its hosting guide adds Italy to the list of exceptions.
• Single-fee hosts range wider than 15.5%. "Remaining hosts typically pay 14%-16%", with a separate, higher rate for Brazil and Mexico.
• Super strict cancellation policies. Airbnb's hosting guide notes that "Hosts with super strict cancellation policies may pay a higher fee" and stops there. No percentage appears on either page.
• Property management software. Connecting a channel manager or property management tool moves you onto the single fee whether or not you wanted the move.

Your actual rate is on every booking. Airbnb's own instructions: open Today, then Menu, then Earnings, open a transaction, and the Airbnb service fee line sits under Earnings. If that line disagrees with this page, it wins, and reporting it gets this schedule re-checked against the official page.

VAT on the service fee

Airbnb's article carries one paragraph on tax: "Depending on the laws of the jurisdiction involved, VAT may be applicable to the above fees. The service fee shown to hosts and guests is VAT inclusive, where applicable." No rate is published, because the rate belongs to your jurisdiction rather than to Airbnb, and the United States charges none.

That is why the calculator's VAT field starts at zero. It is there for hosts whose statements show VAT added on top of the service fee rather than folded into it, and it applies the rate you type to the service fee, never to the price you set.

What this guide leaves out

This guide and the calculator cover what a home host in the United States pays on a stay. They leave out the fees for Airbnb's services and experiences, which it prices separately; the rates for Brazil, Mexico and Italy; service fee refunds when a booking is cancelled; taxes collected on the booking, including occupancy tax; and anything specific to a negotiated or legacy arrangement on your account. Airbnb's service fee article, linked at the top of this guide, is the reference for all of them.

The guest service fee is shown here for context and is deliberately absent from the payout the calculator gives you, because it is the guest's cost rather than yours.

When these rates last changed

Airbnb's service fee article carries no "last updated" stamp; the hosting guide covering the same rates is marked as updated 25 August 2025. This schedule was first verified on 3 September 2026, so the Airbnb fee changelog currently holds one entry. Every later change is added there with the date and the rule affected, and the schedule is re-verified at least every 60 days. Airbnb reserves the right to change its service fees at any time, which is the reason this page carries a verification date at all.

Frequently asked questions

Does Airbnb take 3% or 15.5% from hosts?

Both, depending on your structure. The split fee takes 3% from you and charges your guest separately; the single fee takes 15.5% from you and charges your guest nothing extra. Airbnb decides which applies, and certain hosts are required to be on the single fee.

Is the Airbnb service fee charged on the cleaning fee?

Yes. Airbnb calculates the service fee on the nightly price plus any fees you charge, which includes a cleaning fee. Taxes and the guest service fee are excluded from that subtotal.

Can I pass the Airbnb host fee on to guests?

Not as a separate line. The fee comes out of your payout, so the only way to recover it is in the price you set, which is what the calculator's "I want to net" mode works out for you.

Where do these numbers come from?

Every figure is quoted from Airbnb's own service fee article, saved as a dated snapshot, and checked by a person against Airbnb's hosting guide, which states the same rates and the same worked examples. The methodology explains the process, and the schedule is quoted line by line, with the verbatim source text behind every rule, in the calculator's fee table for anyone who wants to check the work.