Hosts tend to anchor on their peak-season rate. But a season's share of income is nights × rate × occupancy, so a long, half-full shoulder season can out-earn a short, sold-out peak. Repaint the calendar or change a rate and see how the split moves.
Low 120 nights
$6,756 · 12%
Shoulder 92 nights
$9,910 · 18%
High 61 nights
$11,834 · 21%
Peak 92 nights
$27,994 · 50%
Weekend nights (Fri & Sat) bring in 32% of nightly revenue while being about 29% of the calendar. Raising your weekend premium by 5 points is often worth more than a 5% lift on every night, because weekends book first.
Get a second opinion on these numbers
An AI reviewer reads the scenario you have entered above and points out optimistic assumptions and the levers that matter most. It only sees these numbers, never anything personal. It is not tax or legal advice.
How this Airbnb calculator works
Most revenue estimators take one nightly rate and one occupancy figure and multiply by 365. Real calendars don't behave like that. A beach house might be 90% booked at $320 in July and 35% booked at $140 in January; averaging those loses the information that matters most when you plan cash flow or a mortgage.
HostRev models every night of the year. For each night it takes the rate for that night's season, adds your weekend premium on Fridays and Saturdays, and multiplies by the season's occupancy to get an expected revenue for that night. That is the colour you see on the heatmap. Summing the nights gives nightly revenue; dividing booked nights by your average stay gives the number of stays, which drives cleaning fees collected and cleaner costs paid.
Platform fee: Airbnb's host-only fee (about 15.5%) is taken from the whole subtotal, cleaning fee included. See the Airbnb fee calculator for the details.
Variable costs: cleaner cost per turnover, plus any co-host or manager percentage.
Fixed costs: mortgage, utilities, supplies, insurance and the rest, which you pay whether or not anyone books.
Getting good inputs
Rates: search your area on Airbnb and Vrbo for a mid-week night and a weekend night in each season, filtered to your bedroom count. Use the median, not the fanciest listing.
Occupancy: look at comparable listings' calendars 30 to 60 days out. Blocked dates are either booked or owner-blocked, so be conservative. New listings typically take a few months to reach market occupancy.
Blocked nights: paint your own use, maintenance weeks and any dates local rules forbid as "Blocked". They cost you fixed costs but earn nothing.
Before buying for short-term rental, check your city or county's rules. Many places require a permit, cap the number of nights, or restrict STRs to a primary residence, and HOAs can ban them outright.
Questions hosts ask
How accurate is an Airbnb revenue estimate?
Only as accurate as the nightly rates and occupancy you enter. The best inputs come from 10 to 20 comparable listings near you: note their prices for different weeks and how full their calendars look a few weeks out. Treat the result as a range and test a pessimistic version (lower occupancy, lower peak rate) before you commit money.
What occupancy rate should I assume?
Occupancy varies hugely by market and season. Industry trackers such as AirDNA and Key Data typically report US short-term rental averages in the 50–60% range across a year, with peak months far higher and off-season months far lower. That is why this calculator asks for occupancy per season instead of one annual number.
Does this include Airbnb's service fee?
Yes. Pick your platform in the fee settings. Most Airbnb hosts now pay a single host-only fee of about 15.5% of the booking subtotal (nightly rate plus cleaning fee); the older 3% split fee is being phased out. Vrbo pay-per-booking is about 8% in total.
Why does the calendar colour weekends differently?
Friday and Saturday nights usually command a premium. The weekend premium you set multiplies the rate on those nights, so the heatmap and the month totals shift when you change it.
Is my data saved?
Your inputs are saved only in this browser (localStorage) so they are still there next visit. Nothing is sent to a server unless you press "Review my numbers", which sends the calculated scenario (not your identity) to the AI reviewer. You can wipe saved inputs with the Reset button or on the privacy page.
Is Airbnb more profitable than renting long-term?
Often in gross revenue, not always in net. Short-term rentals carry cleaning, platform fees, furnishing, utilities and more vacancy. The comparison at the bottom of the results sets both strategies side by side; the dedicated Airbnb vs long-term rental page also finds the occupancy where they break even.