How to Choose the Best Platform for Your Short Term Rental

Listing on the right platforms increase your chances for smoother stays. Photo: Jonathan Borba.

In recent years, short term rental platforms have become more and more popular, offering an alternative to stuffy and often overpriced hotels. And while Airbnb may be the most recognizable name in the short term rental game, there are plenty of potential alternatives for hosting your home. 

From household names like Vacation Rentals By Owner (VRBO) and Booking.com; to newer additions in the short-term rental market like OneFineStay, we’ve got you covered on the pros and cons of each hosting platform. Whether your rental offers hard to find pet-friendly stays or upscale, luxury penthouses, read on to discover the right site for you.

Airbnb 

By far the most well-known and utilized platform in the United States, Airbnb started the short term rental craze and has continued to hold its own since launching. The site currently covers more than 100,000 cities and 220 countries worldwide, making it an obvious choice for hosts across the globe. 

Pros

Traffic: Airbnb has the highest amount of traffic among all short term rental platforms, increasing the chances of bookings.

Free Listing: There is no fee for listing your place on Airbnb and hosts have total control over the written description and pictures to help boost bookings.

Costs: Hosts have total control over setting the price of the rental, as well as cleaning fees and additional charges. Rather than a flat rate set by the platform, you’ll have the option to remain competitive by decreasing or removing certain fees. 

Rental Insurance: Those hesitant to host due to concerns of damage will breathe a sigh of relief to learn that Airbnb offers protection for up to $1,000,000 in damages, which covers the property in the rare event of guest damage. 

Cons 

Competition: Airbnb can be a competitive market, especially in big cities where your rental can become lost among the noise. 

Potential Damage: While the aforementioned rental insurance covers most things, it does not cover everything, such as cash, rare artwork, jewelry, and pets. Hosts need to be cautious and ensure anything expensive is always put away, which could become a hassle. 

Fees: At the end of the day, Airbnb is still a business and therefore they need to make a profit. Hosts can expect to pay a service fee of at least 3% for each reservation, to cover the cost of processing the transaction. The fee ranges based on the price of the listing and Airbnb Plus hosts pay more. The fee is calculated from the booking subtotal (the nightly rate plus cleaning fee and additional guest fee, if applicable, but excluding Airbnb fees and taxes) and is automatically deducted from the host payout.

Taxes: While short-term rentals can serve as lucrative side income, hosts are still subject to rental income taxes. To assist with U.S. tax compliance, Airbnb collects taxpayer information from hosts and provides a summary of earnings each year to the government via Form 1099 and Form 1042.

VRBO

VRBO has self-dubbed itself “the most popular vacation rental site in the U.S.” Whether that’s true or not, it’s certainly made a name for itself as an affordable alternative to Airbnb. While the listings generally charge a little bit less than other competitors, the overall yearly fees for hosts is lower–– so chances are you’ll still see a higher return than other platforms.  

Pros 

Less Competition: VRBO has slightly less properties available than Airbnb and therefore, you may have better chances of consistent bookings and getting eyeballs on your property. 

Fees: There are two payment methods for VRBO, but the most common is a yearly subscription of $499 for advertising your property. While this may seem steep, you’ll likely make this back during your first booking and it includes special features like listing your property on international sites, access to Reservation Manager, 50 HD photos, an interactive map, and a reservation calendar. 

Costs: Similar to Airbnb, hosts have complete control over how much they wish to charge per night, as well as including damage deposits that can be returned to guests once the property has been cleaned post stay. 

Length of Booking: Often, those looking for true summer vacation rentals turn to VRBO, which means longer stays and more revenue. If guests enjoy your rental, chances are also high they’ll rebook each and every year, becoming long-term customers. 

Cons 

Commission: If you only wish to rent your property out during peak season or a few days of the year, VRBO does offer a pay-per-booking option. But be forewarned, the commission is quite steep compared to Airbnb at 8%-10% per booking. 

Limited Insurance: While the platform does offer $1M liability insurance, traveler injury claims or property damage claims made against you (i.e. your renter damaged your neighbours property) are the only things covered. If a traveler does damage to your own property, it’s up to you to cover the cost or have secondary insurance. 

Booking.com

While you may think of hotels when you hear Booking.com, the platform is quickly becoming a leading provider for short term rentals as well. The site is slightly more tailored to those who are property managers or who have more upscale, hotel-like rentals––but anyone can list. 

Make it stand out

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Pros 

Less Competition: Similar to VRBO, there is slightly less competition on the platform especially in smaller cities, so chances are your rental will shine. 

Free Listing: There is a $0 fee to list your property on Booking.com, so it costs virtually nothing to get up and running. You only ever pay a fee once you’ve secured a booking and the guest has checked out of the property at the end of their stay. 

No Hidden Fees: For guests, the total fee for their rental is exactly what the host charges. There are no hidden fees or surprise cleaning and processing surcharges. Many guests have cited this as the reason they choose Booking.com over other sites and can lead to repeat bookings for years to come. 

Cons

Commission: Host should be aware that Booking.com does have one of the highest commission fees at 10%-25% of the total booking fees. But, as previously mentioned, there are no extra fees for guests like there is for Airbnb and VRBO––meaning you can charge a lot more and account for the commission fees when setting your price. 

No Insurance: Unlike most other hosting platforms, Booking.com does not offer any liability insurance. This is due to the company treating rentals just like any other hotel on the platform...imagine they provided liability insurance to all hotels? If you choose to rent on the site, be sure to purchase secondary insurance for your property.

OneFineStay

Offering a curated collection of stays across the globe, OneFineStay caters to the niche luxury short term rental market. The company’s mandate states that all properties have been personally reviewed in-person by staff to ensure they are “well-designed,” “well-located,” and owner-occupied. OneFineStay blends a hotel stay with a more personal touch by greeting guests upon arrival, providing fresh linens and toiletries, and 24/7 butler concierge service once checked-in (for a fee of course). If you think your property will make the cut, it’s certainly a platform to consider. 

Make it stand out

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Pros 

Little Competition: Since the rental catalog is so curated, there are only a few select properties available in each city. Hosts have reported that their homes are always booked when made available due to the carefully selected collection. 

Dedicated Account Manager: OneFineStay will treat your home as if it belongs under the umbrella of a property management company. They will take care of everything from property photographs, to listing description, to cleaning services. 

Network: For those who choose to list on OneFineStay, the company offers a number of perks to thank hosts for their loyalty, including access to global events, generous referral bonuses and discounts on stays around the world. 

License Fee: The costs are quite high for guests to rent on the platform, meaning large payoffs, or what OneFineStay calls License Fees. Since the homes are owner-occupied, you may only choose to rent a few times of the year while on vacation, but the income is large enough to rival renting on Airbnb most months. 

Insurance: OneFineStay takes damage deposits from all guests, as well as offers an insurance policy that covers both the interiors and the home itself. Before and after each stay, the staff also captures hundreds of photographs, so it’s safe to say you’ll know exactly who is to blame for any damages. The team has you and your home completely covered. 

Cons 

Commission: When working with OneFineStay, the commission structure is largely based on the property’s location, condition, the time of year and length of the booking. So while you may charge a lot for your rental, the commission structure varies from property to property and is slightly unclear until you reach the contract stage with the company. 

Exclusivity: While most short term rental sites allow you to list your property on all hosting platforms, OneFineStay expects exclusivity––meaning you can’t list elsewhere. This is a frequent tactic used by hosts to ensure higher booking rates, but the company guarantees you won’t need to advertise elsewhere to get your place booked. 

Cancellation Fees: If something unexpected arises and you need to cancel a booking, be prepared to cover at least 30% of the overall booking fee as a cancellation cost. 

Whether you choose to list with popular Airbnb or luxe OneFineStay, the most important thing is to ensure guests have a five star experience. And while it can be daunting choosing the right platform for your short term rental, one thing that can help relieve some of the stress is building a great guest guide with Folio — which works regardless of which short-term rental platform you choose. Folio serves as an “always on” concierge, providing curated information to your guests at their fingertips all by sending a single link — helping your short term rental stand out among the rest.