Short-term rental returns

Airbnb Calculator

Model a short-term rental using ADR, occupancy, platform fees, cleaning, management, and financing. See cash flow, RevPAN, expense ratio, and break-even occupancy.

Your numbers

Property

Purchase price$Closing costs$Furnishing budget$Furniture, supplies, decor, and setup costs.

Income

Average nightly rate$Occupancy rate%Share of nights booked.

Expenses

Monthly operating expenses$Taxes, insurance, utilities, repairs, supplies, HOA, and reserves.Monthly cleaning cost$Platform fees%Airbnb / VRBO marketplace fees.Management fees%Paid to a co-host or STR manager.

Financing

Down payment%= $73,750 cashInterest rate%Loan term yrs

Long-term assumptions

Overview

What is a airbnb calculator?

An Airbnb calculator estimates a short-term rental's revenue, expenses, and profit using average daily rate (ADR), occupancy, platform and management fees, cleaning costs, and financing. It helps investors compare short-term and long-term rental returns before buying.

What your scenario is telling you

Strong STR cash flow

Projected monthly cash flow of $941 can absorb seasonal dips.

Strong vacancy buffer

Break-even occupancy of 48% leaves a healthy gap below your expected 65%.

Lean expense ratio

Expenses are only 43% of revenue. That leaves more room for slow months or surprise repairs.

Strong cash-on-cash

Cash-on-cash return of 11.6% is above the 10% bar most STR investors look for.

Cash flow, equity, and ROI over time

Year	Gross income	Op. expenses	NOI	Cash flow	Property value	Loan balance	Equity	Cum. ROI
1	$51,009	$22,051	$28,957	$11,294	$303,850	$219,003	$84,847	-20.1%
2	$52,029	$22,636	$29,393	$11,729	$312,966	$216,593	$96,373	3.1%
3	$53,070	$23,237	$29,832	$12,168	$322,354	$214,008	$108,346	27.3%
4	$54,131	$23,855	$30,276	$12,612	$332,025	$211,237	$120,788	52.4%
5	$55,214	$24,489	$30,724	$13,060	$341,986	$208,266	$133,720	78.4%
6	$56,318	$25,141	$31,177	$13,513	$352,245	$205,080	$147,165	105.4%
7	$57,444	$25,811	$31,633	$13,969	$362,813	$201,664	$161,149	133.4%
8	$58,593	$26,499	$32,094	$14,430	$373,697	$198,000	$175,697	162.5%
9	$59,765	$27,206	$32,559	$14,895	$384,908	$194,072	$190,836	192.6%
10	$60,960	$27,933	$33,027	$15,364	$396,455	$189,860	$206,595	223.8%
11	$62,179	$28,679	$33,500	$15,836	$408,349	$185,343	$223,006	256.1%
12	$63,423	$29,446	$33,977	$16,313	$420,599	$180,500	$240,099	289.6%
13	$64,691	$30,235	$34,457	$16,793	$433,217	$175,307	$257,911	324.3%
14	$65,985	$31,045	$34,941	$17,277	$446,214	$169,738	$276,476	360.2%
15	$67,305	$31,877	$35,428	$17,764	$459,600	$163,767	$295,834	397.5%

How investors usually read these numbers

Metric	Often strong	Watch out	Why it matters
Occupancy	60% to 75%+	Below 45%	Short-term rental revenue depends on both nightly rate and booked nights.
Expense ratio	Below 55% of revenue	Above 70% of revenue	STRs often have higher utilities, supplies, cleaning, and management costs than long-term rentals.
Cash-on-cash return	10% to 15%+	Below 6%	Compares annual profit with down payment, closing costs, and setup budget.
Break-even occupancy	15+ points below expected occupancy	Near expected occupancy	Shows how much occupancy can fall before the property stops cash flowing.

How to run a airbnb analysis

1
Enter the property and setup costs
Add purchase price, closing costs, and a realistic furnishing budget for an STR (often $15,000 to $50,000).
2
Estimate revenue
Use comps from AirDNA, Rabbu, or local hosts. Set average daily rate, occupancy, and any cleaning fees you collect from guests.
3
Add operating expenses
Include utilities, supplies, taxes, insurance, repairs, HOA, and reserves. Add cleaning costs separately if you do not pass them through.
4
Add platform and management fees
Marketplace fees are usually 3% for hosts and management is often 15% to 25% of revenue. Co-hosting can be lower.
5
Set financing terms
STR loans usually require 15% to 25% down. Use a higher rate if you plan to use a DSCR loan.
6
Read the snapshot and projection
Review monthly cash flow, RevPAN, expense ratio, break-even occupancy, and the year-by-year cash flow.

The math behind the result

Core formulas

Monthly revenue = (ADR x 365 x occupancy) / 12 + cleaning fees collected per stay.
Monthly cash flow = revenue - operating expenses - cleaning - platform fees - management fees - mortgage payment.
RevPAN = ADR x occupancy. The core revenue-per-available-night metric STR investors track.
Cash-on-cash return = annual cash flow / cash invested (down payment + closing + furnishing).
Break-even occupancy = fixed annual costs and debt / (((ADR + cleaning fee per-night equivalent) x 365) x (1 - platform and management fees)).

Expert takeaways

Most Airbnb calculators only estimate revenue. Without expenses, financing, and setup costs, a high revenue can still produce a poor cash-on-cash return.
ADR and occupancy move together. Pricing for higher ADR can drop occupancy, and aggressive discounting can hurt RevPAN.
Furnishing and setup costs commonly run $15,000 to $50,000. They drag on cash-on-cash return but are easy to forget.
Local short-term rental regulations are real risk. Cities can cap permits, require primary residency, or ban STRs outright.

Key terms in plain English

ADR: Average daily rate per booked night.; Average daily rate is the average nightly rate paid by guests, before fees. ADR x occupancy = RevPAN, which is the core revenue metric for short-term rentals.
Occupancy: Share of available nights booked.; Occupancy is the percentage of available nights that are booked by paying guests. Most short-term rental markets average 50% to 70% occupancy across the year.
RevPAN: ADR x occupancy.; Revenue per available night equals ADR multiplied by occupancy. It captures both pricing power and demand in a single number, which is why short-term rental hosts focus on it instead of ADR alone.
Break-even occupancy: Occupancy needed to cover all costs.; Break-even occupancy is the share of nights you must book to cover operating costs, fees, and mortgage. The bigger the cushion between break-even and expected occupancy, the safer the deal.
Expense ratio: Costs as a percent of revenue.; Expense ratio divides total operating costs by total revenue. Healthy short-term rentals usually run 45% to 60%. Above 70% is a warning sign that the property barely covers costs in a normal year.

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What your scenario is telling you

Strong STR cash flow

Projected monthly cash flow of $941 can absorb seasonal dips.

Strong vacancy buffer

Break-even occupancy of 48% leaves a healthy gap below your expected 65%.

Lean expense ratio

Expenses are only 43% of revenue. That leaves more room for slow months or surprise repairs.

Strong cash-on-cash

Cash-on-cash return of 11.6% is above the 10% bar most STR investors look for.

Cash flow, equity, and ROI over time

Year	Gross income	Op. expenses	NOI	Cash flow	Property value	Loan balance	Equity	Cum. ROI
1	$51,009	$22,051	$28,957	$11,294	$303,850	$219,003	$84,847	-20.1%
2	$52,029	$22,636	$29,393	$11,729	$312,966	$216,593	$96,373	3.1%
3	$53,070	$23,237	$29,832	$12,168	$322,354	$214,008	$108,346	27.3%
4	$54,131	$23,855	$30,276	$12,612	$332,025	$211,237	$120,788	52.4%
5	$55,214	$24,489	$30,724	$13,060	$341,986	$208,266	$133,720	78.4%
6	$56,318	$25,141	$31,177	$13,513	$352,245	$205,080	$147,165	105.4%
7	$57,444	$25,811	$31,633	$13,969	$362,813	$201,664	$161,149	133.4%
8	$58,593	$26,499	$32,094	$14,430	$373,697	$198,000	$175,697	162.5%
9	$59,765	$27,206	$32,559	$14,895	$384,908	$194,072	$190,836	192.6%
10	$60,960	$27,933	$33,027	$15,364	$396,455	$189,860	$206,595	223.8%
11	$62,179	$28,679	$33,500	$15,836	$408,349	$185,343	$223,006	256.1%
12	$63,423	$29,446	$33,977	$16,313	$420,599	$180,500	$240,099	289.6%
13	$64,691	$30,235	$34,457	$16,793	$433,217	$175,307	$257,911	324.3%
14	$65,985	$31,045	$34,941	$17,277	$446,214	$169,738	$276,476	360.2%
15	$67,305	$31,877	$35,428	$17,764	$459,600	$163,767	$295,834	397.5%

How investors usually read these numbers

Metric	Often strong	Watch out	Why it matters
Occupancy	60% to 75%+	Below 45%	Short-term rental revenue depends on both nightly rate and booked nights.
Expense ratio	Below 55% of revenue	Above 70% of revenue	STRs often have higher utilities, supplies, cleaning, and management costs than long-term rentals.
Cash-on-cash return	10% to 15%+	Below 6%	Compares annual profit with down payment, closing costs, and setup budget.
Break-even occupancy	15+ points below expected occupancy	Near expected occupancy	Shows how much occupancy can fall before the property stops cash flowing.

How to run a airbnb analysis

Enter the property and setup costs

Add purchase price, closing costs, and a realistic furnishing budget for an STR (often $15,000 to $50,000).

Estimate revenue

Use comps from AirDNA, Rabbu, or local hosts. Set average daily rate, occupancy, and any cleaning fees you collect from guests.

Add operating expenses

Include utilities, supplies, taxes, insurance, repairs, HOA, and reserves. Add cleaning costs separately if you do not pass them through.

Add platform and management fees

Marketplace fees are usually 3% for hosts and management is often 15% to 25% of revenue. Co-hosting can be lower.

Set financing terms

STR loans usually require 15% to 25% down. Use a higher rate if you plan to use a DSCR loan.

Read the snapshot and projection

Review monthly cash flow, RevPAN, expense ratio, break-even occupancy, and the year-by-year cash flow.

The math behind the result

Core formulas

Monthly revenue = (ADR x 365 x occupancy) / 12 + cleaning fees collected per stay.
Monthly cash flow = revenue - operating expenses - cleaning - platform fees - management fees - mortgage payment.
RevPAN = ADR x occupancy. The core revenue-per-available-night metric STR investors track.
Cash-on-cash return = annual cash flow / cash invested (down payment + closing + furnishing).
Break-even occupancy = fixed annual costs and debt / (((ADR + cleaning fee per-night equivalent) x 365) x (1 - platform and management fees)).

Expert takeaways

Most Airbnb calculators only estimate revenue. Without expenses, financing, and setup costs, a high revenue can still produce a poor cash-on-cash return.
ADR and occupancy move together. Pricing for higher ADR can drop occupancy, and aggressive discounting can hurt RevPAN.
Furnishing and setup costs commonly run $15,000 to $50,000. They drag on cash-on-cash return but are easy to forget.
Local short-term rental regulations are real risk. Cities can cap permits, require primary residency, or ban STRs outright.

Key terms in plain English

ADR

Average daily rate per booked night.

Average daily rate is the average nightly rate paid by guests, before fees. ADR x occupancy = RevPAN, which is the core revenue metric for short-term rentals.

Occupancy

Share of available nights booked.

Occupancy is the percentage of available nights that are booked by paying guests. Most short-term rental markets average 50% to 70% occupancy across the year.

RevPAN

ADR x occupancy.

Revenue per available night equals ADR multiplied by occupancy. It captures both pricing power and demand in a single number, which is why short-term rental hosts focus on it instead of ADR alone.

Break-even occupancy

Occupancy needed to cover all costs.

Break-even occupancy is the share of nights you must book to cover operating costs, fees, and mortgage. The bigger the cushion between break-even and expected occupancy, the safer the deal.

Expense ratio

Costs as a percent of revenue.

Expense ratio divides total operating costs by total revenue. Healthy short-term rentals usually run 45% to 60%. Above 70% is a warning sign that the property barely covers costs in a normal year.

Airbnb Calculator

Your numbers

What is a airbnb calculator?

What your scenario is telling you

Strong STR cash flow

Strong vacancy buffer

Lean expense ratio

Strong cash-on-cash

Cash flow, equity, and ROI over time

How investors usually read these numbers

How to run a airbnb analysis

Enter the property and setup costs

Estimate revenue

Add operating expenses

Add platform and management fees

Set financing terms

Read the snapshot and projection

The math behind the result

Core formulas

Expert takeaways

Key terms in plain English

People also ask

Want real estate exposure without buying the whole property?

Related real estate calculators

Rental Property Calculator

Real Estate Investment Calculator

Mortgage Calculator

Airbnb Calculator

Your numbers

What is a airbnb calculator?

What your scenario is telling you

Strong STR cash flow

Strong vacancy buffer

Lean expense ratio

Strong cash-on-cash

Cash flow, equity, and ROI over time

How investors usually read these numbers

How to run a airbnb analysis

Enter the property and setup costs

Estimate revenue

Add operating expenses

Add platform and management fees

Set financing terms

Read the snapshot and projection

The math behind the result

Core formulas

Expert takeaways

Key terms in plain English

People also ask

Want real estate exposure without buying the whole property?

Related real estate calculators

Rental Property Calculator

Real Estate Investment Calculator

Mortgage Calculator