How much cleaning fee should an Airbnb host charge?

What a cleaning fee should cover

Your cleaning fee should reflect the full cost of a turnover, not just the time someone spends cleaning. Most turnovers involve four kinds of cost:

• Cleaning time. Resetting the kitchen, bathroom, bedrooms and floors, plus a check for damage or anything missing.
• Linen and laundry. Changing beds and towels, then washing and drying them, whether you do it yourself or pay someone else.
• Restocking. Replacing toilet roll, hand soap, dish soap, bin liners and any extras you leave for guests.
• Supplies. Cleaning products, cloths and equipment, which wear out over time.

If you only price the first item, the others quietly come out of your nightly earnings. Our Airbnb turnover cleaning checklist sets out the tasks involved, room by room.

Why property size and layout matter

A cleaning fee that suits a studio will not suit a three-bedroom flat. Each extra bedroom adds a bed to change and more linen to wash, and each extra bathroom adds one of the most detailed jobs in any turnover.

Layout matters too. A property over several floors, or one with a balcony or lots of hard floors to mop, usually takes longer to reset than a compact flat with the same number of bedrooms. Building access and where the bins are kept can also add time. These are typical differences, and the most reliable guide is how long turnovers actually take at your property.

How to work out your own cleaning cost

Start from what one turnover costs you, then decide how much of that to pass on to guests:

• Price the clean itself. If you use a cleaner, this is their charge per turnover. If you clean yourself, put a fair value on the time it typically takes.
• Add laundry for every bed and set of towels.
• Add restocking. Note what you spend on guest essentials over a month and divide it by the number of turnovers in that month.
• Add a share of supplies, including replacing worn towels and linen.
• Check it against real turnovers. After a few stays, compare your estimate with what you actually spent, and adjust.

A fixed price per clean makes this easier, because the biggest part of the sum stays the same every booking. Airola turnovers start from £45 for a 1-bed, and our pricing page shows exactly how the price changes with bedrooms, packages and add-ons. For what drives that price, see what Airbnb turnover cleaning costs in London.

A separate fee or part of the nightly rate?

Some hosts charge a separate cleaning fee and some build cleaning into the nightly rate. A separate fee covers the turnover whatever the length of stay. Building it into the rate can make a listing look simpler, but check that the rate still covers the clean on your shortest bookings.

How cleaning fees are shown to guests, and any rules about them, are set by Airbnb and can change. Check Airbnb's current guidance for hosts before you set or change your fee.

Why a clear fee builds guest trust

Guests are more comfortable paying a cleaning fee when they can see what it pays for. A fee that fits the size of the property and matches the standard guests find on arrival feels fair. A fee that seems high for a small flat, or a property that is not properly clean, invites questions and can show up in reviews.

• Say in your listing what guests can expect, such as fresh linen, clean towels and restocked essentials.
• Keep check-out requests short and reasonable, so guests do not feel they are cleaning as well as paying for it.

Know your turnover cost before you set the fee

If Airola cleans for you, your price is confirmed before we clean, so you can set your fee knowing what each turnover costs. You can get your price in about 60 seconds by choosing your bedrooms, package and any add-ons.