Airbnb Cleaning Fee Calculator.
Build a defensible cleaning fee from the bottom up. Labor + supplies + laundry + buffer — see what's fair without losing the booking.
Cleaner labor
Materials & buffer
Reference
Rule of thumb: a cleaning fee above ~50% of nightly rate hurts conversion on shorter stays. If the % is high, consider raising your minimum-night requirement.
How it works
Most hosts undercharge for cleaning. The calculator builds a defensible cleaning fee from the bottom up: actual cleaner labor + actual materials + a buffer for damage and surprise tasks.
The math:
- Labor cost = cleaner hours × hourly rate
- Recommended fee = labor + supplies + laundry + buffer
- Per-night cost = recommended fee ÷ average nights per stay
- As % of nightly rate = recommended fee ÷ nightly rate
The reference inputs (avg nights per stay, nightly rate) don’t change the recommended fee — they show you how the fee will feel to a guest. A $135 cleaning fee on a 3-night stay at $200/night reads as 22.5% of total — fine. The same fee on a 1-night stay at $100 reads as 135% of nightly — guests will balk.
How to use this calculator
- Enter cleaner labor — actual hours your cleaner spends per turnover and their hourly rate. If you self-clean, value your time honestly (most hosts low-ball this).
- Enter materials — supplies (toiletries, paper goods, replenishments) and laundry costs you incur per turnover.
- Enter a buffer — damage allowance, surprise tasks, second-pass touch-up. $5–$25 is normal.
- Set reference inputs — your avg nights per stay and nightly rate. These don’t change the recommended fee, they show how it lands as a percentage.
- Read the result — the recommended cleaning fee is the bottom-up number; the per-night cost and percentage tell you whether it’s feasible at your current price point.
If the percentage is over ~50%, your nightly rate is too low or your minimum-night stay is too short — raising the min-night reduces the per-stay impact of the fee.
Frequently asked questions
What should be included in cleaning fees? The cleaner’s full labor cost (turnover + linens + restocking + pre-arrival check), all consumable supplies, laundry/linen service, and a small buffer for damage or surprise tasks. Don’t include capex like furniture, monthly utilities, or your own management time — those belong in your overhead, not in cleaning fees.
How do I price cleaning fees fairly? Bottom-up from actual costs (this calculator). Top-down from “competitor cleaning fees in my market” leads to undercharging because most competitors are also undercharging. Defensible math beats peer pressure.
Per-night vs per-stay — which does Airbnb show? Airbnb shows the cleaning fee as a separate line on the booking, then divides it across nights internally for sorting. Guests see the total. The per-night number in this calculator is for your analysis — it’s how the fee distributes across the typical stay.
How many hours should a turnover take? A clean 2BR/2BA STR with light usage takes 2.5–4 hours. Larger properties, hot tubs, or complex setups push to 5–7 hours. If your cleaner says 1.5 hours, the property’s getting a wipe-down, not a turnover.
What’s a fair supplies budget? $8–$15 per turnover for a typical STR (toiletries, paper goods, coffee pods, dishwasher tabs, trash bags). Add $3–$5 for “extras” guests appreciate (tea, salt/pepper restocked, fresh sponge).
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