How Do You Choose Your Airbnb Cleaning Fee in 2026?

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One question that I often see asked by new Airbnb hosts in 2026 is how to choose the Airbnb cleaning fee for a new short-term rental property. The good news is that this is fairly cut and dry! However, there are a couple of additional things to consider.  

For example, did you know that in most cases, you have to pay state and local occupancy tax on the cleaning fee, too? In my case, this adds up to an extra 12%!  So, let’s jump right in, and I will even share exactly how I choose the cleaning fee for my own Airbnb rentals.

Hi, I’m Sarah! I am a top-rated Airbnb host sharing first-hand tips to help you succeed at Airbnb hosting.

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Airbnb Cleaning Fee Guide

In this Airbnb hosting blog post, I will share everything you need to know to set your Airbnb cleaning fee accurately in 2026!

When you use a cleaning company to clean your rental, as most Airbnb hosts do, the charge is generally whatever they charge you plus taxes and extras. We’ll discuss this more in-depth later.

If you do your own cleaning at your Airbnb, you need to set a fair price that covers both your effort and your expenses. Providing toiletries or other amenities, and the time it takes to launder linens, can add up both financially and in terms of time. In fact, I challenge you to think of yourself as both a host and an independent cleaner, so make sure you are not taking advantage of yourself!

The cleaning fee is one of the most polarizing and misunderstood aspects of an Airbnb stay. So, first, let’s define what an Airbnb cleaning fee actually is and debunk some misconceptions. For more information on this topic, you may want to read my blog post, “The Truth Behind Airbnb Fees.”

What is the Cleaning Fee on Airbnb?

The Airbnb cleaning fee is a one-time fee on an Airbnb booking. It covers the cleaning that will take place after a guest checks out or before they arrive. It’s the same thing, just like whether the chicken or the egg came first.

How do guests know what the Airbnb cleaning fee is? Well, up until recently, the cleaning fee on Airbnb was a separate line item at checkout. This used to allow Airbnb renters to see the base nightly rate, cleaning fee, taxes, Airbnb service fee, etc., all itemized out.  

However, as of mid-2025, the cleaning fee is now included in the nightly rate, regardless of how you look at it. At booking, Airbnb shows your guests the average nightly rate, which includes the nightly base rate plus the cleaning fee for their stay. On the main checkout screen, the Airbnb service fees are also included in the average nightly rate. So, the guest sees the total average nightly rate + taxes.

But when they tap Price Breakdown, it shows the accommodation total, including the cleaning fee, with the Airbnb service fee and taxes broken out separately; the cleaning fee is no longer broken out in either place.  

Here are screenshots of an Airbnb calendar showing nightly rates on the host’s end, with the cleaning fee on the left-hand side. On the right side, I have two screenshots of what the guest sees. As you can see, they can no longer see rates for individual nights or the cleaning fee.

In the past, the guest could see both the nightly rate and the cleaning fee in the breakdown.

Regardless, the total cost in both screenshots on the right side is the same. The main checkout total shows a cost of $314 per night ($1257 total) because it includes the cleaning fee and Airbnb’s service charge. By clicking on the price breakdown, the total Thursday through Monday accommodations now show $1102. This is an average nightly rate: $275. When they click price breakdown, they can no longer see the rates for individual days or the cleaning fee, only the average and totals.

So, let’s say your guests add on Tuesday ($195) and Wednesday ($182). Now, the price breakdown will show Tuesday through Sunday at $1479. There is no additional cleaning fee, just the two room nights.

I like that they include the cleaning fee in both the total and the average nightly rate. This allows you to factor in your cleaning costs while spreading them over the duration of their stay. Obviously, this means shorter stays will show a higher average nightly rate.

This is why very short stays are usually not cost-effective at an Airbnb, making hotels often a better option. Read Airbnb vs. Hotel: When to Choose Which One for more on this topic!  

However, I don’t really like that Airbnb service fees are also included in the average nightly rate at checkout. I personally prefer that Airbnb keep its fees separate and transparent, as they never pass on to the host. Guests rate us on value, and I think this inflates the amount that they believe a host actually receives. Do you agree?

Why Do Airbnb Hosts Charge a Cleaning Fee?

The argument that hosts shouldn’t charge a cleaning fee and should just bake it into their price is tired and, honestly, very naive.

As this is a fixed cost per stay, it’s impossible to factor it into the nightly rate accurately. My average length of stay is 3.7 nights, and my average cleaning fee is $120. So, if I added $35 per night to every night, then a guest staying two nights would essentially pay $70, while a guest staying ten nights would pay $350. This also doesn’t properly allow you to account for true cleaning costs. There is no such thing as standard or average cleaning fees for Airbnb rentals. 

Hotels have cleaning teams on staff. They have set hours, are paid hourly, and can clean numerous rooms in close proximity per day. At hotels, dirty linens go to the laundry department. This is quite different from short-term rental cleaning companies, which clean as needed, often traveling from job to job with their supplies and taking used linens with them for laundering.

Again, I am really glad that Airbnb is doing the math for us. As Airbnb hosts, we can collect proper cleaning fees to cover our fixed costs, and guests can see them included in the price. It’s a win-win!  

How to Choose Your Airbnb Cleaning Fee?

Regardless of whether Airbnb guests can see the cleaning fee, I still think it’s very important to set it accurately when creating your Airbnb listing.

So, how do you determine what to charge as your cleaning fee at an Airbnb? For me, it’s taking the actual fee I pay my cleaners (the base Airbnb cleaning fee) and adding about a 20% buffer to cover taxes and maintenance.

Base Airbnb Cleaning Fee

The cleaning costs your cleaners charge you can vary depending on the services provided. These days, most short-term rental cleaning companies cover the actual cleaning as well as taking Airbnb linens off-site for laundering. Often, they also include a starter set of consumables such as toiletries, dish soap, coffee, etc.

In this post, I share the consumables that we include for each check-in. My cleaners take care of all of this as part of their fee.

If you are cleaning your own rental, I recommend calling around and seeing what the going rate is for a rental in your area. You can also use a basic calculation: $100 for studios, $150 for one-bedrooms, and $50 for each additional bedroom. That is fairly in line with what I pay and what companies charge.

In the following sections, let’s say you have a small condo with a $100 base cleaning fee. We will use that as an example.

Taxes on Your Airbnb Cleaning Fees

Most new Airbnb hosts are surprised to learn that, in most areas, you have to pay state and local occupancy taxes on your entire payout, including the cleaning fee.

In some cases, Airbnb collects and remits these on your behalf, as they do for my Florida state taxes. Other times, you have to collect these manually through an Airbnb pass-through tax and remit them yourself.  This is what I have to do monthly in Walton County, Florida, where the 30A beaches are located.

Please note that I am not referring to income taxes. In that case, your Airbnb cleaning fees are essentially a wash of income and expense. Make sure you know all about the three types of taxes affecting your Airbnb.

In my case, I pay an extra 12% lodging and occupancy tax on my cleaning fee. If our example base cleaning fee is $100, you should charge $112 to cover it. Otherwise, it comes out of your bottom line, and if you are trying to maximize profits at your Airbnb, every dollar counts!

Airbnb Extras, Amenities, and Replacements

If you are cleaning yourself, or your cleaners aren’t providing the consumables, you should add them here. For example, you might spend $15 per turn on toiletries, dish soap, paper towels, a sponge, k-cups, etc, for your home.  This may bring the example cost up to $127, or keep it at $112 if your cleaners included these items.

Read my Airbnb Setup Checklist for everything you should have in your Airbnb rental!

You may also want to factor in a little extra for replacement costs. Linens are considered consumables at an Airbnb because they need to be replaced fairly often due to staining, which is why the Airbnb bedding I recommend is so affordable.

So, in our example scenario, you may want to round up to $140 or $125 to get a final total price. You don’t need a generic Airbnb cleaning fee calculator, since this fee varies widely from property to property, and you know your rental best. 

Again, Airbnb is no longer showing the cleaning fee to guests. But accurately setting it up in your listing can help ensure that you aren’t cutting yourself short when adjusting your nightly rate. It keeps your fixed costs in one place as you adjust your nightly rate, which flows to your bank account.

Airbnb Routine Maintenance & Deep Cleaning

You may want to consider maintenance charges, such as lawn mowing and pool cleaning, prior to a guest’s arrival. You decide whether or not to add these to your cleaning fee.

Additionally, in this discussion about cleaning, I am referring to the standard cleaning between guests. But you will want to deep clean from time to time as well.  Deep cleaning and routine maintenance are something you can hire out or do yourself.

We visit our Airbnb rentals often and deep clean them ourselves. Likewise, I always bring my Bissell Little Green to clean upholstery and spot-clean rugs. I also wipe out all cabinets and put everything back where it needs to go. I don’t factor this into my cleaning fee; it’s just part of the gig!

Read all about this in my post Airbnb Cleaning Checklist: How to Deep Clean and Reset Your Airbnb in The Off-Season!

3 Additional Airbnb Cleaning Fees

You may want to or need to collect three additional types of cleaning fees. Let’s break those down!

#1 Pet Cleaning Fees

First, if you have a mandatory pet cleaning fee, which is fairly standard, make sure to collect that in advance by sending a money request through Airbnb. You may want to remind guests that this is required and that all pets must be disclosed to avoid any surprises.

A member of my Airbnb Hosting Group on Facebook recently said that she has had guests not mention their pets to avoid this fee. This often adds an extra headache, as the cleaners don’t arrive with the necessary pet cleaning supplies.

So, don’t be afraid to include messaging in your Airbnb House Manual to deter this, such as: 

Pets must be included in your booking, and the $50 mandatory pet cleaning fee must be paid at least 24 hours prior to arrival. If pets are not disclosed in advance, the emergency pet cleaning fee is $200.  

#2 Refreshes During Longer Stays

Sometimes, Airbnb hosts like to require mid-stay refreshes for stays longer than 10 days. These would include changing all linens and cleaning the floors. For example, this could be a $75 fee every 10 days. In this case, you would not include it in your Airbnb cleaning fee. I would instead send an Airbnb money request for this service.

Why would you require this? It keeps guests from laundering your Airbnb sheets and linens and baking in stains. It also allows the host to keep an eye on the property to ensure everything is okay. Some guests like having this and would be happy to pay a small fee for a hotel-like linen refresh mid-stay.

Here are two related posts that you may also want to read:

• Should You Allow Longer Airbnb Stays?
• Ways To Make Your Airbnb Like A Hotel

#3 Reimbursement for Excessive Messes & Damage

The final possible cleaning-related fee at your Airbnb would be for any messes or damage discovered at checkout. I want to be frank here. Mild marks on linens, spots here or there on furniture and rugs, food crumbs on the floor, and scuffs on the walls are all par for the course. These are the costs of doing business, and you should just fix them and move on.

Here, I am referring to broken items, Sharpie drawings on the walls, pet issues, etc. In this case, you will need to address these issues with your Airbnb guest and send a money request to recoup costs. If that doesn’t work, then you bring in Airbnb’s AirCover program.

You should read my post about How to Get Reimbursed When a Guest Damages Your Rental!

Airbnb Cleaning Fee: Final Thoughts

As you can see, this fee is fairly straightforward.

In 2026, the Airbnb cleaning fee is now automatically spread out and included in your Airbnb average nightly rate, so there is no reason not to make it as accurate as possible. This ensures that when you lower your base nightly rate, especially for last-minute bookings, you are at least covering the fixed costs.

More Airbnb Hosting Tips

If you are a new Airbnb host and enjoyed this discussion around the elusive Airbnb cleaning fee, you will love my other posts. I am a top-rated Airbnb host and share firsthand, detail-oriented Airbnb Hosting Tips here at Our Little Lifestyle.   In a recent post, I shared my top tips for pricing your new Airbnb, which goes hand in hand with this one.

My approach is to think things through in advance and work smarter, not harder. In my post about Protecting Your Three Ps: Property, Profits, & Peace, I share ways that I set boundaries and plan to make my job as an Airbnb host easier.

Click here to browse the Airbnb Hosting section of my blog.

If you are a new host, make sure to browse my popular Airbnb Buying Guides, including my complete Airbnb setup checklist, and steal my recipe for success as an Airbnb host!

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