Through 2025 and into 2026 Airbnb moved most hosts off the split-fee model — host about 3%, guest about 14% at checkout — onto a single host-only service fee of about 15.5% of the booking subtotal. Guests no longer see a separate Airbnb service fee. The platform’s take did not disappear; it moved onto the host’s side of the line.
Open the free payout calculatorThe host service fee is a percentage of the booking subtotal: nightly rate × nights, plus cleaning and other mandatory host fees. Occupancy tax and a refundable security deposit are usually excluded. Payment processing is bundled into that percentage on Airbnb; it is a separate line on Vrbo.
The fee is taken from the new listed subtotal, not the old one. If you used to keep 97% of $545 ($528.65) and you now keep 84.5%, the list that restores the old deposit is $545 × 0.97 ÷ 0.845 ≈ $626, a 14.8% raise — not 15.5%. Guests used to pay a ~14% service fee on top of $545. After you raise the list they often pay a similar all-in total with no separate service fee. That is arithmetic, not a pricing strategy.
It will not tell you to leave Airbnb, to match a neighbour’s rate, or that 15.5% is the figure on your statement. Markets, professional-host rules, and VAT change the percentage. Replace the starting rate in the calculator with the one on your payout. Nothing you type is uploaded.