Use a payment processor like Stripe to handle guest payments directly, improving cash flow and preventing fraudulent bookings.
Create custom cancellation policies on Booking.com to align with your business needs and minimize revenue loss.
Adjust your pricing strategy to account for Booking.com's commission structure, ensuring consistent earnings across platforms.
Consider joining the Genius program for increased visibility and bookings if the benefits outweigh the discount requirements.
If you're looking to expand your short-term rental business beyond Airbnb, you should seriously consider Booking.comas your next platform. We'll walk you through the key differences and show you how to avoid the common pitfalls that trip up new hosts.
After years of monitoring short-term rental forums, it's clear that Booking.com questions, concerns, and even outright grievances pop up almost weekly. While some hosts genuinely hate the platform, most of this frustration stems from misunderstanding how Booking.com operates compared to Airbnb.
Once hosts understand the fundamental differences between these platforms and implement the right systems, they can tap into Booking.com's massive global audience without the headaches that plague unprepared hosts.
This guide is a start to finish ultimate beginners guide to hosting on Booking.com.
Alongside useful tips and helpful insights are "how to’s" designed to help you mimic Airbnb on Booking.com (as much as you can). Once you have the hang of things you can then utilize Booking.com’s advanced features and make the most out of the platform.
Automated guest messages keep your guest informed from booking through to check-out. They’re designed to answer questions before they arise, saving you time whilst keeping your guests happy.
Booking.com is part of The Priceline Group and covers over 220 countries and territories worldwide, which is in line with Airbnb's reach. The platform closed 2024 with a 19% year-over-year increase in short-term rental listing nights, which falls under their category of alternative accommodations. Vacation rentals now make up 33% of Booking.com's total booked nights.
Booking.com captured 6.6% of desktop traffic in the travel and tourism category, making it the most visited travel website globally as of March of 2024. Booking.com’s zero transaction fee model, along with its instant booking option, makes it a big hit among travelers.
The platform offers 3.4 million properties in total, comprising of 475,000 traditional hotels and 2.9 million homes and apartments. Short-term rental listings, which capture the home and apartment supply, account for 85% of Booking.com's non-hotel listings. In comparison, Airbnb has over 8 million short-term rental listings globally.
Booking.com began expanding its listing types in 2023—adding private and shared rooms in addition to entire properties—and by early 2024, Uplisting confirmed that private rooms were already available on the platform.
Over 3 million nights are booked daily on Booking.com, contributing to 1.1 billion booked nights across Booking Holding platforms in 2024. That represents about 10% increase in bookings compared to the previous year. Booking Holdings platforms include Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK and OpenTable.
Alternative accommodations (short-term rentals) accounted for 35% of the 1.1 billion total, or approximately 385 million nights. In comparison, Airbnb recorded 491 million nights booked in 2024 (~1.34 million per day), up from 448 million in 2023.
If you include all of Booking.com's reservations, which covers hotels, then the platform's total nights booked remain double that of Airbnb's annual volume, with short-term rentals capturing an increasing share.
Building on these impressive platform-wide statistics, let's examine the metrics that matter most to hosts. Understanding current Booking.com trends can position your property for maximum successwhile the platform continues its aggressive expansion in the short-term rental sector, creating unprecedented opportunities to tap into its massive global traveler base.
Booking.com's short-term rental portfolio is experiencing robust growth, with alternative accommodations increasing 19% year-over-year in 2024 and now representing 33% of all room nights.
New STR listings on the platform see quick results—approximately 45% secure bookings within their first week, while 1 in 3 nights booked in 2024 came from vacation rentals.
The majority of bookings (59%) flow through Booking.com's merchant model, where the platform processes guest payments and hosts receive funds after check-in.
Hosts benefit from Booking.com's extensive global marketing efforts and mobile-first approach, resulting in 68% of all bookings coming through mobile devices.
According to Booking.com's 2025 Travel Predictions, travelers are increasingly seeking purposeful experiences including noctourism (60%+ of respondents), longevity retreats (60%), men-only wellness (~49%), and intergenerational adventures (~46%).
Hosts who customize their listings to align with these emerging trends—offering boutique, sustainable, wellness-focused, or family-friendly accommodations—can better position themselves to meet evolving guest preferences.
Some of the largest short-term rental operators (with 250+ properties) rely on Uplisting's software to scale their businesses.
There are fundamental differences between these two major platforms that are essential for hosts to understand if they want to maximize their success. From guest interactions to payment processing, these distinctions impact how you'll manage your listings and communicate with potential guests.
Airbnb enables property owners and travelers to connect and encourages hosts and guests to build relationships. The platform features a two-way review system where both hosts (along with their properties) and guests receive ratings. Both parties tend to look at reviews, and either can choose to decline a reservation if they're not comfortable with the match. In short, Instant Booking is optional.
Booking.com operates primarily as a booking service. For hosts on Booking.com, there's typically no interaction between the guest and host prior to booking. Unlike Airbnb, there are no guest reviews for the host to evaluate, only host reviews.
Booking.com exclusively uses an instant booking model—hosts cannot review reservation requests before accepting them. This means all bookings are automatically confirmed once a guest completes the reservation process.
Airbnb needs to promote Instant Booking to compete with the likes of Booking.com. Unresponsive hosts and rejected bookings damage their appeal to a wider market. This is one of the driving factors behind hosts being penalized for poor guest communication and Instant Booking listings having priority on search results.
When hosting on Booking.com, the basic process is straightforward: sign up as a host, add your listings, choose your booking policy, set your prices, add your payment preferences and you're ready to go. You could potentially have a guest in your property today and be paid into your bank account tomorrow.
The Booking.com host setup process requires a few additional steps compared to Airbnb:
Create your listing and wait for approval from Booking.com. This is similar to Airbnb, where it can take up to 72 hours for your listing to appear in search results and become fully visible to guests.
Create your own booking policy : A booking policy defines the rules for your property—including cancellation terms, check-in/out times, and special conditions like minimum stay requirements. Unlike Airbnb's standardized options, Booking.com lets you create custom policies that precisely match your business needs.
Create a rate category and link it to your policy : Rate categories on Booking.com are pricing plans you can customize—think of them as different pricing tiers with specific rules. For example, you might have a "Standard Rate" with moderate cancellation terms and a "Non-Refundable Rate" that's cheaper but doesn't allow cancellations. Each category needs to be linked to a specific booking policy.
Set your rates: while Airbnb offers simple rate tools with automatic Smart Pricing, Booking.com requires more manual configuration with base rates and modifications that must be carefully layered to avoid pricing errors. You can control much of these price settings from Uplisting, but more on that later!
Create an account with Stripe (or another payment processor): If you want to charge guests prior to arrival, you can. This a critical difference from Airbnb, which handles all payment processing automatically and distributes funds according to their payout schedule.
Although there are a number of extra steps, the process doesn’t need to be complicated or overly time consuming.
Keep on reading for instructions on how to set up your Booking.com account to mimic Airbnb as much as possible.
With a reliable VRM solution you can trust, Uplisting can help you grow your business without wasting time on double bookings, unhappy guests, upset clients and worrying what could go wrong next.
Booking.com offers two primary payment models for hosts: the traditional method where hosts collect payments directly, and the increasingly popular "Payments by Booking.com" service available in many territories.
With Payments by Booking.com, the platform handles all guest transactions on your behalf. They collect payment from guests according to your policies (at booking or closer to check-in) and transfer funds to your account approximately 24 hours after guest check-in. This reduces payment administration and protects against fraud, with Booking.com assuming responsibility for chargebacks and payment disputes.
Before deciding which method works best, check with your local Booking.com customer service to confirm if Payments by Booking.com is available in your region. Many hosts prefer the direct payment method despite the extra administration—the main benefit being improved cashflow, as you can access guest payments at booking time rather than waiting until after check-in.
If you want to take a pre-payment or screen a guest's payment method, you'll need to have access to their credit card details and be able to make a transaction via a payment processor like Stripe.
Copy the settings shown in the image below to ensure Booking.com collects guest credit card details on your behalf as a host. You can find these settings at: Property > Policies > Guest payment options
Ensure domestic guests are not allowed to book without credit card details. The alternative is that your guests can select to pay in cash and you have no recourse for cancelled bookings or no-shows.
Refer to your payment processor to determine which credit cards you can and should accept. American Express typically comes with higher transaction fees, for example.
You will need a payment processor to handle credit card transactions when hosting on Booking.com. Most of us no longer need a traditional merchant account—the specialized bank accounts that businesses historically required to accept credit card payments, which often came with high setup fees, monthly minimums, and complex contracts. Today's payment landscape offers better alternatives.
Payment processors have become significantly more user-friendly and affordable in recent years (though availability varies by location). These services typically offer streamlined setup processes, transparent fee structures, and security features that protect both you and your guests during financial transactions.
Services such as Stripe and Square are simple to setup and use, providing all-in-one payment processing without the traditional merchant account overhead. Stripe is a payment processor widely used by small and large businesses worldwide.
These processors will charge a fee on each transaction which varies based on your location. As an example, Stripe transaction fees for Australia are shown in the image below.
Uplisting integrates with Stripe and automatically confirms a guest's credit card is legitimate when hosting on Booking.com. You don't need to worry about manual verification!
If you use an alternative payment processor please leave a comment and we'll add it here for other hosts benefit
Unlike Airbnb's simplified fee structure, Booking.com offers hosts much more control over additional charges. This flexibility allows you to customize exactly what guests pay beyond the base rate—from cleaning services to security deposits. When properly configured, these fees help protect your property and ensure you're fairly compensated for additional services without affecting your commission calculations.
In the image below, we share one possible fee configuration:
Cleaning fees and damage deposits must be set here: Property > Policies > Additional fees & charges. You can choose from several options including one-time charges (ideal for cleaning fees), per-person fees, or per-stay deposits.
Booking.com allows hosts to customize whether these fees are included in the price shown to guests or displayed separately. For optimal guest transparency, consider enabling the "Show fee breakdown to guests" option so travelers can see exactly what they're paying for. Remember that while some fees like cleaning charges are subject to commission, security deposits are not since they're refundable.
With Uplisting, you can send the right messages at the right time on all booking sites. Read and respond to guest messages in a single, unified inbox — whether you’re at the office or on the go.
How Commission Payments Work on Booking.comSince Booking.com doesn't directly charge the guest, they have no way of taking their commission. Instead, Booking.com will invoice you for the commission owed on a monthly basis. This will be taken out of your account by direct debit—an important consideration for hosts managing their cashflow.
Keep in mind that if you don't have enough money in your account to pay the commission, your listing will be blocked on the Booking.com site. No new bookings will be possible until payment is made.
A common misconception about Booking.com is that hosts earn less than on Airbnb for the same booking price. This misunderstanding stems from their fundamentally different commission models:
Booking.com charges a higher commission (typically ~15%) directly to hosts on the rate you set, while Airbnb uses a split-fee approach—charging hosts a small commission (~3%) and adding a separate service fee (6-12%) that guests pay on top of your listed rate. When properly adjusted, your take-home earnings can be identical across both platforms.
Let's look at an example assuming a $150 reservation:
How to maintain consistent earnings across platformsA few simple calculations with ensure you always earn the same amount, no matter which booking site your guest make a reservation with.
Determine the amount you wish to earn , otherwise known as the take home rate (eg. $150 per night)
Work out the commission to determine the rate to set on each booking site. Here’s the calculation to work this out:
Rate to set on booking site = Take home rate ÷ (1 — commission fee in decimal)
Obviously doing this math can get extremely time consuming, especially when you have multiple properties. Luckily a property management system like Uplisting can do all the heavy lifting for you.
Uplisting’s Smart Rates feature automatically accounts for the commission charged to you as a host, so you don’t have to. The rates you enter on Uplisting are the rates you earn (exclusive of any taxes).
Pro tip: Some hosts also like to take the credit card transaction fee into account when working out the take home rate for Booking.com. You can add this charge in the same setting that we reviewed in the Managing Cleaning Fees and Damage Deposits section above.
Tucked away under Property > Policies > Guest information are several important settings that Booking.com hosts should customize for optimal performance.
Two critical settings are your guest address and phone number requirements. The guest address is useful when charging the credit card, and the phone number is essential for direct contact.
Below is our recommended Guest Information settings for hosting:
Manage short-term rentals & bookings, message guests, take payment, and so much more. All in one easy-to-use platform (that never double-books).
Booking.com's host management infrastructure stands out from competitors with its two-pronged approach. The comprehensive Extranet dashboard offers real-time control over availability, rates, and policies—far more detailed than Airbnb's simplified interface.
Meanwhile, the purpose-built Pulse app delivers functionality that outperforms other platforms' mobile offerings, allowing hosts to message guests, process check-ins, and manage bookings from anywhere. For multi-property managers, Booking.com's ecosystem includes integration with over 600 channel managers (including Uplisting as a Premier partner), providing synchronization capabilities that exceed what most competitors offer.
The platform's visibility tools and market insights are particularly sophisticated, giving hosts actionable data on booking patterns and pricing opportunities that many other OTAs simply don't match. These advantages translate to smoother operations and more stable occupancy rates, especially for hosts managing properties across multiple booking channels.
As mentioned above, all Booking.com bookings are instantly confirmed—a key difference when hosting on Booking.com versus other platforms. There are no booking enquiries, and once a guest has made a booking, you can't cancel the reservation. It's imperative to maintain accurate availability and rates on your Booking.com listings.
If your availability calendar isn't accurate and you receive a double booking, you're responsible for providing alternative accommodation for the guest as well as covering any extra transport fees—which can be extremely costly for hosts.
If you do get an overbooking, you’ll need to relocate your guest to accommodation that’s both close-by and of a similar (or higher) price. You’ll also need to cover the cost of any transport, phone calls, and the price difference between your property and the new one.
On top of this, you’re still liable to pay commission on overbookings with two exceptions:
You've been on Booking.com for 30 days or less.
You've had fewer than four double bookings in the last 12 months.
The best way to ensure accurate rates and availabilities when hosting on Booking.com is to use a channel manager like Uplisting. A channel manager is specialized software that synchronizes your property's availability, rates, and bookings across multiple platforms in real-time. This eliminates the need to manually update each platform when you receive a booking, preventing those costly double bookings.While Booking.com does offer iCAL syncing for some accounts, this method typically updates only every few hours, creating a dangerous window of time where you risk double bookings.
Uplisting syncs instantly with Booking.com and Airbnb and charges 0% commission, ensuring your calendars remain perfectly synchronized across platforms and giving you peace of mind that you won't face those expensive relocation costs.
Note: When using multiple rate categories (beyond your standard rate) with a channel manager, you must contact Booking.com support to link these rates' availabilities together. Without this crucial step, Booking.com will treat each rate category as having its own separate availability calendar, potentially leading to overbookings or lost revenue opportunities.
Search for accommodation on Booking.com and you'll be sure to see FREE cancellation, no prepayment needed, as shown on the image below. You may think that Booking.com forces this on hosts, but it doesn't. Unlike Airbnb's standardized cancellation tiers, Booking.com gives hosts complete flexibility to create custom policies that protect their revenue.
Many new hosts mistakenly accept the default free cancellation setting, which can lead to last-minute cancellations and lost income. With the right configuration, you can create policies as strict as—or even stricter than—Airbnb's options, including non-refundable bookings that incentivize guests to commit. The key is understanding how to properly set up and connect these policies to your rate categories.
Creating effective cancellation policiesLet’s remind ourselves of the Airbnb cancellation policies: Flexible, Moderate and Strict. We can use them as the benchmark when we're thinking about how to set similar policies on Booking.com
Flexible
Full refund for cancellations at least 24 hours before check-in
If cancelled within 24 hours of check-in, refund minus the first night
During stay cancellations: refund for unused nights only
Moderate
Full refund if cancelled 5+ days before check-in
50% refund (minus first night) if cancelled less than 5 days before check-in
During stay cancellations: 50% refund for unused nights
Strict
50% refund if cancelled 7+ days before check-in
No refund for cancellations less than 7 days before check-in
No refund for cancellations during stay
Unlike the pre-determined Airbnb cancellation policy options, you need to create your own bespoke policies on Booking.com. You can set those policies to be exactly the same as the Airbnb options (or even stricter).
In the image below, we've' mimicked the Airbnb Strict cancellation policy on Booking.com.
As mentioned above, you can always create even stricter cancellation policies, such as a non-refundable policy. You can even provide a discount on your rates to encourage guests to book with the non-refundable policy.
An important note here is you need to connect your policy to your rate category. Remember, a rate category on Booking.com is essentially a pricing plan with specific rules attached (like your Standard Rate or Non-Refundable Rate). This connection step is done automatically on Airbnb as you only have the option of one rate, but Booking.com requires manual linking between your cancellation policies and rate categories. Just look at Booking.com as having greater flexibility, though it does require more setup.
Copy the settings in the image below to connect your cancellation policy to your rate category .You'll find this under:
Rates & Availability > Rate categories > Edit rate
Fraudulent credit card bookings present a genuine challenge on Booking.com. Some guests provide invalid card details deliberately to secure reservations without financial commitment, while others do so with less malicious intent—perhaps hoping to avoid cancellation fees if their plans change. Regardless of the motivation, this issue requires proactive solutions to protect your business.
The best way to protect yourself is to charge a deposit or pre-payment up-front. This will deter any fake bookings or non-committed guests.
Booking.com recommends adding ‘fine print’ to your listing description to inform guests that you take a pre-payment (as shown in the image below). You can add that information by navigating to:
Property > Request changes to your description
Verify credit card details
If you’d prefer not to take a pre-payment, you can still use a short-term rental payment processor like Stripe to verify that the credit card details are legitimate. You need a payment processor for both of these solutions.
Below is a quote from an actual host in a Facebook Airbnb group. This is another example of misunderstandings about the differences between Airbnb and Booking.com.
We shut our Booking.com account down. They said we owed 700 in commission for guests that never stayed with us.
Booking.com will not charge you commission for no shows so long as long as you notify them.
Guest no-shows are more of a pain on Booking.com than Airbnb. On Airbnb, the onus is on the guest to cancel a booking. This is not the case on Booking.com. It’s up to you as the host to mark the guest as a no-show.
Fortunately this is a very simple process. Use the ‘no show’ button on the booking admin page after 6pm on the day of supposed check-in and you won’t be charged commission.
A Booking.com channel manager like Uplisting makes it even easier for you to mark a no-show directly on our platform.
This is something many hosts encounter regularly. A common example comes from a property manager who was helping their parents manage a 16-bedroom guesthouse several years ago. The property was receiving numerous bookings at prices significantly below their determined rate. There are a number of potential causes for this.
After many hours of comparing rates and talking to Booking.com support, the guesthouse host discovered that they had created special offers on their property management system that weren’t clearly defined and hidden deeply in the software. Removing these offers and switching their channel manager solved the problem.
You have the option of multiple rate categories with Booking.com. Without proper management, these can lead to unexpected pricing discrepancies where guests book at rates significantly lower than you intended.It can be hard to figure out which rate category is active, when, and under what conditions and policies.
Setting rates on Booking.com should be simple and easy to understand. Establishing a standard rate serves as the foundation for setting base rates. Additional rates can then be layered on top, ensuring clear visibility of what each property should sell for at any given time. You can set a base rate under the settings question "How do you want to manage your rates?" by selecting "Automatically, by basing this rate on an existing category." This structured approach helps prevent those surprising low-rate bookings that can negatively impact your revenue.
For example, you may be happy to give a 5% discount if a guest books and pays immediately with no-refund. If you layer that onto a standard base rate of $100, a booking at $95 isn’t a surprise and it's a boon if the guest ends up cancelling last-minute.
Note: When layering rates and using a channel manager, you need to contact Booking.com to connect the availabilities of each.
It’s simple to automate repetitive tasks with Uplisting's short-term rental software. You’ll save hours every week and eliminate human error. Go ahead — take some time off.
Booking.com’s Genius loyalty program offers multi-tiered discounts and perks to guests from 10% off at Level 1 up to 20% off, free breakfast, upgrades, and support at Level 3. Properties can join if they have ≥ 3 reviews and a 7.5+ rating, and participation is controlled via the Extranet.
Pros for hosts: Short-term rental operators typically see around 70% more visibility, 45% more bookings, and 40% more revenue (factoring in the discount). It can also reduce cancellations and attract repeat guests.
Cons: Hosts must provide the minimum 10% discount (plus handle commission), yield control of loyalty and communication to Booking.com, and risk training guests to always seek the OTA’s lowest rate, which may undercut direct bookings.
Bottom line: Genius can be a valuable tool for visibility and volume, but it's not cost-free. Property owners should weigh the boost in bookings against margin impact and direct reservation goals. Consider combining Genius participation with strategies to cultivate repeat guests directly.
Yes, it’s seen as one of the most reputable online travel agencies (OTAs), providing broad global reach and robust support features. Even smaller hosts often notice higher occupancy and better exposure when they join. For many, the user-friendly extranet and mobile app make it straightforward to manage availability and message guests. That said, it’s commission-based, so always factor fees into your pricing strategy.
Booking.com operates on a commission model ranging roughly between 10% and 25% per reservation. The exact rate depends on factors such as property type, location, and specific programs. You’ll see the commission percentage during registration or in your extranet settings. Adjusting your base rate can help offset these fees.
Becoming a Booking.com partner requires listing your property, setting policies, and paying a commission each time you receive a reservation. All bookings are confirmed instantly, which means you must keep your calendar accurate to avoid overbookings. Hosts manage communication, rate updates, and availability through the Extranet or the Pulse app. Payment collection can be handled by Booking.com in certain locations or you can charge guests directly with your own payment processor.
Through Payments by Booking.com, the booking platform either transfers funds to your bank account or provides a virtual credit card (VCC) loaded with the guest’s payment. In some cases, you can receive daily payouts or select monthly payout options. Availability of these methods depends on your country and property type. Always confirm your payment method in the extranet to avoid delays.
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