Two ways of charging
Booking charges the property a commission on every booking. The range is 10 to 25% and the most common is 15%. In most countries it's calculated on the price including VAT. Join Preferred Partner and you pay about 3 points more in exchange for a badge and a better spot on the list; use Payments by Booking and 1.1 to 3.1% gets added.
Airbnb has two structures. Under the single fee, the host pays it all: 15.5% for most, between 14 and 16% for others, 16% in Brazil and Mexico. Under the split fee, the host pays 3% and the guest pays between 14.1 and 16.5% on top of the price.
The single fee is mandatory for hotels, serviced apartments and properties that use management software, and Airbnb is moving all hosts to it. Once you're switched, you can't go back.
Same guest, five prices
With a USD 100 night: through your website, the guest pays 100 and you keep 100 minus card and booking-engine fees. Through Booking at 15%, they pay 100 and you keep 85. With Preferred Partner, about 82. Through Airbnb on the single fee, they pay 100 and you keep 84.50.
On Airbnb's split fee you keep 97, but the guest pays at least 114.10. The commission doesn't disappear: the guest pays it, and your property looks more expensive on Airbnb than anywhere else.
| Channel | Guest pays | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| Direct through your website | USD 100 | USD 100, minus card and engine fees |
| Booking, 15% commission | USD 100 | USD 85 |
| Booking 15% + Preferred Partner | USD 100 | about USD 82 |
| Airbnb, single fee 15.5% | USD 100 | USD 84.50 |
| Airbnb, split fee | from USD 114.10 | USD 97 |
Booking and Airbnb cost almost the same
With the single fee, Airbnb and Booking are half a point apart: 15.5 against 15%. The extras make the difference. On Booking, Preferred Partner, Payments by Booking and Genius discounts. On Airbnb, your listing's exact percentage, shown in each booking's breakdown.
Before deciding which suits you, look at your last ten bookings on each and note how much really reached you out of what the guest paid. That percentage is your real commission.
VAT in Argentina
The commission is invoiced by a company abroad. If you're VAT-registered (responsable inscripto), the VAT on that invoice is paid as an import of services and you claim it as a credit. If you're on the simplified regime (monotributo), there's no credit: VAT paid on the commission is a cost.
In that case, a 15% commission with 21% VAT on top ends up costing 18.15%. If cards add charges to payments abroad, check with your accountant so the same VAT isn't paid twice. We're not accountants; this is for asking the right questions.
On both, you compete for a spot
Booking says on its own page that how much commission a property pays, and whether it's in Genius or Preferred Partner, can affect the order of its results. Paying more is one way to move up the list, and that spot lasts as long as the payment.
On Google you can't pay to rank higher in local results. You get there with a fast website, a complete Google profile, answered reviews and your own content, and the work stays.
The third option: direct bookings
Booking and Airbnb are good for getting known. The business is in the second stay, and the friend they recommend, booking direct. For that your website has to show up when people search your name, load fast on a phone and show the same price or a better one, with the booking engine you already use.
Every night that moves from a platform to your website is 15 to 18 dollars more per 100, depending on the channel. You can work out the year with your own numbers in our calculator.
Questions
- How much commission does Airbnb charge hosts?
- Under the single fee, 15.5% for most hosts (14 to 16% for others, 16% in Brazil and Mexico). Under the split fee, 3% to the host and 14.1 to 16.5% to the guest.
- How much commission does Booking charge?
- Between 10 and 25%, most commonly 15%. Preferred Partner adds about 3 points and Payments by Booking 1.1 to 3.1%.
- Which charges more, Booking or Airbnb?
- With Airbnb's single fee they're almost equal: 15% against 15.5%. What changes is each one's extras and the exact percentage in your contract or listing.
- Can hotels use Airbnb's split fee?
- No. For hotels, serviced apartments and properties using management software, the single fee is mandatory.
- How much does Airbnb charge in Argentina?
- Airbnb doesn't publish a different fee for Argentina: the general one applies, 15.5% on the single fee for most. Your listing's exact percentage is in each booking's breakdown.
- Is VAT charged on the commission in Argentina?
- The invoice comes from abroad. A VAT-registered property pays the VAT as an import of services and claims it as a credit; a monotributo property can't recover it, so the commission costs 21% more. Check with your accountant.
Sources
- Airbnb Help Center — Airbnb service fees
- Guesty — Booking.com fees: how much does Booking.com charge hosts? (2025)
- Booking.com for Partners — Understanding our commission (VAT and local taxes)
- Booking.com — How we work (search results ranking)
- CPCE Santa Fe (Cámara II) — Importación de servicios: tratamiento en el IVA para responsables inscriptos (2022)
- Google Business Profile Help — Tips to improve your local ranking on Google
- Andes Developers — Calculadora de comisión de Booking