--- title: "Occupancy vs Net Per Night: What Makes a Rental Profitable" description: "Hosts watch occupancy, but profit depends on net per night and fixed costs. How to calculate both, with a worked example and a monthly routine." url: "https://mcc-solutionsnj.com/bookkeeping/guides/occupancy-vs-net-per-night-airbnb-profit" --- Bookkeeping guide · Updated October 26, 2026 # Occupancy vs Net Per Night: What Makes a Rental Profitable A calendar that is full all month feels like success. Whether it is profitable depends on what each night nets after the platform fee, cleaning, supplies and the costs that continue whether or not anyone is staying. By [Matthew Coleman](/about), MCC Solutions Want this handled for you? Monthly bookkeeping, cleanup and year-end close for small businesses. Start with a free health check of your books. [Free health check](/bookkeeping/health-check)[Get a quote](/bookkeeping/#interest) **Related:** [Owner contribution or loan](/bookkeeping/guides/owner-equity-and-capital-contributions) · [Closing entries and retained earnings](/bookkeeping/guides/closing-entries-and-retained-earnings) · [Void vs delete a transaction](/bookkeeping/guides/voiding-vs-deleting-transactions) **Free tools:** [Net profit margin calculator](/bookkeeping/net-profit-margin-calculator) · [How many sales do I need to break even?](/bookkeeping/break-even-calculator) [![Intuit ProAdvisor Gold tier badge](/img/credentials/intuit-proadvisor-gold.png)](https://proadvisor.intuit.com/app/accountant/search?searchId=matthew-coleman77)Gold tier in Intuit's ProAdvisor program. [See my Intuit listing](https://proadvisor.intuit.com/app/accountant/search?searchId=matthew-coleman77) Keeping your own books? Tallyfinch does invoices, bank import and reports on your computer. [See Tallyfinch](/bookkeeping/mcc-books-downloadable-bookkeeping-software) ## Define the two numbers Occupancy is the share of available nights that were booked. Net per night is what you keep from each booked night after costs that come with the stay. Occupancy tells you about demand. Net per night tells you about the price you accepted and what it cost to serve the guest. Both matter, and they pull against each other. Lowering the price can raise occupancy and lower net per night, sometimes to a loss. ## A worked example A property is available for 30 nights and booked for 21, which is 70 percent occupancy. Booking revenue is $4,200, or $200 a booked night. The platform fee takes $126, cleaning and laundry cost $420, and supplies add $84. Net before fixed costs is $3,570, which is $170 a booked night. Fixed costs for the month, such as mortgage interest, utilities, insurance, internet and property tax, total $2,900. Profit is $670 for the month. If occupancy fell to 55 percent at the same price, net before fixed costs would drop and the profit would be near zero. Fixed costs do not shrink when the calendar does. ## Track costs by stay Record each stay once: dates, nights, payout, cleaning and any extra expense. Per-stay records show which bookings earn money. A one night stay with a full cleaning cost can be less profitable than a three night stay at a lower rate. Keep payouts and bookings separate. Platforms pay out after check-in and net out their fees, so a payout rarely equals a booking. ## Watch the minimum stay and the cleaning fee Short stays multiply cleaning costs. If your cleaning cost is the same for one night as for a week, a minimum stay can improve net per night even though it lowers occupancy. A cleaning fee charged to guests is revenue and the cleaner is a cost. Record both, so you can see how much of the cost you recover. ## Pricing questions to test Before you change a rate, run two cases. If you drop the nightly price by ten percent and expect occupancy to rise, how many extra nights do you need to match last month's profit? Often the answer is more nights than the calendar has. Run the other case too. If you raise the price and occupancy falls a little, profit can rise because you serve fewer stays and pay for fewer cleanings. The only way to know is to calculate both. ## Taxes and records Lodging taxes, income tax treatment and any limits on deducting costs depend on your location and how you use the property. Check with your CPA and the relevant tax agencies. A tracker that holds stays in one table and shows occupancy, net per night and monthly profit lets you test a price change before you make it. The Airbnb Host Profit Tracker on this site is built for that. ## Common questions **What is a good occupancy rate?** It depends on the market and the season. Compare your own months to each other and to nearby listings. **Should I count my own stays?** Count them as unavailable nights, and keep personal use apart from rental use. Your CPA can explain the tax treatment. **Do platform fees count against revenue?** Record them as an expense, so gross revenue and fees are both visible. This guide is general information, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Rules, fees and due dates change; check with the IRS, the NJ Division of Taxation or a licensed professional for your situation. Let us handle it [### Monthly bookkeeping Categorizing, reconciling and monthly reports, with cleanup, payroll and NJ filings available. Bookkeeping →](/bookkeeping/) [### QuickBooks Online Monthly bookkeeping, cleanup and reconciliation in QuickBooks Online for New Jersey small businesses. Your account stays in your name. QuickBooks →](/bookkeeping/software/quickbooks-online)[### Square, Stripe and payment processors How sales from Square, Stripe, PayPal and other processors should flow into your accounting software, and why deposits never match sales. Square & Stripe →](/bookkeeping/software/square-and-stripe) More guides - [Contractor Offer vs Salary: What the Hourly Rate Is Worth](/bookkeeping/guides/contractor-offer-vs-salary-what-it-is-worth) - [A Client Onboarding Process for a Solo Bookkeeper](/bookkeeping/guides/client-onboarding-process-for-a-solo-bookkeeper) - [A Lead Follow-Up System for a Solo Service Business](/bookkeeping/guides/lead-follow-up-system-for-a-solo-service-business) - [Early Warning Signs a Job Is Losing Money Before It Ends](/bookkeeping/guides/signs-a-job-is-losing-money-before-it-ends) Free tool - [Bookkeeping health check](/bookkeeping/health-check) Related - [Airbnb Host Profit Tracker (Excel)](/toolkits/airbnb-host-profit-tracker) - [Bookkeeping for Airbnb hosts](/bookkeeping/guides/bookkeeping-for-airbnb-hosts) [All guides](/bookkeeping/guides) Reach small business owners, freelancers and bookkeepers who read this guide: [advertise here](/advertise#bookkeeping). Excel workbook ### Multi-Property Short-Term Rental Host Tracker Know which property earns money, which months are slow and what rate you need. [See what is inside ($29)](/toolkits/short-term-rental-host-tracker) [Try the free starter](/toolkits/short-term-rental-host-tracker#free-starter) Also in the [Short-Term Rental Host Bundle](/toolkits/short-term-rental-host-bundle): 4 products for $75 instead of $101 separately. Tallyfinch ### Books you keep on your own computer Tallyfinch does invoices, bills, bank import, reconciliation and the main reports, in a file you own. $99 once, then $5 a month for updates; the app keeps working if you stop the plan. It does not do payroll or sales tax filing. The free download records up to 60 entries. [See Tallyfinch](/bookkeeping/mcc-books-downloadable-bookkeeping-software) [Download it free](/tools/pro/trial/mccBooks) [Compare the three apps](/software) ## Rather have us keep the books? Ask for a quote. 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