Airbnb, Booking.com and Abritel commissions are a most annoying headache for those trying to understand exactly how they work. Indeed, questions about this issue are regularly posted on social networks. And yet, getting a clear answer is complicated. Because, it must be admitted, the calculation rules are not explained by rental platforms (OTA) in a transparent manner. In the end, wouldn't this opacity have become a trend among them? To help you find your way through these commissions, Oiqia offers you a summary of the rules applied on the most common platforms. In particular, Airbnb, Boooking.com and Abritel.

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The Airbnb, Booking.com and Abritel Commissions: the Airbnb Case

The Airbnb host commission

Host service fees are generally 3% (varying between 3 and 5%). Attention, so-called Airbnb Plus hosts and those with very strict cancellation conditions may pay more. Please note that these fees are calculated on the subtotal of the reservation. That is, the price per night plus cleaning fees and fees for additional travelers. Excluding Airbnb fees and taxes. Finally, these service fees are automatically deducted from the payment made to the host.To find out what service fees are charged to the host for a particular reservation, the procedure is as follows: > Transaction history > select the reservation code > under payment, you will find the Airbnb service fees

The Airbnb traveller commission

Travelers pay service fees that are less than 14.2% (within a range of 12 to 20%) of the reservation subtotal. As a reminder, this subtotal includes the per night rate plus cleaning fees and additional guest fees. Excluding Airbnb fees and taxes. Service fees vary based on a variety of factors. On the other hand, travelers can see the details during the payment on the reservation page. And that's before it's finalized. Regarding VAT, it can be collected, without further details provided by the platform. Thus, the total percentage of commission charged by Airbnb is between 15 and 23% of the reservation amount.

The comparator above, offered by the Génération Voyages site, allows you to compare Airbnb and Booking.com in the blink of an eye. In particular, with regard to the final price paid by the traveller.

The Airbnb, Booking.com and Abritel Commissions: the Booking.com Case

The Booking.com host commission

Booking.com refers to hosts as “travel providers.” In addition, the commission paid for an apartment or any accommodation is between 15 and 18% depending on the location of the property. By increasing their commission, hosts can improve their ranking in search results through a visibility accelerator program. Finally, participation in the Genius program and payment via Booking.com will also increase the total above 20% commission.

The Booking.com traveller commission

At Booking.com, no commission is charged to the traveller. In fact, unless otherwise stated, the service “is free for consumers” The Airbnb, Booking.com and Abritel Commissions: the Abritel Case

The Abritel host commission

On this rental platform, the traveller has the choice between two options:

• An annual subscription of €249 (attractive formula for hosts whose accommodations are rented for a short term of the year and with a high occupancy rate). Do not hesitate to make your own calculations and identify the number of weeks necessary to reach the profitability of the option)
• One commission 8% on each reservation. Note that this formula is adapted to homes rented only a few months in the year.

The Abritel Traveler Commission

The commission payable to the traveller varies on a scale of 5% to 12%. In addition, the traveller will see the price for the night, as well as the total to be paid. By clicking on the details, he will learn about the following elements:

• Number of nights and the corresponding price
• Cleaning fees
• Service fees
• Tourist tax

To understand the distribution of commission fees, Abritel indicates:

• a 5% commission charged for the rental amount, fees (cleaning fees or for pets) and any additional payments.
• a credit card processing fee (3%) taken from the total amount paid by the vacationer, including taxes and refundable security deposit. The portion of the processing fee taken from the security deposit is refunded when you refund the security deposit.

Regarding VAT, it is only calculated on the 5% commission. In addition, the rate applicable in the country of residence is applied. No charge is payable for the additional services offered to the traveller. For example, damage protection coverage, insurance, etc. Finally, property managers using a channel manager will be charged 5% booking fees. They will be calculated according to the rental amount and mandatory fees will be added (not specified). Note that this excludes taxes and refundable security deposit.

In conclusion

Remember, this article only deals with commissions from rental platforms. Indeed, we have voluntarily excluded the treatment of tourist tax, which is processed separately by the platforms, when collected by them. I am reading the OIQIA article on tourist tax and how it works. In addition, the calculation of this tax will depend on the amount imposed by the locality and the number of people reserving the property.‍