Vrbo Host Fees Explained (2026): The 12% Commission, the Guest Fee and What You Keep

Vrbo's host fee is a single 12% commission on every booking made on or after October 29, 2026. It is charged on the rental amount plus the mandatory fees you set, such as cleaning and pet fees, and for hosts paid through Vrbo it includes payment processing. On a $1,000 booking Vrbo keeps $120 and pays you $880. Listing a property costs nothing up front; the commission is the price.

Until October 28, 2026, the fee depends on how you connect: about 8% for hosts without software (a 5% commission plus a 3% payment processing fee) and 5% for hosts whose property management system handles payments. The rate follows the date the booking is made, not the date of the stay, so a reservation taken in the old window keeps the old rate even if the guest arrives next summer.

This post covers what Vrbo charges hosts, what the guest pays on top, and the other line items that move a Vrbo payout. For the side-by-side against Airbnb, see Vrbo vs. Airbnb host fees.

Key facts

• Vrbo hosts pay "a flat 12% commission fee on bookings, which includes payment processing fees," for bookings made on or after October 29, 2026, according to Expedia Group's Vrbo Compensation Model Changes FAQ (October 1, 2026).
• Before October 29, pay-per-booking hosts paid a 5% commission plus a 3% payment processing fee, about 8% in total, and software-connected hosts paid 5%, per Skift and RentalScaleUp (September 2026).
• The commission applies to the rental amount plus mandatory host fees such as cleaning and pet fees. Taxes and refundable damage deposits are excluded.
• Commission rates run "from 12-15%" by region and brand, and each host's rate is shown in the Vrbo Dashboard, per the same FAQ.
• Vrbo also charges travelers a service fee that it does not disclose; Skift reported the old range as 11% to 14%, and Vrbo says the new fee is priced dynamically.

What Vrbo charges hosts, by booking date

The $1,000 here is the booking subtotal: nightly rate plus cleaning and other mandatory fees, before taxes. The commission comes out of that number, so a cleaning fee carries the same 12% as the nights.

What the 12% covers

For a host paid through Vrbo, the 12% is the whole platform cost of a booking: distribution on Vrbo and Expedia Group's other sites, payment collection and processing, and the payout. Expedia Group's FAQ is explicit that processing sits inside the commission, which settled a question Vrbo's own help page had left open; we covered that exchange in what the 12% includes.

The exception is merchant-of-record status. A host who collects the guest's card through their own processor pays the 12% and that processor's fee on top, about 3% by Skift's estimate, which puts the effective rate near 15%.

The rate also varies outside the United States. Expedia Group's FAQ gives a 12% to 15% range by region and brand, and Vrbo's help page says software-connected hosts in Europe, Australia and New Zealand may pay 12% to 15%. Your exact rate is in the Vrbo Dashboard. In the UK the commission carries 20% VAT for hosts who are not VAT registered, which makes 12% cost 14.4%.

What the guest pays on top

Of the two largest US vacation rental platforms, only Vrbo still adds its own fee at the guest's checkout. Airbnb moved most hosts to a 15.5% host-only fee in 2026, so an Airbnb listing price now carries no separate Airbnb guest fee. Vrbo's traveler service fee is added to your price, and the FAQ says "Vrbo does not disclose its traveler service fee range" and will price it "dynamically based on market conditions." Skift reported the pre-change range as 11% to 14%, and Vrbo says the new fee will typically be lower.

The guest fee is not deducted from your payout, but it is part of what the guest compares. Our guest-side breakdown of whether Vrbo costs more than Airbnb works through what that does to the total a traveler sees.

Other costs that move a Vrbo payout

The commission is the fee on every booking. These are the ones that apply only sometimes:

• Members Only Deals. Vrbo auto-enrolled listings in member discounts of 12% to 20% in September 2026. The discount is funded by the host and applied before the commission, so it cuts both the price and the base the 12% is charged on. Our Members Only Deals post covers the opt-out and the repricing math.
• Sponsored listings. Vrbo's paid placement bills at least $5 per booked night, on top of the commission. See Vrbo sponsored listings.
• Host cancellations. Cancelling a guest costs 10%, 25% or 50% of the reservation depending on timing, with a $50 minimum, up to 100% at or after check-in, plus a seven-day listing suspension. The details are in Vrbo's host refund policy and Vrbo cancellation policies for hosts.
• Annual subscriptions. Vrbo's Host Terms effective October 29, 2026 say it is not accepting new subscription listings and may not renew existing ones. A subscriber converts to pay-per-booking at the end of the term; the subscription post has the break-even.

How much to raise prices to cover the fee

Divide by what you keep rather than adding the percentage. To net $1,000 after a 12% commission, list at $1,136.36 ($1,000 ÷ 0.88), a 13.64% markup. A host moving from the old 5% rate who only wants to hold the same payout needs 7.95% (0.95 ÷ 0.88), and one moving from about 8% needs 4.55% (0.92 ÷ 0.88). The step-by-step version, including the rate parity clause in Vrbo's new Host Terms, is in our Vrbo 12% commission repricing post.

To compare a year of Vrbo bookings with Airbnb and with direct stays, the free Airbnb and Vrbo fee calculator carries both Vrbo rates. A booking taken on your own site skips the commission and the traveler fee; what remains is card processing, about $29.30 on the same $1,000. More breakdowns live in the Airbnb and OTA fees hub.

FAQ

What is the host fee on Vrbo?

A 12% commission on the booking subtotal for bookings made on or after October 29, 2026, including payment processing for hosts paid through Vrbo. On a $1,000 booking the host is paid $880. Before that date, hosts paid about 8% (5% commission plus 3% processing), or 5% if their property management software handled payments.

What percentage does Vrbo take from hosts?

12% of the rental amount plus mandatory fees such as cleaning, for most US hosts on bookings made from October 29, 2026. Expedia Group says rates range from 12% to 15% by region and brand, and hosts who process payments themselves also pay their own processor, about 3%.

Does it cost anything to list a property on Vrbo?

Not up front. Pay-per-booking listings pay nothing until a booking is made, then the commission comes out of the payout. Vrbo's Host Terms effective October 29, 2026 say it is no longer accepting new annual subscription listings, so pay-per-booking is the only way to start.

Does Vrbo charge guests a fee too?

Yes. Vrbo adds a traveler service fee at checkout on top of the host's price. It does not publish the rate; Skift reported the old range as 11% to 14%, and Vrbo says the new fee is set dynamically and will typically be lower. The guest fee is not taken from the host's payout.

Is Vrbo's host fee lower than Airbnb's?

On the host side, yes: 12% against Airbnb's 15.5% host-only fee, so $880 against $845 on a $1,000 booking. Because Vrbo also charges the guest and Airbnb mostly no longer does, the comparison at the same guest total depends on Vrbo's undisclosed traveler fee.

Does the 12% apply to cleaning fees and taxes?

It applies to cleaning, pet and other mandatory fees the host sets, but not to taxes or refundable damage deposits. A $200 cleaning fee therefore carries $24 of commission.

Sources

• Expedia Group newsroom — Vrbo Compensation Model Changes (October 1, 2026; accessed October 2026)
• Vrbo Help — How is the booking fee calculated (accessed October 2026)
• Vrbo Help — About Vrbo's service fee (accessed October 2026)
• Skift — Vrbo to Double Commissions as It Plays Catch-Up to Airbnb (September 29, 2026)
• Rental Scale-Up — Vrbo 12% Commission: What the New Host Terms Mean for Your Pricing (accessed October 2026)
• Vrbo — Host Terms of Service effective October 29, 2026, sections 4.6.6 and 4.7.1 (accessed October 2026)
• Expedia Group — Host Refunds Policy (effective September 15, 2026; accessed October 2026)
• Stripe — Pricing (accessed October 2026)