How to Calculate Airbnb Income (ADR, Occupancy, RevPAR)
Before you buy a short-term rental — or reprice the one you own — you need to project what it will actually earn. Three metrics do all the heavy lifting: ADR, occupancy, and RevPAR. Get comfortable with these and you can size up any Airbnb deal in minutes.
The core formula
Everything starts with one simple chain (ListingOK):
So a property available 300 nights at 70% occupancy books 210 nights; at a $120 ADR, that's $25,200 gross per year (ListingOK). The Airbnb / STR income calculator runs this and nets out fees for you.
1. ADR — average daily rate
ADR is your average revenue per booked night — total rental revenue divided by occupied nights, ignoring empty nights entirely (AirROI). Earn $6,300 across 30 booked nights and your ADR is $210. It measures your pricing power, not overall performance. Typical 2026 ranges (RevenueLab):
- Suburban: $120–$250/night
- Urban core: $200–$500/night
- Vacation markets: $400+/night
2. Occupancy — how full your calendar is
Occupancy is booked nights ÷ available nights — your calendar fill rate. Typical 2026 benchmarks (RevenueLab):
- Steady markets: 55–70%
- Top urban markets: 75–85%
- Saturated or heavily regulated cities: 40–55%
A high ADR with low occupancy (you're priced too high) and a full calendar at a low ADR (you're leaving money on the table) are both problems — which is why you can't judge either number alone.
3. RevPAR — the one number that matters most
RevPAR (revenue per available rental) combines both into a single honest figure (Mashvisor):
A $150 ADR at 70% occupancy is a $105 RevPAR (BnbStats). RevPAR is the single best number for comparing listings, because it captures pricing and fill rate at once. For reference, top vacation markets like Scottsdale and San Diego ran roughly $210+ RevPAR over the trailing year (AirROI).
Don't forget: gross isn't take-home
Projected gross revenue is only the top line. Real STR expenses eat a big chunk, so budget for (Plannful):
- Cleaning & turnover — usually your biggest variable cost
- Platform & payment fees — Airbnb/Vrbo cuts
- Supplies, utilities, internet
- Maintenance, repairs, and management (often 15–25% if you outsource)
A property grossing $25,000 can easily net $15,000–$18,000 after all of it. Always underwrite to net, not gross.
The bottom line
Estimate occupancy and ADR from real comps in your specific market — not national averages — then use RevPAR to compare deals apples-to-apples. Run your numbers through the Airbnb / STR income calculator, and once you have a net income figure, check the return against the cap rate and cash-on-cash calculators before you buy.
Ready to run your own numbers?
Open the Airbnb / STR Estimator →