Yes, if you run your short-term rental as a business.
Booking.com now drives huge volume—especially last-minute city stays—and has rolled out host-friendly features such as Payments by Booking.com, Request-to-Book and clearer Preferred Partner rules.
But expect a 15% commission, stricter performance standards and higher cancellation rates than Airbnb. Use a channel manager, set firm policies and price to absorb fees.
Booking.com is no longer hotel-only. Around one-third of its 2024 room-nights came from homes and apartments, and it now lists ≈ 8 million alternative accommodation units worldwide. Traffic-wise it commands 6 – 7 % of all travel web visits, outranking Airbnb.
Key 2024-25 updates for hosts:
European and Asian travellers book through Booking.com first, meaning fresh demand you may never see on Airbnb or Stayz. A Melbourne CBD studio or Queenstown apartment often gets 30 – 40 % of its annual nights from B.com once activated.
Booking.com guests book closer to arrival (often < 7 days), filling those nagging calendar holes. Many managers report a 10 – 20 % occupancy lift in shoulder seasons after adding B.com.
Because the guest sees no service fee, your listing can appear cheaper than the identical Airbnb ad—even if your net payout is similar after commission.
The Extranet, Pulse app and mature API connections make multi-property management straightforward. Bulk price edits, unit-level inventory and auto-messages save time when you scale.
Opt-in programmes such as Genius (10 % discount to high-value travellers) or Preferred Partner can catapult a struggling listing up the search sort order—handy for new builds or slow months.
Expect a flat 15 %, rising to 18 % if you join Preferred. Add 2-3 % processing if you let B.com handle payments. Build this into your rates or you’ll erode margin fast.
Free-cancellation filters are default. Without deposits you will see more churn than on Airbnb. Mitigation: set non-refundable or 7-day policies and activate Smart-Flex so Booking.com re-markets cancelled nights for you.
Guests have no public review history, and the platform offers only third-party liability cover, not damage cover. Require ID, collect a bond offline or insure privately.
If Payments by Booking.com isn’t available for your property type, you must run cards yourself and chase failures. Tourist-levy collection is patchy outside the EU—double-check local rules.
Late-guest relocations come out of your pocket. Two host-cancelled bookings in a year can tank ranking or trigger a temporary listing freeze. A channel manager is almost compulsory.
For urban apartments and multi-unit portfolios the maths is compelling: an extra booking every few days typically outweighs the fee. City managers using Booking.com alongside Airbnb often end the year 5-figure dollars ahead versus Airbnb-only operations.
For lifestyle or unique stays (treehouses, farmstays) with longer average nights, Airbnb may still yield higher-quality guests and fewer headaches—but Booking.com can plug mid-week gaps if you’re prepared.
Worth it when you have the right systems.
Use automated messaging, channel-manager syncing and a clear cancellation policy. Price 15 % above your direct rate, add non-refundable options, and list your bond in the fine print. Test for 90 days—then keep it if occupancy jumps.