How do you calculate profit after booking-platform fees?

HostStack Team · Team discussion starter

HostStack Team — Team discussion starter. General information, not legal, tax or financial advice.

Start with the money earned for the stay and separate it from the payout you receive. A payout can already have deductions, while cleaning revenue may still be part of gross booking revenue. Record the booking statement and avoid subtracting the same fee twice. Fee bases vary by platform, payment arrangement and booking; there is no standard rate assumed here.

Hypothetical GBP example: accommodation revenue is £300 and cleaning revenue is £40, giving £340 total revenue. Platform and payment costs are £45 in this example. Cleaning and laundry expense is £40, and consumables and utilities allocation is £15. The calculation is £300 + £40 − £45 − £40 − £15 = £240 contribution.

That £240 is BEFORE rent or mortgage, management, other overhead and tax. It is not net profit or money available to spend. A cleaning fee paid by the guest is revenue, not automatically a profit margin: match it against what cleaning and laundry actually cost.

For a monthly view, add the contribution from all stays, then account for the relevant fixed costs and other expenses. Keep cash flow separate: a bill paid this month and a booking earned this month may belong to different periods. Owner labour, replacements and maintenance also deserve a realistic allowance.

Use actual platform statements and provider invoices to reconcile the figures. If the booking changes or is refunded, update both revenue and any retained costs. Ask an accountant how financing, tax and accounting treatment apply to your business.

How do you reconcile gross booking revenue with your payout, and which cost is easiest to miss? Please use anonymised or clearly hypothetical figures.