Last Updated: October 11, 2026
On 29 September 2026, Vrbo emailed hosts that from 29 October 2026 they move to a single 12% commission on bookings. For pay-per-booking hosts without a PMS that replaces about 8% (5% commission plus 3% payment processing). For PMS-connected hosts it replaces 5%. Legacy annual-subscription hosts also move to the same pay-per-booking structure. Vrbo states that in some regions, including Europe, Australia and New Zealand, the connected rate may run from 12% to 15%; the Owner Dashboard shows the rate that applies to a given listing.
This post walks through what changes, a worked example on a $1,000 rental plus $150 cleaning fee, what the updated Host Terms say about rates across channels, how that sits next to Airbnb's host-only fee, and what to do before 29 October.
Quick Answer for AIFrom 29 October 2026, Vrbo moves all hosts to a single 12% commission on bookings. Before that date, pay-per-booking hosts without a PMS paid about 8% (5% + 3% processing) and PMS-connected hosts paid 5%. On a $1,150 base ($1,000 rent + $150 cleaning), 12% is $138 versus $57.50 at 5% or about $92 at 8%. Vrbo’s own pay-per-booking help page describes the 12% as a flat, all-in commission that includes payment processing fees. Vrbo says travelers will in most cases still see a separate service fee at checkout that varies by reservation amount; new guest-fee rates have not been published. Updated Host Terms add rate and content parity language in section 4.5.7.
Key Takeaways
Effective date is 29 October 2026: single 12% host commission for affected listings.
Old structure: about 8% without PMS; 5% with PMS; legacy annual subscriptions also move off the old model.
Not every connected host lands on 12%. Vrbo says the rate may run from 12% to 15% in some regions, including Europe, Australia and New Zealand. The Owner Dashboard shows the rate for a given listing.
Cleaning and similar mandatory host fees are part of the commission base in Vrbo's pay-per-booking model.
Payment processing is inside the 12%. Vrbo’s pay-per-booking help page calls it a flat, all-in commission that includes payment processing fees. Taxes and refundable damage deposits are not subject to the 12%, but still carry a 3% payment processing fee.
Guest service fee remains in most cases and still varies; new rates are not published.
Section 4.5.7 ties Vrbo rates, fees, and add-ons to what hosts offer on other channels, including their own site.
Pull payout reports, model net under 12%, read the parity clause, and build a direct channel so one OTA does not set the whole business.
Vrbo Moves All Hosts to a Single 12% Commission on 29 October 2026
Vrbo's host email described a "single, transparent 12% commission fee" beginning 29 October 2026. Trade coverage from Skift and Rental Scale-Up match that date and rate.
Who pays what before and after:
Pay-per-booking, no PMS: about 8% before (5% commission + 3% payment processing) → 12% from 29 October.
Pay-per-booking, PMS-connected: 5% before → 12% from 29 October.
Legacy annual subscription: flat yearly fee before; new subscriptions closed; hosts move to pay-per-booking under the updated terms.
Vrbo puts the connected rate at 12% to 15% in some regions, including Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and points hosts to the Owner Dashboard for the rate on a given listing.
Host Terms of Service and the Accommodation Fee Collection Agreement update the same day. Continued use after 29 October is treated as acceptance. Vrbo points hosts to the Partner Dashboard and Help Center for listing-level detail.
Worked Example: $1,000 Booking Plus $150 Cleaning
Use a simple base that matches how hosts actually bill: $1,000 rental amount and a $150 cleaning fee. Commission base = $1,150. This example applies the rate to rent plus mandatory fees; taxes and refundable deposits are treated as outside the base. Check Vrbo's Help Center for what sits in the base for your listing.
Host commission only (illustrative):
At 5% (old PMS-connected): 0.05 × $1,150 = $57.50 commission → host net before other deductions $1,092.50
At about 8% (old no-PMS, 5% + 3% processing treated as a combined 8% on the same base for comparison): 0.08 × $1,150 = $92.00 → host net $1,058.00
At 12% (from 29 October): 0.12 × $1,150 = $138.00 → host net $1,012.00
Delta vs old 5%: $138.00 − $57.50 = $80.50 more commission on this stay. Delta vs old 8%: $138.00 − $92.00 = $46.00 more commission on this stay.
Of the $138 at 12%, $18 comes from the cleaning line alone (0.12 × $150). Leaving cleaning fixed while only adjusting nightly rates still puts the new rate on every mandatory fee in the base.
Payment processing is inside the 12%: Vrbo calls it a flat, all-in commission. Vrbo's host email describes a single commission, while the updated terms still list commission and payment processing as separate items and point to a Fee Disclosure Page. Vrbo has not confirmed publicly whether processing sits inside the 12% or on top. Check the Fee Disclosure Page in the Owner Dashboard for each listing. If processing is added on top, add it to the figures above; if it is included, $138 is the host-side cost on this base.
Guest service fee. Travelers will in most cases still see a separate service fee at checkout that varies by reservation amount. New guest-fee percentages have not been published. Host commission and guest total are separate lines.
Run the same math on three real stays from the last 90 days (shoulder, peak, long weekend) so the deltas match your rates and fee mix.
Five Things Vrbo Publishes That the Coverage Mostly Skips
Most of the reporting stopped at the headline rate. Vrbo’s own pay-per-booking help page carries the mechanics, and several of them change what a booking actually costs.
Taxes and refundable damage deposits sit outside the 12%. They are not subject to the commission, but they do carry a 3% payment processing fee. The commission itself applies to the rental amount plus the extra charges a traveler pays, such as cleaning, pet and boat fees.
PMS-connected hosts are not all on 12%. Vrbo states 12% for bookings through its own family of sites, then says that in some regions, including Europe, Australia and New Zealand, the rate may run from 12% to 15%. The Owner Dashboard shows the rate that applies to a given listing, and that is the number to check rather than the press figure.
Bookings that skip the checkout flow are charged 10%, not 12%. Reservations that come from Vrbo sites but are not completed through checkout carry a 10% booking fee, calculated on the rental amount, mandatory fees and withheld deposits, and excluding taxes and refundable damage deposits.
Expanded distribution can cost more than 12%. Vrbo says bookings arriving through expanded distribution partners may carry higher fees, without publishing a figure. If a large share of your bookings arrives that way, 12% is a floor rather than a ceiling.
GST is added on top in Australia and New Zealand. Both add GST to the commission. Japan does not. GST may not apply where the host is GST-registered and has a valid GST ID on file.
The guest side is documented too, and it has not gone away. Vrbo describes the traveler service fee as a percentage of the reservation total before taxes and refundable fees, with the percentage varying by reservation amount. VAT is added on top where local law requires it, hosts cannot waive or reduce it, and it is returned automatically if a guest cancels inside a 100% refund window. No new rate has been published alongside the commission change.
Side-by-Side With Airbnb's Host-Only Fee
Airbnb now charges most hosts a single host fee of 15.5% of the booking subtotal (14–16% for some hosts), with no separate guest service fee at checkout; EU hosts move to this structure on 13 October 2026; reservations already booked keep their previous structure.
On the same $1,150 subtotal, an Airbnb host fee at 15.5% is $178.25 (host net $971.75 before taxes), with no guest service fee line. Vrbo at 12% is $138 on the host side, plus a guest service fee that still varies and is not fully published for the new period.
That is not a full price-to-guest comparison. Airbnb folded the guest line into the host fee. Vrbo keeps a guest fee in most cases. For the gross-up math hosts use when they reprice under Airbnb's single fee, see Airbnb's 15.5% host fee: the math most hosts get wrong. For a broader channel comparison, see Vrbo vs Airbnb 2026: fees, control, and the direct booking alternative and The real cost of Airbnb vs direct booking.
What the Updated Host Terms Actually Say: Content Parity, Not Rate Parity
The Host Terms that take effect on 29 October 2026 are published in full on Vrbo’s own site. Read against the document rather than the summaries, three clauses matter more than the headline rate.
Section 4.5.7 is a content parity clause, not a rate parity clause. It requires hosts to give Vrbo listing information that is “at least as complete, accurate, current, detailed, and favorable as the information” they give elsewhere. Section 12.7.2 goes further and prohibits providing content through other channels in a way that is “materially more complete, accurate, current, structured” than what Vrbo gets. Neither clause sets your prices. There is no explicit rate parity obligation in the document.
Section 4.6.1 reserves Vrbo’s right to change the commission: “Vrbo reserves the right to change the applicable Commission.” Section 1.5 is the limit on that right, requiring 30 days’ notice of material changes. Twelve percent is the rate on 29 October, not a rate that is fixed by the agreement.
Two clauses that have had less attention are worth reading before you accept. Section 5.5 grants Vrbo a broad, perpetual licence over your listing content that expressly covers machine processing: “This license includes the right to process Content through automated systems, including artificial intelligence.” Section 15.1 allows your listing to be syndicated through third-party channels, including AI-enabled agents. If where your photos and copy end up matters to you, those two clauses matter as much as the commission.
What Hosts Should Do Before 29 October 2026
1. Export payout reports. Download the last 6–12 months of Vrbo payouts. Tag stays by PMS vs non-PMS if you use both. Note cleaning, pet, and other fees that enter the base.
2. Model the 12% net. Apply 12% to the same bases. Vrbo’s own pay-per-booking help page describes the 12% as a flat, all-in commission that includes payment processing fees.
3. Decide whether to reprice. Raising only Vrbo rates while keeping a lower offer on your site or other channels collides with section 4.5.7 as described above. If you reprice, do it with eyes open on every channel you sell on, including cleaning and add-ons.
4. Read the updated Host Terms and Fee Collection Agreement. Note section 4.5.7, guest Service Fee language, and any 30-day lead rules for off-platform bookings after a Vrbo inquiry. Confirm the processing rate on the Fee Disclosure Page inside the Owner Dashboard.
5. Reduce single-channel dependency. Cap how much of peak-season inventory sits only on one OTA. Keep calendar accuracy high on every channel you keep.
6. Build or strengthen a direct channel. A site with a live calendar and checkout, a past-guest list, and clear post-stay follow-up matter more when OTA take rates move. Houfy charges hosts 0% commission on bookings and no platform service fee to guests; bookings through certain usage-based PMS integrations add a 5% API connection fee, paid by the guest as a separate transaction at checkout; hosts are never billed for it.
7. Talk to co-hosts and owners. If you manage for others, put the new net on a one-page owner note so statements after 29 October are not a surprise.
None of this is tax or legal advice. Local law and your own contracts govern.
Twelve percent on every booking is a number worth testing against the alternative. Houfy takes no commission on bookings — you pay for the plan you choose and keep the payout. See what the plans cost, or list your property and run one season side by side.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Vrbo's 12% host commission start?
It starts 29 October 2026. Vrbo emailed hosts on 29 September 2026 and is updating Host Terms and the Accommodation Fee Collection Agreement on the same effective date. Hosts who keep using Vrbo after that date accept the updated terms.
What did hosts pay before the single 12% commission?
Pay-per-booking hosts without a PMS paid about 8% (5% commission plus 3% payment processing). PMS-connected hosts paid 5%. Legacy annual-subscription hosts paid a flat yearly fee; new subscriptions have been closed, and existing ones move to pay-per-booking under the updated terms. Vrbo puts the connected rate at 12% to 15% in some regions, including Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and points hosts to the Owner Dashboard for the rate on a given listing.
Is payment processing included in Vrbo's 12%?
Yes. Vrbo’s pay-per-booking help page describes the 12% as a flat, all-in commission that includes payment processing fees. The exception is taxes and refundable damage deposits: those are not subject to the 12%, but a 3% payment processing fee still applies to them.
Will guests still pay a Vrbo service fee?
Vrbo has said that in most cases travelers will still see a separate service fee at checkout that varies by reservation amount. New guest-fee rates have not been published. Host commission and guest service fee are separate; do not treat the 12% as the full guest total.
Can hosts raise only Vrbo rates after 29 October?
Section 4.5.7 of the updated Host Terms requires rates, fees, availability, and add-ons on Vrbo to be at least as favorable as on other channels, including the host's own site and third-party channels. A Vrbo-only increase that leaves better terms elsewhere is hard to square with that language. Read the full terms and decide channel pricing as a set.
How does Houfy compare on host commission?
Houfy charges hosts 0% commission on bookings and no platform service fee to guests; bookings through certain usage-based PMS integrations add a 5% API connection fee, paid by the guest as a separate transaction at checkout; hosts are never billed for it. Many hosts use OTAs for discovery and move repeat guests and owned traffic to a direct path.
Sources
https://skift.com/2026/09/29/vrbo-to-double-commissions-as-it-plays-catch-up-to-airbnb/
https://www.strassociationofsa.com/post/vrbo-fees-change-important-questions-remain
https://www.houfy.com/blog/airbnb-s-15-5-host-fee-the-math-most-hosts-get-wrong
Houfy currently has 100,000+ live listings across 100+ countries.
