STR Glossary

Short-Term Rental & Airbnb Glossary

Plain-English definitions of the metrics, fees, and terms every Airbnb and vacation-rental owner should know.

This short-term rental glossary defines the terms hosts and owners hit most often — from performance metrics like ADR, RevPAR, and occupancy rate to operational concepts like dynamic pricing, co-hosting, OTAs, and turnovers — each in one or two clear sentences.

Use the A–Z jump nav to find a term fast, or read straight through. When you are ready to put these concepts to work on your own property, explore BookedMore’s management services, performance-based pricing, or get a free estimate on the get started page.

ADR (Average Daily Rate): ADR is the average price a short-term rental earns per booked night over a period, calculated as room revenue divided by nights sold. It measures how much you charge, independent of how often the property is booked.
Booking Window (Lead Time): The booking window, or lead time, is the number of days between when a guest reserves and when they check in. Understanding it helps you time price changes and last-minute discounts to fill gaps.
Channel Manager: A channel manager is software that syncs a listing’s calendar, rates, and availability across multiple booking platforms in real time. It prevents double bookings when a property is listed on Airbnb, VRBO, and Booking.com at once.
Cleaning Fee: A cleaning fee is a one-time charge added to a reservation to cover turnover cleaning between guests. It is separate from the nightly rate and is typically paid by the guest at checkout.
Co-Hosting: Co-hosting is a management arrangement where a partner handles day-to-day operations — pricing, guest messaging, and turnovers — while the owner keeps the listing in their own account. Co-hosts are usually paid a percentage of booking revenue, commonly 15–25%.
Direct Booking: A direct booking is a reservation made through the host’s own website rather than an OTA like Airbnb. It avoids platform commissions and lets owners build a guest database for repeat stays.
Dynamic Pricing: Dynamic pricing automatically adjusts nightly rates based on demand signals such as local events, seasonality, day of week, and competitor pricing. The goal is to capture the highest rate the market will pay on any given night.
Gross Revenue: Gross revenue is the total income a rental generates from bookings before any expenses, fees, or commissions are deducted. It is the top-line number, not what the owner ultimately keeps.
24/7 Guest Communication: 24/7 guest communication is around-the-clock handling of inquiries and messages from pre-booking through checkout. Fast response times raise booking rates, improve reviews, and lift Airbnb search ranking.
Guest Screening: Guest screening is the process of vetting potential guests through verified ID, reviews, trip details, and house-rule agreement before confirming a stay. It reduces the risk of parties, damage, and chargebacks.
Instant Book: Instant Book is an Airbnb setting that lets qualified guests reserve immediately without waiting for host approval. It can increase bookings and search ranking, though it gives the host less manual control over who books.
Length of Stay (LOS): Length of stay is the number of nights in a single reservation. Minimum and maximum LOS rules help fill calendar gaps, reduce turnover costs, and target longer, more profitable bookings.
Listing Optimization: Listing optimization is the practice of improving a property’s title, description, photos, and amenities to rank higher in search and convert more views into bookings. Stronger listings earn more clicks at the same price point.
Net Revenue: Net revenue is what remains after subtracting expenses such as cleaning, supplies, OTA commissions, and management fees from gross revenue. It reflects the owner’s actual take-home earnings.
Occupancy Rate: Occupancy rate is the percentage of available nights that are booked over a period, calculated as nights booked divided by nights available. A healthy short-term rental often runs in the 70–80% range.
OTA (Online Travel Agency): An OTA is a third-party booking platform that markets listings and processes reservations, such as Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, or Expedia. OTAs charge a commission in exchange for distribution and traffic.
Property Management: Full-service property management is a hands-off arrangement where a company runs every aspect of a rental — marketing, pricing, guest service, cleaning, and maintenance. It typically commands a higher fee than co-hosting in exchange for broader scope.
RevPAN (Revenue Per Available Night): RevPAN is total rental revenue divided by the number of available nights, blending rate and occupancy into one figure. Because it counts every available night — booked or not — it is a truer measure of overall performance than ADR alone.
RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room): RevPAR multiplies average daily rate by occupancy rate to show revenue earned per available unit. Originating in hotels, it lets owners compare performance across properties of different sizes and pricing.
Seasonality: Seasonality refers to predictable swings in demand and rates across the year driven by weather, holidays, and local events. Mapping a market’s high and low seasons is essential for setting a smart pricing calendar.
Smart Pricing: Smart Pricing is Airbnb’s built-in tool that nudges nightly rates up or down based on demand within limits you set. It is simpler but far less aggressive than dedicated dynamic-pricing software, which often leaves revenue on the table.
Superhost: Superhost is an Airbnb status awarded to hosts who meet thresholds for rating, response rate, completed stays, and low cancellations. It adds a trust badge, can boost search placement, and tends to lift conversion.
TPT / Lodging Tax: Lodging or occupancy tax — called Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) in Arizona — is a government tax on short-term stays that hosts must collect and remit. Rates and rules vary by state, county, and city.
Turnover: A turnover is the cleaning and preparation of a property between a guest checkout and the next check-in. Reliable, fast turnovers protect review scores and keep the calendar bookable back-to-back.

Put the Terms to Work

These concepts drive every BookedMore engagement. Here is where to go deeper.

Co-Hosting vs. Property Management

See how co-hosting (15–25% of revenue) compares to full-service management on control, scope, and cost.

Compare the two

How Much Does a Co-Host Cost?

Percentage vs. flat vs. hybrid pricing, what each tier includes, and how to tell if the fee is worth it.

See the pricing guide

Real Owner Results

Average revenue up about 23% in 90 days, ~78% occupancy, and a 4.9-star average rating across the portfolio.

View the results

Short-Term Rental Glossary FAQs

Quick answers to the most common “what is…” questions about Airbnb and STR terms.

What is ADR in short-term rentals?

ADR (Average Daily Rate) is the average price a rental earns per booked night, calculated as room revenue divided by nights sold. It tells you how much you charge per night, separate from how often the property is booked.

What is RevPAR and how is it different from ADR?

RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room) multiplies average daily rate by occupancy rate, so it reflects both pricing and how full the calendar is. ADR only measures price per booked night, which is why RevPAR is a better overall performance gauge.

What is the difference between co-hosting and property management?

Co-hosting keeps the listing in the owner’s account while a partner runs daily operations for a percentage of revenue, typically 15–25%. Full-service property management is broader and more hands-off, usually at a higher fee. See our co-hosting vs. property management guide for a side-by-side.

What is dynamic pricing for Airbnb?

Dynamic pricing automatically adjusts nightly rates based on demand, local events, seasonality, day of week, and competitor pricing. It aims to capture the highest rate the market will pay each night while protecting occupancy.

What is occupancy rate and what is a good one?

Occupancy rate is the percentage of available nights that get booked, calculated as nights booked divided by nights available. A healthy short-term rental often runs around 70–80%; BookedMore’s portfolio averages about 78%.

Know the Terms? Let’s Grow the Numbers.

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