Are you charging the right price? How to check your rate against the market

Published 24 October 2026 · 5-minute read

Knowing whether your price is right isn’t about being “cheap” or “expensive”. It’s about whether your rate fits what you offer, the dates you’re selling and what you actually keep. You can check it in an afternoon, with no software and no guesswork. Here are the checks.

1. Choose who you’re comparing with

Only compare yourself with listings that truly compete with yours (area, bedrooms, guests, rating and amenities): we explain how in How much to charge per night. The more similar listings you look at, the more reliable the result; with only three or four, take it with a pinch of salt.

2. Compare the same nights

Search the way a guest would: the same dates, the same number of people and your similar listings. Note each one’s total price per night (with the cleaning fee spread across the stay so they’re comparable) and see where you stand. Don’t focus on the cheapest or the dearest: look at the middle price.

Being below the middle isn’t a mistake: it can be your strategy. What matters is that it’s your decision and not an oversight.

Don’t fancy redoing this every week? Rentasel watches your local market and alerts you when there’s something to do. Join the list

3. Look at season and day of the week

A price that’s fair in October can fall short in August. Repeat the comparison for high, mid and low season, and separate weekends from weekdays. It’s normal for your position to change: in busy weeks similar listings tend to raise their prices before you do. For long weekends, fairs and holidays, see Long weekends and events.

4. Look at lead time

Compare the same night at different distances: two weeks away, two months away, six months away. If similar listings have already gone up or filled for dates you’re still selling cheaply, you may be leaving money on the table. If the date is getting close, your night is still free and everyone else has dropped, your price may have ended up too high.

Your own calendar gives hints too, though not proof: if nights fill up within hours, you may be cheap; if weeks go by without a single enquiry, you may be expensive, or the listing isn’t convincing (photos, title, reviews).

5. Compare what you keep, not what you charge

Two identical prices don’t leave you with the same money on each platform: after fees, the net changes. How to work it out is in the guide to the 15.5% host fee.

6. What to do with what you’ve found

• You’re below and your listing is just as good: raise the price a little at a time and see whether bookings keep coming.
• You’re above: ask yourself whether your reviews, photos or something others lack justify it. If not, lower it carefully on the dates that aren’t filling.
• You’re in the middle: great, but check again when the season changes.

Make one change at a time and write down the date. If you change everything at once, you won’t know what worked. And never go below your minimum price, however much others drop theirs.

Common mistakes

• Comparing with “the area” in general instead of with similar listings.
• Looking at today’s price for dates that are months away.
• Comparing prices without cleaning with prices that include it.
• Copying the cheapest and joining a race to the bottom.
• Doing it once and forgetting about it: the market moves every week.

In short

1. Pick listings that are truly similar.
2. Compare the same nights and the same number of guests.
3. Repeat the comparison by season and day of the week.
4. See how prices change with lead time.
5. Compare what you keep after fees, not what you charge.
6. Change one thing at a time and don’t go below your minimum.

This guide is for information only and guarantees no result: every property and every area is different. The numbers in the examples are made up. Rentasel is not affiliated with Airbnb or Booking.com.