The calculator
Airbnb calculator for NSW: what a listing could earn, on real market numbers
Pick a NSW market, say whether you rent or own, and see what you would clear each month at three levels: a cautious listing, a typical one and the average. Every cost is shown and editable.
By the Temporary Rentals NSW editorUpdated 16 October 202610 min read
Numbers checked 29 Sep 2026 · AirROI estimates and NSW Government rents
Your place
Costs as a share of takings (edit)
What you would clear a month
This is general information, not financial or tax advice. These are estimates from market data; your own place could earn more or less. Takings are AirROI market estimates for the whole market; furniture is $8,000 plus $2,500 a bedroom, spread over 36 months in the chart. Cash payback excludes that non-cash allowance because furniture is already included in setup. Mortgage payments, tax and later annual registration renewal are excluded; the NSW register costs $65 in the first year.
How the sum works
- Takings. For the market you pick, the three levels are what AirROI estimates the bottom-quarter, middle and average listing took a month over the past 12 months. They are gross: what guests paid, before any fee.
- Costs as a share of takings. Airbnb's host fee (15.5%, plus 10% GST unless you are GST-registered with your ABN added: 17% here), cleaning net of the guest's cleaning fee (5%), power, water, gas and internet (5%), consumables (2%), insurance (2%) and repairs (3%). Change any of them.
- Furniture. $8,000 plus $2,500 a bedroom, written off over 36 months.
- Rent or the long lease. If you rent and sublet, your rent comes off every month. If you own, the calculator draws what a long lease would pay instead: the median house rent less a 7% leasing fee.
- Setup. Furniture, the $65 NSW register fee and, if you rent, four weeks' bond, and how many months the typical result takes to pay it back.
Three worked examples
The same assumptions the calculator starts with, applied to three different situations. Takings are the middle listing in each market for the 12 months to September 2026.
1. An owner in Merewether, two bedrooms. The middle listing took about $5,488 a month. After the 34% of running costs and $361 a month of furniture, that leaves about $3,261. A long lease at the council median of $3,120 a month, less a 7% leasing fee, would pay about $2,902. Short stays come out about $359 a month ahead, before your own time and before the extra wear on the home.
2. An owner in the Hunter Valley, three bedrooms. The middle listing in the Cessnock area took about $5,084 a month. A third bedroom raises the furniture to about $431 a month, leaving about $2,925, against about $2,499 for a long lease at the median of $2,687. Short stays are about $425 a month ahead.
3. An owner in Nelson Bay, two bedrooms. Nightly rates are high, $588, but the middle listing books only about 95 nights a year, taking about $3,967 a month. After costs and furniture that is about $2,257, while a long lease would pay about $2,700. Here the long lease wins by about $443 a month.
Switch the calculator to the bottom-quarter case for any of these and the long lease wins comfortably. That is the point of showing it: a new listing usually starts there.
Choosing a market
The calculator covers every NSW market we hold numbers for. Markets with more listings give steadier figures; those with only a handful of listings can swing a lot on one or two properties.
| Market | Active listings | Nightly rate | Nights booked, middle listing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newcastle-Maitland | 1,134 | $381 | 166 |
| Nelson Bay | 591 | $588 | 95 |
| Hunter Valley (Cessnock area) | 544 | $695 | 118 |
| Port Stephens | 398 | $642 | 108 |
| Lake Macquarie | 179 | $530 | 120 |
| Newcastle (inner city) | 170 | $391 | 176 |
| Merewether | 74 | $428 | 203 |
| Cooks Hill | 43 | $433 | 214 |
AirROI estimates, 12 months to September 2026. Suburb markets with fewer than 20 listings are in the calculator but are less reliable.
When to change the cost assumptions
The starting costs are deliberately middle-of-the-road. Change them when your situation is different:
| Cost | Starts at | Lower it if | Raise it if |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airbnb host fee with GST | 17% | You are registered for GST and have added your ABN, so GST is not added to the fee | Never below Airbnb's fee itself |
| Cleaning, net of the guest fee | 5% | You clean it yourself and do not count your time | You pay a cleaner and linen service for every stay |
| Utilities | 5% | Guests stay longer, with fewer turnovers | It has a pool, a spa or heavy air conditioning |
| Consumables | 2% | You keep supplies basic | You provide breakfast or welcome packs |
| Insurance | 2% | Your quote is cheaper | The property is high value or on the coast |
| Repairs and wear | 3% | The home and furniture are new | The home is older or has a pool |
| Co-host | Off | You run it yourself | Tick it to add 20% for a co-host or manager |
Reading the result
- The bars show what each case leaves you each month after costs and, in rent mode, the rent. A red bar is a loss.
- The long-lease line, in owner mode, is what the same home would earn on an ordinary lease after a 7% leasing fee. If the typical bar is not clearly longer, short stays are not worth the extra work.
- The setup line shows the cash needed to start and, if the typical case makes money, how many months it takes to get that back.
Owner mode or rent mode?
Pick I own it if you are deciding between a long lease and short stays on a home you already have. Pick I rent and sublet if you are considering arbitrage: the calculator then takes your rent off every month and adds four weeks' bond to the setup. Our Airbnb arbitrage guide works through what that means in the Hunter.
Where the numbers come from
Market takings, nightly rates and nights booked are estimates from AirROI, a short-term rental analytics service, for the 12 months to September 2026. They are modelled from public listing calendars and prices, so treat them as a guide to the market, not a record of any one listing. Long-lease rents are medians for new bonds from the NSW Department of Communities and Justice's Rent and Sales Report for April to June 2026, for houses, by council area. Costs are our assumptions, adapted to Airbnb's single host fee, and every one can be changed.
What puts a listing above the middle
The three cases are market-wide. What decides where your own listing lands is mostly within your control, and mostly about the guest:
- Location within the suburb. A short walk to the beach, the city centre, the hospital or the wineries lifts both the nightly rate and the nights booked.
- Photos and the first impression. Listings compete on a phone screen; bright, wide, uncluttered photos and an accurate description matter more than extra furniture.
- Reviews. New listings have none. Early guests who leave good reviews move a listing up the search results, which is why many hosts price a little lower for the first months.
- Sleeping capacity that suits the market. Families and groups in holiday areas, couples in the inner city, workers on weekdays: match the beds to who books.
- Responsiveness and flexibility. Fast replies and sensible minimum stays catch bookings that slower or stricter hosts miss.
- Parking, Wi-Fi and a workspace. Small things that filter searches.
A listing that gets these right can take more than the middle listing; one that gets them wrong sits in the bottom quarter however good the area is.
Seasonality: what the monthly figure hides
The calculator's monthly takings are a year's total divided by twelve. Real months are uneven. In beach and holiday areas such as Port Stephens and Nelson Bay, summer and school holidays can bring in several months' worth of takings, while winter weekdays sit empty. In the Hunter Valley, weekends and event dates carry the year. In inner Newcastle, demand is steadier, with workers, hospital visitors and events filling weekdays.
That matters for cash flow, especially in rent mode: the rent is the same every month, but the takings are not. Make sure you can carry the slow months out of the busy ones, and keep a buffer.
Common mistakes when running the numbers
- Planning on the average. The best listings pull it up. Plan on the cautious case and treat the typical as the goal.
- Leaving out your time. If you clean, message guests and restock yourself, the calculator's result is partly wages, not profit.
- Forgetting the fixed costs of owning. In owner mode the result is before your mortgage, rates, strata and land tax, which you pay either way but which do not change between short and long letting.
- Ignoring the setup. Furniture, linen and equipment cost real money up front, and wear out.
- Assuming last year repeats. Rates, nights booked and the number of competing listings all move. Re-run the numbers each year.
Using the result to make a decision
The calculator is most useful for ruling things out. A simple way to use it:
- Start in the cautious case. If short stays beat a long lease, or cover the rent, even there, the idea is worth a closer look.
- Check the typical case. If it only works at the typical level, it depends on running the listing better than half the market. Be honest about whether you will.
- Ignore the average unless you already run listings that perform at the top of the market.
- Add your own costs. Swap in a real cleaning quote, an insurance quote and your actual rent or long-lease estimate.
- Count the time. Decide what an hour of your time is worth and whether the difference over a long lease pays for the hours.
If the numbers still work after that, read the NSW short-term rental rules and check the strata by-laws before spending anything on furniture.
What it does not include
Your mortgage, council rates, strata levies and land tax if you own; income tax; GST if you must register; a co-host unless you tick the box; and the time you spend. The takings are market-wide: your own home could earn more or less.
Common questions
Is there a free Airbnb calculator for Australia?
Yes, this one, for the NSW markets we hold data for. It shows the cautious case as well as the typical and average.
How much can I make on Airbnb?
In the Newcastle-Maitland market the middle listing took about $4,153 a month before costs over the year to September 2026; what you keep depends on your costs and your rent or mortgage.
Why three numbers?
Because averages are pulled up by the best listings. The cautious number is what the bottom quarter of local listings took; plan on it, hope for the typical.
Should I Airbnb or rent out my house in Newcastle?
On our numbers, short stays beat a long lease only when a home performs at or above the middle listing in a strong suburb. At the cautious, bottom-quarter level the long lease usually wins. Run your own suburb and costs in the calculator.
Does the calculator include tax?
No. It shows results before income tax, and before GST if you have to register. See our Airbnb tax guide and a registered tax agent for your situation.
How accurate is an Airbnb calculator?
As accurate as its market data and your cost assumptions. The takings here are market-wide estimates; your own home's location, size, presentation and reviews can put it well above or below them.
What occupancy should I assume for an Airbnb in Newcastle?
Use the market's figures rather than a guess: the middle listing in the Newcastle-Maitland market booked about 166 nights over the 12 months to September 2026. Our occupancy page shows each town.
Can I use the calculator for a room in my home?
It is built for whole homes. For a room in the home you live in, the takings will be lower than the market figures, and the furniture and some costs much lower.
Why does the calculator show a loss when rents are high?
In rent mode the full rent comes off every month, booked or not. Where the median rent is close to what a middle listing takes, the running costs push the result below zero.
How often are the numbers updated?
The market figures are the AirROI estimates pulled on 29 September 2026 and the rents are the April to June 2026 DCJ medians; the date is shown with each figure.
Does the calculator work for Port Stephens and the Hunter Valley?
Yes. Pick Nelson Bay, Port Stephens or the Hunter Valley (Cessnock area) from the market list; the takings, nightly rates and median rents change to that area's figures.
What furniture cost does the calculator assume?
$8,000 plus $2,500 a bedroom, spread over 36 months. Change the bedrooms to see the effect; if you already own the furniture, the real cost is lower.
Sources
This is general information, not financial or tax advice. These are estimates from market data; your own place could earn more or less.