Airbnb hosts can deduct far more than cleaning fees — 21 categories below, grouped into property, operating, guest, and vehicle/admin costs. The two rules that decide how much: prorate anything shared with personal use, and substantiate everything with a dated receipt. The easiest way to do both is to track your Airbnb income and expenses automatically so the receipts are already captured when you file.
Most hosts underclaim — not because the deductions are hidden, but because the receipts are scattered across an inbox, a card statement, and memory by the time taxes roll around. This is the complete checklist of what an Airbnb host can write off, with the proration and record-keeping rules that keep each one audit-proof. (US framing; Canadian hosts deduct the same categories on Form T776 — see the Airbnb taxes guide for the cross-border rules.)
First: the personal-use proration rule
Before the list, the rule that governs half of it. If you rent a property only part of the year, or you also use it personally, you can only deduct the rental-use share of shared costs. Divide by the percentage of the property that's rented and the fraction of the year it's available. A dedicated, full-time rental deducts 100%; a spare room rented 200 nights a year does not.
If you rent a home you personally use for 14 days or fewer in the year, the income is tax-free under IRC §280A(g) — but you forfeit all of these deductions for that property. It's all-or-nothing. Above 14 days, the checklist below applies (prorated).
Property costs (1–7)
| # | Deduction | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mortgage interest (rental share) | Prorated by rental use; the interest portion, not principal |
| 2 | Property taxes (rental share) | Prorated by rental use and time |
| 3 | Depreciation | The building (not land) over its recovery period — often the single largest deduction |
| 4 | Insurance | Homeowner/landlord and any short-term-rental rider |
| 5 | Utilities | Electric, gas, water, internet, cable — prorated if shared |
| 6 | HOA / condo fees | Prorated by rental use |
| 7 | Repairs & maintenance | Fixing what breaks; larger improvements are capitalized and depreciated |
Operating costs (8–14)
| # | Deduction | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | Airbnb service & host fees | Taken from your payout — deduct so you're taxed on net, not the gross 1099-K |
| 9 | Cleaning & laundry | Cleaners, laundry service, cleaning supplies |
| 10 | Supplies & consumables | Toiletries, coffee, paper goods, batteries, light bulbs |
| 11 | Furnishings & appliances | Beds, sofas, kitchenware — depreciated or expensed under safe-harbor rules |
| 12 | Lawn, snow & pest control | Outdoor upkeep for the rental |
| 13 | Occupancy / lodging taxes | When you remit them yourself (not those the platform collects) |
| 14 | Software & tools | Channel managers, smart locks, dynamic-pricing and bookkeeping tools |
Guest & marketing costs (15–18)
| # | Deduction | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | Guest amenities | Welcome baskets, snacks, toiletries left for guests |
| 16 | Photography & listing | Professional listing photos, staging, copywriting |
| 17 | Advertising | Paid promotion beyond the platform, your own site or ads |
| 18 | Bank & payment fees | Processing fees, and business-account fees tied to the rental |
Vehicle & admin (19–21)
| # | Deduction | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | Mileage to the property | Check-ins, cleaning, repairs, supply runs — at the IRS/CRA rate; log each trip |
| 20 | Home office | The space where you manage bookings, if used regularly and exclusively for the hosting business |
| 21 | Professional fees | Accountant, tax prep for the rental, legal, and bookkeeping |
That's the full 21. The two habits that turn this list into an actual refund: prorate anything shared with personal use, and keep the receipt for every line. Since almost all of these arrive as email — the platform-fee breakdown, the cleaner's invoice, the supply-run receipt — tracking your Airbnb income and expenses automatically means the checklist is already documented when you file. Pair it with the Airbnb taxes guide for the Schedule E vs C and 1099-K rules.
Airbnb deductions fall into property, operating, guest, and vehicle/admin buckets — 21 in all. Prorate the shared ones, substantiate every one with a dated receipt, and mind the 14-day and Canadian compliance traps that can void them entirely. Estimates — confirm with your tax professional.