European short-term rental rates rose 7.5% in August 2026

Updated 15 October 2026. After a source check by the standards desk, 2 sentences were removed because no source confirmed their specifics. Corrections log.

On September 15, 2026, AirDNA reported that average daily rates for European short-term rentals rose 7.5% year over year in August 2026 to €160, driving a 4.3% increase in revenue per available rental night to €113 despite a decline in occupancy. The performance capped a summer season defined by strong pricing power even as the total volume of booked nights contracted across the continent.

According to the report, the broader European performance was heavily influenced by regulatory changes in Spain and a sharp domestic pullback along the German coast. While aggregate demand fell, the underlying data revealed that the contraction was highly concentrated, leaving the majority of European markets in a stable or growing position heading into the autumn months.

What the data shows

According to the figures published by AirDNA, the European short-term rental market in August 2026 maintained its pricing discipline despite experiencing a decline in booking volume. Available listings across the continent reached 4.25 million, which represented an increase of 1.7% compared to August 2025. This supply growth remained within the narrow range it had maintained since the spring of 2026. However, demand nights fell 3.1% year over year to a total of 66.4 million. This divergence between rising supply and falling demand caused the average occupancy rate to fall to 70.40%, representing a decrease of 2.1 percentage points from the 72.50% recorded in August 2025.

Despite fewer nights being booked, pricing remained strong. The average daily rate rose 7.5% year over year to €160.10, up from €148.95 in August 2025. Revenue per available rental night increased 4.3% year over year to €112.74, compared to €108.06 in the same month of the previous year. AirDNA also reported that the Repeat Rent Index, which tracks the same listings over time to exclude the effects of new properties entering or exiting the market, increased 6.1% in August 2026. The close alignment between the 7.5% average daily rate growth and the 6.1% Repeat Rent Index increase indicated that the rate growth was primarily driven by hosts actively raising their prices rather than shifts in guest booking preferences.

For the full summer period spanning June to August 2026, available listings rose 1.7% year over year to 4.19 million, up from 4.12 million in the summer of 2025. Demand nights for the summer totaled 174.9 million, representing a 2.0% decline from the 178.5 million nights recorded in the previous summer. The average daily rate for the summer rose 7.8% year over year to €157.16, up from €145.84. Summer occupancy fell 1.4 percentage points to 66.90%, down from 68.30% in the summer of 2025. This combination of factors resulted in a 5.5% increase in summer revenue per available rental night to €105.19, compared to €99.67 in the prior summer.

How it was measured

The performance metrics were compiled and analyzed by AirDNA, a short-term rental data and analytics provider. The data compared performance in August 2026 and the summer period of June to August 2026 against the corresponding periods in 2025. AirDNA tracked supply, demand, occupancy, average daily rates, and revenue per available rental night across 42 European countries and hundreds of localized municipal markets. The Repeat Rent Index was utilized to measure pricing changes on a constant-sample basis, comparing the rates of identical properties over time to control for changes in the quality or composition of active listings. The source did not publish its exact underlying mathematical formulas or the specific database sample size used for these calculations.

Regional shifts and the impact of Spanish regulations

The overall decline in European demand nights was highly localized rather than a continent-wide trend. Spain was the primary driver of the contraction, experiencing a significant reduction in both supply and demand. According to AirDNA, available listings in Spain declined 8.9% in August 2026 and fell 10.7% over the summer, ending with 393,532 listings compared to the previous summer. This supply contraction was linked to a regulatory delisting program that began with an order issued around June or July of 2025, with property removals phased in over the subsequent months.

The supply reduction in Spain was widespread, with approximately 75% of Spanish municipalities experiencing a decline in listings during the summer of 2026. The largest cities, including Madrid and Barcelona, accounted for only about 10% of the total decrease, indicating that the pullback was a nationwide phenomenon rather than one limited to major metropolitan areas. The listings that were removed generally exhibited lower rates and lower occupancy than those that remained, and this pattern of removal was observed across most price segments rather than being concentrated solely in the budget or lowest-priced inventory.

This regulatory supply contraction directly impacted guest demand. Spanish demand nights fell 12.5% over the summer and 14.3% in August 2026. Spain alone accounted for 68.8% of Europe's total summer demand shortfall of 3.6 million nights. When Spain is excluded from the European data, the continent's summer demand decline drops from 2.0% to just 0.7%.

The domestic pullback along the German coast

Germany was the second-largest contributor to the European demand shortfall, accounting for 30.5% of the summer decline. Demand nights in Germany fell 6.5% over the summer and 5.6% in August 2026. Unlike Spain, this contraction was not driven by a lack of supply. German available listings actually increased 2.7% over the summer to 367,242 listings, growing across all bedroom categories. Consequently, the mismatch between rising supply and falling demand caused German occupancy to fall 2.5 percentage points over the summer and 3.1 percentage points in August 2026.

AirDNA's regional analysis revealed that the German decline was almost exclusively confined to coastal and lakeside vacation regions. Across holiday districts along the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, and various lakes, demand fell 14.4% over the summer. In Landkreis Vorpommern-Rügen, the largest coastal market, demand fell 14.5% despite a 1.0% increase in supply. Similarly, Kreis Nordfriesland saw demand decline 14.7% alongside a 1.6% increase in supply. Steeper contractions were recorded in other coastal districts, including Landkreis Wittmund, where demand fell 28.8%, Landkreis Friesland, which fell 26.8%, and Kreis Dithmarschen, which fell 26.4%.

In contrast, Germany's nine largest cities remained highly resilient, experiencing a minor collective demand decline of only 1.7% over the summer. Berlin saw demand increase 1.1% over the summer and 3.3% in August 2026, while Hamburg was nearly flat with a 0.5% decrease over the summer before growing 7.5% in August 2026. This geographic divide was closely linked to guest origin.

Divergent performance by host scale and property size

The summer data highlighted a significant divergence in performance based on the scale of the operator and the size of the property. Large-scale operators managing 100 or more units experienced the most severe declines. Although these large operators controlled 17.3% of European demand and accounted for a quarter of European revenue, they were responsible for 79% of the total summer demand decrease. Demand for these large portfolios fell 8.7% over the summer, while their supply remained nearly steady, declining just 0.6%. This resulted in a 2.8 percentage point drop in occupancy for large operators, and their RevPAR increased by only 2.5%.

In contrast, single-unit hosts and mid-sized professional operators performed much better. Single-unit hosts saw their occupancy decline by 1.0 percentage point, but they successfully raised average daily rates by 9.5% and increased RevPAR by 7.9%. Mid-scale operators managing between 6 and 20 units increased their supply by 4.8% and grew their demand by 2.4% over the summer. Operators managing between 21 and 99 units grew supply by 4.6% and increased demand by 1.4%.

Property size also influenced performance. Listings with six or more bedrooms saw supply increase 4.3% over the summer, while five-bedroom units grew 3.4%. However, because demand for these larger properties remained nearly unchanged—falling just 0.2% and 0.3% respectively—the rapid supply growth led to the steepest occupancy drops of the summer, falling 2.4 percentage points for six-bedroom units and 1.8 percentage points for five-bedroom units. Meanwhile, smaller properties with two bedrooms were the weakest demand segment, declining 3.2% over the summer. Together with studios and one-bedroom listings, these smaller units accounted for approximately 90% of the continent's total demand decline, reflecting their dominant 80% share of overall European demand.

Macroeconomic factors and forward bookings

The shifting performance of European short-term rentals occurred against a complex macroeconomic backdrop, though AirDNA noted that the long-term normalization of the market predated recent economic shocks. The European Central Bank decided at its July 23 meeting to keep its three key interest rates stable, following a 25 basis point increase on June 17, while maintaining a 2% medium-term inflation target. Euro Area inflation rose slightly to 3.3% in August 2026, up from 2.9% in July, marking its highest level since August 2023. Energy inflation reached 14.3% in August 2026, its highest level since January 2023.

AirDNA reported that European supply growth had been steadily declining from a peak of 8.2% year over year in January 2025 to between 1.5% and 2.0% by mid-2026, while demand night growth first turned negative in November 2025. These shifts occurred before the economic shocks of the second quarter of 2026, suggesting the market was already normalizing after exceptional growth in 2024 and 2025. However, the economic shock in April 2026, when energy inflation shifted from negative 3% to positive 11% and consumer sentiment dropped sharply, accelerated these trends. During that month, demand and occupancy reached their lowest points of the year, falling 6.9% and 5.0 percentage points respectively.

Despite these summer headwinds, forward bookings for the autumn and winter of 2026 indicated a potential recovery. Europe had 78 million nights booked for the period from September to December 2026, representing a 2.3% increase compared to the same period in the previous year. September bookings were up 2.4%, and October bookings were up 4.9%, with 31 out of 42 European markets showing positive growth. While nights booked during August itself fell 7.3%, AirDNA attributed this decline to guests making their autumn bookings earlier in the year than they had in previous cycles. The share of European reservations made in January and February has risen every year since 2022, reaching 25.9% in 2026.

What to take from it

This report highlights the necessity of looking beyond aggregate regional data to understand localized market dynamics. When evaluating short-term rental performance, operators and investors should focus on specific regulatory and demographic indicators.

• Monitor localized regulatory risks rather than national trends, as Spain's delisting program showed that supply contractions can be highly widespread across municipal boundaries.
• Track the spread between average daily rate growth and the Repeat Rent Index to determine whether revenue gains are driven by actual price hikes or by changes in the quality of active inventory.
• Analyze guest origin profiles for your specific market, as regions dependent on domestic travel may experience sharp pullbacks during periods of high domestic energy inflation.
• Evaluate the supply-and-demand balance by bedroom count in your local market, as rapid supply growth in larger units can lead to steep occupancy declines even when demand remains stable.