How to charge Airbnb guests for late checkout

What a free late checkout costs you

A guest writes on the last night and asks to stay a few more hours. You say yes, because no feels rude. Then your cleaner waits, and the next guest may wait too. You gave away hours that you still pay for.

You can say yes and still get paid. You only need three decisions and one message.

What Airbnb says about late checkout fees

Airbnb has a page for guests called Request a late checkout time. One heading on it reads "Hosts may charge extra for late checkout." The page gives one reason: a host may need to hire more cleaners.

So your guest can read this on Airbnb before asking you. A clear price will not surprise a guest who has read that page.

Three decisions to make before a guest asks

First, decide how late a guest can stay. Ask your cleaner which times work, and keep the list short.

Second, pick the days you will say no to a guest. When another guest arrives that day, your cleaner may need every hour. A late checkout on those days can cost you more than the fee.

Third, set your late checkout fee. It can be a flat amount, or a share of the nightly rate. To see what your fee could earn across your units, use the late checkout calculator.

What to write to the guest

Answer with the time and the price in the same message. Then the guest has one thing to decide. You can copy this and fill in the brackets:

Hi [name], yes, you can stay until [time]. A late checkout costs [price]. To pay, open this link and choose Send money, then Extra services: [link]. Reply here when it is done, and we will confirm your new time.

When the answer is no

Say no with the reason, and keep it short. Guests accept a real reason more easily than a plain refusal.

Hi [name], thank you for asking. Another guest arrives that day, so our cleaner needs the full time. Your checkout stays at [time].

How the guest pays inside Airbnb

Send the Resolution Center link for the guest's booking. The guest chooses Send money, then Extra services. The guest enters the amount and writes late checkout in the note.

After the guest presses Send, check that the money arrived. Then confirm the new time. Our help page has more on how Airbnb guests pay.

Tell your cleaner the new time

Write the new time in the place your cleaner reads. If the cleaner arrives at the old time, the guest is still inside. A paid late checkout should never turn into a knock on the door.

How TravelPal does this for you

These requests often arrive when your office is closed. On Guesty, TravelPal checks your cleaning calendar first. Then it offers the late checkout in the chat, at your price. An Airbnb guest gets the steps to pay inside Airbnb. When your team records the payment on the Guesty folio, TravelPal reads it. See how TravelPal sells paid extras.