Small Host Handbook is an independent guide for people who run one to five short-term rentals themselves: a spare room, a guest suite, a cabin or a couple of apartments. We explain how the platforms and tools actually work, in plain English, with a link to the source for every rule, price and setting we mention.
How to use this site
- Find your topic. Pick one of the five topics below, or use the problem list on the home page. Each guide answers one question.
- Read the short answer first. Every guide opens with a short answer box, so you get the answer before the detail.
- Check the source and the date. Each rule, fee and setting links to the company’s own page, with the date we checked it. Rules change, so look at the source before you act.
Pick a topic
Pricing & fees
Cleaning fees, Airbnb’s service fee and setting a price that still pays you.
Guest messaging
Messages that send themselves, reviews, and what to say when it gets awkward.
Cleaning & turnovers
Booking cleaners, checkout lists and turnovers you don’t have to babysit.
Rules & local laws
What Airbnb allows, what changed, and where to check your local rules.
Tools & automation
Free options first, then what paid host software adds, from the makers’ own pages.
Read these first
New guides publish on weekday mornings. Ones that aren’t out yet show the date they’re due.
- 1Pricing & feesHow to Set an Airbnb Cleaning Fee (and a Lower One for Short Stays)8 min read
- 2Guest messagingHow to Set Up Airbnb Scheduled Messages (With 3 Templates)Coming Oct 26
- 3Cleaning & turnoversWhat Can You Still Ask Airbnb Guests to Do at Checkout? (New Rules From Nov 20, 2026)Coming Oct 30
- 4Pricing & feesAirbnb’s 15.5% Single Service Fee: How to Adjust Your Price and Keep Your PayoutComing Nov 2
- 5Cleaning & turnoversHow to Schedule Airbnb Cleaners Automatically (Free Options First)Coming Oct 29
What we are, and what we aren’t
We’re a research-and-explain site. We don’t host, and we don’t test tools hands-on. Each guide is built from the platforms’ own help pages and policies and from vendors’ own pricing pages, and we say so. We aren’t affiliated with Airbnb or any tool we mention.
- About Small Host Handbook: who the site is for and how it’s funded.
- How we research: where our information comes from and how we check it.
- Affiliate disclosure: how we handle affiliate links.
Our guides are general information, not legal, tax or insurance advice. Check the linked sources before acting.