AI falls short for Short-Term Rental hosts, PriceLabs report finds

A mismatch between the difficulties encountered and the solutions adopted

PriceLabs report shows that the most time-consuming tasks for hosts are not those related to travelers. Thus, 76% of hosts indicate that administrative tasks (such as accounting or legal obligations) are particularly time-consuming, while 72% cite property maintenance operations, including cleaning and upkeep, as real time sinks.

However, only 10% of hosts plan to invest more in technologies related to cleaning or turnover in the coming year, and 48% of them still rely on spreadsheets for their reporting or planning.

While many hosts understand the value of technology in supporting certain aspects of their business, there is still significant room to raise awareness about the potential returns on technological investments across all operations. Despite the still limited adoption of technological tools for reporting, hosts remain attentive to their financial performance, with 68% of them monitoring their key indicators at least once a week.

Visibility and platforms generate stress

Performance on online travel agencies (OTAs) remains a major concern. Nearly two-thirds of hosts (63%) worry about their visibility on Airbnb, Booking.com, and Vrbo, and 71% admit to being anxious about receiving negative reviews, which can have a disproportionate impact on their ranking.

Despite these frustrations, 98% of hosts still use Airbnb, and the platform remains the most popular in terms of adoption and satisfaction. Airbnb receives a satisfaction rating of 4.1 out of 5, higher than that of Vrbo (3.3) or Booking.com (3.1). Nevertheless, direct bookings remain a priority, with 90% of hosts planning to invest as much or more in their direct booking sites next year.

Richie Khandelwal, co-founder of PriceLabs, states:

“We are observing a tremendous entrepreneurial spirit in the short-term rental (STR) market.”Hosts are building businesses they are proud of and are making a real investment in them, both in terms of time and resources. Many hold full-time jobs while simultaneously managing successful and sustainable professional rentals.

Although AI is taking longer than expected to deliver the promised productivity gains, hosts are clearly ready to invest in their business, and the right technology could be exactly what they need.

These results, along with other insights and practical tips for hosts, are available in the Global Host Report.