Cash-on-Cash Return Calculator
What a short-term rental returns on the cash you actually put in.
Cash-on-cash return
—
Total cash invested
—
Net operating income
—
Annual mortgage payments
—
Annual cash flow after debt
—
Cap rate (unleveraged)
—
Updates as you type. Nothing is sent anywhere — the maths runs in your browser.
Formula
Cash-on-cash return = Annual cash flow after debt ÷ Total cash invested × 100
Cap rate = Net operating income ÷ Purchase price × 100
How to read it
Cash-on-cash return answers a narrower question than yield or cap rate, and a more useful one for a leveraged buyer: of the money that left your bank account, how much comes back each year. It ignores appreciation and it ignores the debt you have not yet repaid, which is precisely why it is hard to flatter.
- Operating costs for a short-term rental are much higher than for a long let — cleaning, linen, utilities, platform fees, management and higher wear typically absorb 35–50% of gross revenue.
- Cap rate deliberately ignores the mortgage, so it compares properties. Cash-on-cash includes it, so it compares deals. A property can have a healthy cap rate and negative cash-on-cash at today's borrowing costs.
- Neither figure counts capital appreciation or the equity your repayments build. Both are real returns; neither pays this year's bills.
Terms used here
Frequently asked
+What is a good cash-on-cash return?
Short-term rental investors commonly target 8–12%, against roughly 4–6% for a long let, on the basis that the extra work and the extra volatility should be paid for. What counts as good depends on your borrowing cost — a return below your mortgage rate means leverage is working against you.
+What is the difference between cash-on-cash and cap rate?
Cap rate divides net operating income by the full purchase price and ignores financing, so it measures the property. Cash-on-cash divides post-mortgage cash flow by the cash you actually put in, so it measures your deal. Two buyers of the same building have the same cap rate and very different cash-on-cash returns.
+Should operating costs include my own time?
If you self-manage, yes — otherwise the return is subsidised by unpaid labour and is not comparable to a professionally managed property. Price in what a manager would charge, typically 15–25% of gross for short-term rental, even if you keep it yourself.