Rental Arbitrage Calculator
Whether subletting a leased property as a short-term rental actually clears a profit.
Net profit per month
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Gross revenue per month
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Total monthly costs
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Net margin
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Months to repay setup cost
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Occupancy needed to break even
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Updates as you type. Nothing is sent anywhere — the maths runs in your browser.
Formula
Net = (ADR × Nights) − Rent − Fixed costs − Platform fee − (Stays × Cleaning)
Break-even occupancy = Fixed monthly costs ÷ (Contribution per night × 30.4)
How to read it
Rental arbitrage looks like free money on a spreadsheet: lease at a monthly rent, relet by the night, keep the spread. The spread is real, but three costs are routinely left out of the sum — the platform's cut, cleaning charged per stay rather than per night, and the furnishing bill you pay before the first guest arrives. This includes all three.
- Cleaning is charged per stay. Two guests at three nights each cost twice the cleaning of one six-night guest at identical revenue — which is why short stays quietly destroy arbitrage margins.
- The break-even figure is the one to watch. If it lands above roughly 60% you have almost no cushion for a soft season or a regulation change.
- This models the economics, not the legality. Most residential leases prohibit subletting outright, and many cities restrict or ban short-term letting — check both before signing anything.
Terms used here
Frequently asked
+Is rental arbitrage profitable?
It can be, but the margin is thinner than the headline spread suggests. Once the platform fee, per-stay cleaning and fixed monthly costs are subtracted, a property letting at double its monthly rent often nets 15–25% of gross. The model is most exposed to two things: a drop in occupancy, and a change in local short-term letting rules.
+How much does it cost to start rental arbitrage?
The one-off cost is furnishing, a deposit and usually a month's rent up front. For a two-bedroom that is commonly in the region of $8,000–15,000 before you take a single booking. Use the payback figure above to see how many months of net profit that represents.
+Do I need the landlord's permission?
Yes. Standard residential leases prohibit subletting, and doing it anyway risks immediate eviction and forfeiture of everything you spent on the fit-out. Arbitrage operators who last work on an explicit written agreement, often at a rent premium.