What It Costs to Start an Airbnb

Starting an Airbnb involves real upfront costs — some obvious, some easily missed. Understanding the categories of those costs before you commit lets you build a realistic budget, compare it against projected revenue, and make the investment decision with clear eyes rather than optimistic assumptions.

This guide covers the main cost categories for a new Airbnb. Specific dollar amounts vary too widely across markets, property sizes, and quality tiers to be genuinely useful here — the right number for your property depends on your specific situation, not a regional average.

Furnishing and Interior Setup

Furnishing is typically the largest single category of startup costs for a new Airbnb, and it’s also the category with the widest range. A one-bedroom condo costs meaningfully less to furnish than a four-bedroom home, and a budget setup costs far less than a high-end one — but the spread between those outcomes affects your long-term performance significantly.

What guests evaluate, consciously or not, when they walk into an Airbnb:

Area	What matters
Bedrooms	Mattress quality, pillow quality, bedding quality, blackout curtains
Living areas	Comfortable seating for the full guest count, entertainment setup
Kitchen	Adequate cookware, proper coffee setup, full set of dishes and glasses
Bathrooms	Quality towels, organized supplies, consistent presentation
Outdoor areas	Usable furniture if you have a patio, deck, or yard

The principle that separates properties that earn strong reviews from those that don’t: guests have a reference point. They’ve stayed in decent hotels. Furnishings that fall short of that baseline in the areas guests actually care about — beds, baths, kitchen basics — will show up in your reviews.

Durable, guest-grade furnishings also have a lower total cost of ownership than budget alternatives that need frequent replacement.

Professional Photography

Photography is the step many new hosts treat as optional to save money. It’s one of the few startup investments with a clear, direct ROI.

Your listing photos are doing one specific job: converting a search result into a booking. Guests browsing Airbnb or Vrbo make fast, visual judgments about which listings to click and which to book. Professional photos — properly lit, shot with a wide-angle lens, and accurately representing the space — consistently outperform phone photography on both click-through rate and the perceived value that supports higher nightly rates.

Real estate-style photography works well for Airbnb listings. Many cities have photographers who specialize in short-term rental properties specifically. This is a one-time upfront cost that continues paying back as long as the listing is active.

Licensing and Permits

Georgia has no uniform statewide short-term rental law, so what you owe in licensing and permit fees depends entirely on where your property is located. Some jurisdictions charge relatively modest annual permit fees; others involve a more involved application process with associated costs.

What you should budget for:

• City or county short-term rental permit or license (if required in your jurisdiction)
• Business license (some municipalities require this separately)
• Any applicable inspection or processing fees

The City of Atlanta’s requirements are covered in our Atlanta short-term rental regulations guide. For properties outside Atlanta, verify requirements directly with your city and county before listing.

Permitting is not optional. Platforms can suspend unlicensed listings, and municipalities can impose fines. The cost of doing this correctly upfront is far lower than the cost of a shutdown.

Supplies and Consumables

Beyond furniture, you’ll need to stock the property with consumables that get replenished regularly, plus one-time non-consumable items that guests use during their stay.

One-time setup items (purchased once, replaced as needed):

• Cleaning supplies and equipment
• Extra sets of linens and towels (plan for multiple sets so cleaning turnarounds don’t depend on laundry timing)
• Basic tools for minor fixes
• Welcome materials and house manual

Ongoing consumables (restocked regularly):

• Toiletries and bathroom basics
• Paper products
• Kitchen staples (coffee, oil, salt and pepper — standard expectations)
• Laundry and dishwasher supplies

Building a clear par-level inventory system from day one makes restocking predictable and avoids the situation where a guest arrives to an unstocked bathroom. ATLStay’s management services include supply management as part of full-service operations — it’s a detail that adds up fast at scale.

Smart Locks and Tech Setup

Smart locks are effectively a requirement for any Airbnb that expects to generate bookings consistently. Guests expect contactless self-check-in — it’s both a convenience and a safety preference. A listing that requires an in-person key handoff is at a significant disadvantage in most markets.

Smart lock options range from entry-level keypad locks to fully integrated systems that generate unique access codes per booking and expire them automatically at checkout. The latter reduces operational burden considerably, especially if you have multiple properties or frequent short-stay bookings.

Other technology worth budgeting:

• Noise monitoring devices (required by some insurance policies and HOA rules; also provides early warning of parties or excessive occupancy)
• A router upgrade if the current WiFi is not reliably fast enough for multiple simultaneous users
• A property management software subscription if you’re listing on multiple platforms

Short-Term Rental Insurance

This is the cost category most often misunderstood by new hosts. Standard homeowner’s and landlord insurance policies typically exclude short-term rental activity — meaning you could be uninsured for the period a guest is on your property.

Airbnb’s Host Damage Protection and liability coverage provide some baseline protection, but most experienced hosts and property managers carry a dedicated short-term rental insurance policy that works in coordination with platform coverage, not as a substitute for it.

Short-term rental insurance products have become more available and more competitive as the market has grown. Get at least two or three quotes, and make sure you understand exactly what each policy covers and excludes before your first booking.

Putting the Budget Together

The right approach is to build an itemized budget for your specific property — including all of these categories at the quality level your target market requires — and compare it against a realistic revenue projection before you commit.

If you’re in the evaluation stage, a rental projection based on real comparable listings for your address gives you the revenue side of that equation. Pair it with a detailed cost build-up, and you have the information needed to make an informed investment decision.

For context on what’s involved in the broader startup process — including licensing, listing, and operations — see our guide to starting an Airbnb in Georgia.

If you want to understand the ongoing economics once you’re operating, the Airbnb management cost guide for Atlanta covers what professional management fees look like and when they make financial sense.

---

Before you spend on setup, know what your property can realistically earn. Get a free rental projection from ATLStay — we’ll pull real comparable listings for your address and give you an honest, comps-based revenue picture. Prefer a conversation first? Call us at (678) 938-6413.