What Is an Airbnb Security Deposit?
An Airbnb security deposit is a refundable amount or credit card hold that covers damage or incidental charges from a stay, and Airbnb's policy does not allow most hosts to charge one. Some hosts, including select software-connected hosts, and hotels are the exceptions, and both must show the deposit to guests before they book (Pricing and payment transparency (Airbnb Help Centre)).
Last updated: November 2026
How an Airbnb security deposit works
Some hosts, including select software-connected hosts, may collect a security deposit outside of Airbnb as long as it sits in the appropriate fee field, where guests see it before booking. Hotels form the second exception: they may request a credit card hold or a deposit at check-in to pay for incidentals as part of their standard procedures, and that hold also belongs in the appropriate fee field so the guest knows about it before booking (Pricing and payment transparency (Airbnb Help Centre)).
When the guest causes no damage and runs up no incidental charges, the host must refund the deposit or release the hold in full within 7 days of checkout, or within 14 days for hotels. A host who keeps any portion should be prepared to give the guest a written explanation and evidence of the damage or charges (Pricing and payment transparency (Airbnb Help Centre)).
Money a host wants back from a guest follows a separate route. Any reimbursement request must go through Airbnb's Resolution Center (Pricing and payment transparency (Airbnb Help Centre)). Damage-related requests there have to be filed within 14 days of checkout, a shorter limit than other requests (Request or send money in the Resolution Centre (Airbnb Help Centre)).
For damage during a stay, Airbnb offers protection through AirCover for Hosts (Pricing and payment transparency (Airbnb Help Centre)). Its host damage protection reaches USD 3 million for the home and its contents. Airbnb states that host damage protection is not insurance and is unrelated to host liability insurance (How AirCover for Hosts works (Airbnb Resource Centre)).
Why it matters for hotel distribution
For an operator that connects to Airbnb through software, the deposit is one more fee to map. The policy ties the exception to the appropriate fee field, so a deposit kept in a property system and never sent to that field leaves the guest uninformed at the moment of booking, which is the condition the rule exists to meet.
In July 2022 Airbnb stopped accepting security deposits from hosts connected through at least one channel-connectivity platform, and those hosts moved to AirCover for Hosts (Airbnb Updates: Security Deposit and Character Limits (Bluetent Insider Knowledge Base, 2022)). Deposits set through Airbnb's Pricing Settings API stopped showing on the listing page (Airbnb Updates: Security Deposit and Character Limits (Bluetent Insider Knowledge Base, 2022)). That year, neither Airbnb nor Booking.com collected damage deposits themselves (Damage Deposits by Booking.com vs Airbnb vs Vrbo (Rental Scale-Up, 2022)). An operator whose connection was configured around 2022 should confirm how its deposit reaches the listing today.
The bigger operational point is that each channel sets its own terms. On Vrbo, a host may ask for a card on file, an upfront refundable damage deposit, or the guest's purchase of damage protection (About damage deposits (Vrbo Help)). A property selling the same rooms on Airbnb, Vrbo and other channels can therefore hold a deposit for one guest and none for the next, depending only on where the reservation came from. The release deadline and the claim window shift with the channel as well, which makes the booking source the first thing to check when a deposit question comes up at checkout.
Airbnb security deposit compared with Vrbo and Booking.com
| Airbnb | Vrbo | Booking.com (2022 report) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What can be taken | Most hosts: no deposit or card hold. Some hosts, including select software-connected hosts: a deposit collected off the platform. Hotels: a hold or deposit at check-in | A card on file, an upfront refundable damage deposit, or the guest's purchase of damage protection | Booking.com did not collect damage deposits itself; it ran a damage program |
| Time limit | Release within 7 days of checkout (14 for hotels); damage requests within 14 days of checkout | 14 days after checkout to assess the property and submit a claim | Up to 14 days after check-out to make a claim |
| Amount limit | None stated on the policy page we opened | Not stated on the page we opened | Damage amount collected limited to EUR 300 |
Table sources: Pricing and payment transparency (Airbnb Help Centre) Request or send money in the Resolution Centre (Airbnb Help Centre) About damage deposits (Vrbo Help) Damage Deposits by Booking.com vs Airbnb vs Vrbo (Rental Scale-Up, 2022)
Frequently asked questions
What is a security deposit on Airbnb for a guest?
Do you get a security deposit back?
How much is a security deposit for a vacation rental?
Is a security deposit included in the booking total?
What covers damage when a host takes no deposit?
Related terms
See all termsWhere Jetstream fits
A deposit is one line in the fee data a property sends to each channel, next to its rates, taxes and cleaning fees, and every channel reads that data in its own fields. Jetstream builds an AI channel manager that connects a property's systems to the channels where guests book and keeps rooms, rates and availability accurate on each one, managed from one place.