How to calculate what direct bookings save you
Start with your average booking value and the fee your channel takes. Airbnb's host-only fee is typically around 15.5%, Booking.com commonly sits near 15%, and Vrbo is roughly 5% plus payment processing. These are typical values and change, so replace them with the numbers on your own payout statements.
Next, add what a direct booking costs: card processing (often around 1.5% plus a small fixed fee in Europe) and any monthly software or website cost. The difference between your payout on the channel and your payout direct is your saving per booking. Multiply it by the number of bookings you can realistically move direct, then subtract software costs.
What the price-match number means
Price match is the largest discount you can give a direct guest while keeping the same payout you would have received from the channel. The guest sees a cheaper price, you lose nothing. Any discount smaller than that number is extra profit for you. If the tool says there is no room, direct is not cheaper for you with these inputs.
How to nudge guests to book direct
- Offer a clear, modest discount or a perk such as late checkout, instead of a vague "best price" promise.
- Put your direct booking link in your welcome message, guidebook and checkout message so returning guests can rebook easily.
- Keep your own calendar and prices current, so the direct price is never a nasty surprise.
- Make paying simple: cards, local methods and a clear cancellation policy build trust.
- Never ask guests to cancel an existing OTA booking, and check each platform's rules on contacting guests. Focus on repeat stays and guests who find you outside the platform.
The honest costs of direct
Direct is rarely free. You pay payment processing, you may handle chargebacks, and you carry software, website and marketing costs. You also lose the OTA's traffic and trust badges, so a new property may struggle to get any direct bookings at first. That is why the calculator includes a break-even figure: the number of direct bookings needed each month to cover your software.
The best strategy is usually not to leave the platforms, but to use them to find guests and your own channel to keep them. A booking system such as Bookinghook can give you a direct booking page with payments and messaging, so repeat guests have an easy way to come back.
