If you rent an Airbnb in Colorado, here’s where some of your renter fees go

Maddie Rhodes
·2 min read

DENVER (KDVR) — If you’ve booked an Airbnb and the price was more than the initial cost per night, some of it might have to do with tourism tax.

Some fees don’t go to Airbnb or the host

In some locations, Airbnb has agreements with government officials to collect and remit certain local taxes on behalf of Airbnb hosts. Sometimes, regulations require the host to charge a tax to guests.

Customers could see these charges in a few different ways.

These taxes are either included in the reservation price or are paid during check-in and vary based on your booking. Depending on local law, these factors can include a flat rate or percentage rate, number of guests, number of nights or property type booked.

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When you book a listing in Colorado, you’ll see the local taxes collected when you pay and on your receipt once your reservation is confirmed.

But these extra fees, known as tourism tax, don’t go towards Airbnb – that money goes towards the city.

Where does tourism tax go?

These tourism tax dollars go towards a variety of services including destination marketing to critical services like police, infrastructure and libraries.

How do Airbnb rentals impact Colorado economy?

This tax revenue helps fund government services and helps with city budgets, said Airbnb.

According to Airbnb, the company has collected and remitted $355 million in tourism taxes in Colorado, including around $94 million in 2023 alone.

But Colorado isn’t the only state with Airbnb tourism taxes.

Airbnb taxes in other states

In 2023, said hosts generated more than $2.2 billion in tourism taxes in the U.S.

Here are the total tourism taxes collected and remitted on behalf of Airbnb hosts in 2023:

  • Florida: $387 million

  • California: $212 million

  • Tennessee: $135 million

  • North Carolina: $125 million

  • Georgia: $98  million

  • Texas: $98 million

  • Colorado: $94 million

  • Arizona: $87 million

  • Washington: $78 million

  • Virginia: $53  million

While Airbnb rentals tend to increase significantly after taxes and fees, some of these fees aren’t going to the company but they’re helping with local funding.

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