WARNING: Do NOT activate Airbnb's Simplified Pricing!

[Daniel-Rusteen0]

Simplified Pricing is being forced onto some hosts (who use certain types of software) and is optional for others, like me. Yesterday I decided to activate it and try it out. I quickly decided that it's not a good idea. However, I quickly realized there is no selection to turn it off. I called Airbnb support and wasted 10 minutes of my life, as you all know is usual in dealing with anything but the most basic of issues, to be told that it's not possible.

When you use Simplified Pricing, your nightly rate increases. This is bad! Even though the total pricing remains the same, Airbnb shows in search and guest's search for the nightly price. Before SP I was around $550 per night. Afterwards, with a 14% increase in prices done automatically by Airbnb, my pricing was around $630. So now any guest searching for $629 and below, I will no longer appear in those results! Very bad! I just lost a huge pool of future potential guests without earning any additional revenue.

Airbnb says that hosts saw an increase of bookings by 17% by activating SP. BS. Produce the data @Airbnb . So that's a huge bummer for me. Like a really, really big bummer. I haven't gotten an inquiry since I activated it.

[Emiel1 · Accepted solution]

@Daniel-Rusteen0 

The ServiceFfee structure can be choosen in your account:

https://www.airbnb.com/account-settings/payments/service-fee

When choosung "simplified pricing" you need to increase your prices (rate per night) , it is not done automatically.

It makes no difference in the search system, as prices are always shown including all costs, no matter if they are added to or already included in the price.

[Lisa723]

@Emiel1 pricing in search is displayed differently in Europe and the US as the US does not regulate it the same way.

[Gavin65]

Begs the question - why doesn't ABnB advertise inclusive pricing in US?

Simplified Pricing is a kludge, and is terrible as a result.

Guests do not see which listings are inclusive, which are not.

Hosts are penalized for opting in with lower bookings

US tax jurisdictions are no less complex than EU.

The per night price should be the final price paid by the customer divided by the number of nights. 

It's not difficult, why won't they do it?

[Daniel-Rusteen0]

OHHH. So glad and relieved. Thank you. But, I wasted an hour or more doing this. The Airbnb team should know this. I guess my next stop will be here for a question.

However, to your final point, it does make a difference. And quite a large one in my opinion. The total cost is shown, but not emphasized. The nightly rate is emphasized. I want my nightly rate to be as low as possible because that's what the search filter is based on. Anyways, thanks! And take a look at my message thread with your support staff to train her and anyone she talked to. Thanks again. Problem solved!

[Daniel-Rusteen0]

Just realized you're not even an Airbnb employee that's even funnier 😂 but thanks for the answer

[Sarah977]

@Daniel-Rusteen0  It's a really bad business model to have some pricing inclusive and some not on a platform. I don't know what dummy came up with this, but they should be fired. 

Pricing needs to appear the same across the board. Either all inclusive, or not, it really doesn't matter, then everyone is on the same page, but to have both structures on the same platform is absurd.

[Stacie51]

Agreed 100%! Guests searching for properties are used to the information presenting one way and will not know the difference. 

[SHL-Holdings0]

I’m curious for those guests that have used both. Has the new commission structure been good to getting new guests? Or is the old structure the best way to go. 

[Daniel-Rusteen0]

The old structure is the best way to go. Why? Because guests use the pricing filter. It's the most heavily used filter and if you include the commission in your price, then your overall nightly price goes up. This shows in search. Seach does not show nightly rate in terms of total cost. Here's an example:

Guest 1 (old pricing)

Nightly rate $75

Cleaning $50

Airbnb Fee $19

Total Nightly Cost = $144

Nightly Cost Shown In Search = $75

Guest 2 (new simplified pricing)

Nightly rate $94

Cleaning $50

Airbnb Fee $0

Total Nightly Cost = $144

Nightly Cost Shown In Search = $94

[Oscar60]

I agree either they show total cost on search or remove this all together its just unfair and dont even rent out of airbnb i just have a AI for FAQ response 

[Abhishek98]

Hi @Daniel-Rusteen0 , Wondering if you have changed your positioning now re: split vs simplified fee given that airbnb now uses total cost/number of nights to include nightly rate including all fees. Your argument to resist is no longer valid but there are other reasons shared by other users below. Also, airbnb has now sweetened the deal to choose simplified pricing by creating a difference of ~3-4% higher fee if split fee is chosen. What's your current take?

[Daniel-Rusteen0]

Too early to tell. Airbnb is making numerous changes to pricing display. I'm tracking most of them and will update via my YT if my opinion changes.

[Oscar60]

This is just unfair by pushing the price ups on our end will end up filtering us out from similar properties that don't have to set this simplified price thing mandatory.

I hope airbnb check this out it has been 1 year already and it is really unfair for us. I can't remove since i have a channel manager for automatic response.

[Joe2860]

I like the idea of simplified pricing,  but like many of you stated not a lot of guests in the U.S are aware of not having to pay a guest fee, so what advantage do hosts have by having a higher nightly rate if guests are unaware of the changes to prices and are primarily looking at the nightly rate to make a decision on where to stay.  As a guest I'd prefer to see a simplified price breakdown at checkout instead of an extra $50-100 fee.  Most of the world is being forced to use simplified pricing so I think they should make it standard across the board.