STR Market Report
Boston, MA
Massachusetts • Short-Term Rental Market
Key Market Metrics
37%
Entire-home, active listings
Occupancy Rate
~11 nights booked per month on average
$180
Median, entire-home
Avg Nightly Rate
Typical price per night charged by whole-home hosts in this market
1,741
Had a review in past 12 mo
Active Listings
Whole-home Airbnbs with at least 1 recent guest review — active supply
$1,998
~11 booked nights / month
Est. Monthly Revenue
Directional gross booking revenue estimate before fees, expenses, and seasonality shifts
Restricted
Heavy restrictions — often limited to owner-occupied primary residences or capped permits
Regulatory Risk
Quick Investor Read
Higher-risk setup due to weaker demand, pricing constraints, or regulation. Underwrite conservatively.
Market Dynamics
1 night
Typical host minimum
Median Min Stay
Most common minimum booking length. Short = weekenders welcome. Long (7+ nights) = weekly guests only.
55%
Hosts with 5+ listings
Pro Host Rate
Over half of supply is run by professional investors — a highly competitive market
2/mo
Median reviews per month
Booking Velocity
How quickly typical listings earn new reviews — a proxy for how often properties get booked. Higher = stronger demand.
88%
Have a permit on file
Licensed Listings
High compliance rate — regulations are actively enforced here. Budget for permitting before listing.
🏖️ Demand Seasonality: Summer peak
Peak demand June–August; shoulder spring/fall; lower winter occupancy
Market Overview
Boston, Massachusetts requires STR operators to register with the city and strongly favors owner-occupied primary residences. The city's STR market benefits from a remarkable depth of demand drivers: Harvard, MIT, and the Longwood Medical Area create continuous academic visitor traffic; convention center bookings; Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics, and Bruins events; and strong summer tourist season. Back Bay and South End command premium rates for well-decorated properties. The market is meaningfully constrained by regulations, which supports above-average ADR for compliant operators.
Top STR Neighborhoods
Highest Occupancy Pocket
Beacon Hill
Avg occupancy: 45.1%
Best Balanced Opportunity
Downtown
Healthy mix of demand, pricing, and listing depth
- 1Back Bay
- 2South End
- 3Beacon Hill
- 4Cambridge
- 5Fenway
Ranked by active listing count (Inside Airbnb data).
Compare Similar Markets
Markets in Americas with similar investment-score profiles:
Live Market Analytics
Source: Inside Airbnb · 2025-12-27Listing Locations & Pricing
Listing Types
- Entire Home68.8%
- Private Room29.8%
- Hotel Room1.3%
- Shared Room0.1%
Takeaway: entire home apt dominates this market snapshot.
Price Distribution (per night)
Price distribution is not available yet for this market sample.
Takeaway: the highest concentration of listings sits in the Under $50 nightly range.
Occupancy Rate Distribution
Takeaway: most listings cluster around 0–10% occupancy.
Monthly Seasonality (from booking calendar)
Peak month in this snapshot: Dec (47.2% occupancy).
Neighbourhood Breakdown (top 15)
| Neighbourhood | Listings ↓ | Avg Price | Occupancy | Avg Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dorchester | 525 | — | 25.8% | — |
| Downtown | 331 | — | 44.5% | — |
| Back Bay | 287 | — | 36.4% | — |
| Roxbury | 267 | — | 31.3% | — |
| Brighton | 266 | — | 32% | — |
| South End | 240 | — | 38.3% | — |
| Fenway | 214 | — | 28.2% | — |
| Beacon Hill | 210 | — | 45.1% | — |
| East Boston | 181 | — | 34.2% | — |
| Jamaica Plain | 150 | — | 38.5% | — |
| South Boston | 141 | — | 40.3% | — |
| Allston | 132 | — | 36.5% | — |
| Bay Village | 105 | — | 26.2% | — |
| Roslindale | 88 | — | 32.2% | — |
| North End | 85 | — | 33.7% | — |
Source: Inside Airbnb. Click column headers to sort.
Analytics derived from Inside Airbnb public datasets. Data reflects the snapshot date above. Not financial advice.
Want verified, real-time data?
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Investment Score Breakdown
Score formula: Occupancy (max 45 pts) + ADR (max 30 pts) + Regulatory environment (up to 25 pts). Max score: 100.
Challenging market — lower occupancy, rate constraints, or restrictive regulations make Boston a higher-risk choice for new STR investors.
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