Amsterdam vs Rotterdam: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Amsterdam and Rotterdam score similarly on the metrics that matter most for short-term rental returns. The right pick depends on whether you optimise for yield (lower regulation risk, higher RevPAR) or capital growth.

Head-to-head metrics

	Amsterdam	Rotterdam
Median occupancy	30%	30%
Median daily rate	£241	£136
Median RevPAR	£33	£21
Active listings	6,477	937
YoY occupancy	+0 pts	+0 pts
YoY daily rate	+29%	+27.1%
Regulation risk	banned	—
Annual night cap	30	None
License required	Yes	No

Full analysis: Amsterdam vs Rotterdam

There is no clean winner between Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Amsterdam posts 30% occupancy and £33 RevPAR; Rotterdam posts 30% occupancy and £21 RevPAR. Weighted together with regulation risk the two finish inside the margin we are willing to call, which is the honest answer rather than an evasive one — a scoring gap this small would flip on the next data refresh. When markets are this close the decision stops being about the market and starts being about the deal: what you pay, what it costs to run, and how quickly you could exit.

Amsterdam takes both halves of the yield equation, which is less common than it sounds. It charges more per night — £241 against £136 — and still fills more of the year, 30% against 30%. A market that leads on price and utilisation at once is normally one where demand has outrun supply, rather than one where hosts are discounting to keep the calendar busy. RevPAR reflects the double advantage at £33 against £21.

A tie does not mean the two are interchangeable — it means each holds something the other does not. Across a full year the median Amsterdam listing grosses £11,980 against £7,778 in Rotterdam. Rotterdam is the less crowded of the two — 937 active listings to 6,477 — so a well-run property has fewer near-identical rivals to out-rank. Pick the one whose advantage matches how you intend to operate, because the composite score will not do that job for you.

We hold a verified regulation record for only one side of this pairing. Amsterdam caps entire-home letting at 30 nights a year, requires a licence, and treats letting as a change of use needing planning permission, on a banned risk rating. Rotterdam should be read as unverified rather than unregulated: check the local authority's own register before you underwrite anything there.

The two calendars also behave differently. Amsterdam peaks in June at 79.3% and bottoms in February at 69.9%; Rotterdam runs from 69% in July down to 57.2% in November. Both swing by a similar amount across the year, so neither offers meaningfully steadier cash flow than the other.

Who each suits, then. Amsterdam suits buyers who already hold compliant, grandfathered stock — not new entrants and who can hold rate through the shoulder season rather than discounting to fill the calendar. Rotterdam suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry and whose economics survive high turnover — more bookings, more cleans, more guest contact per pound of revenue. Every figure above comes from the same Inside Airbnb snapshot pipeline on both sides, dated 2026-06, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 4,895 active Amsterdam listings and 669 in Rotterdam.

Frequently asked questions

Is Amsterdam or Rotterdam better for Airbnb investment?

Neither pulls clearly ahead. Amsterdam runs 30% occupancy and £241 a night; Rotterdam runs 30% occupancy and £136 a night. Once occupancy, revenue per available night and regulation risk are weighted together the two finish within a couple of points of each other, so the decision turns on purchase price, how far you are willing to travel, and which rulebook you would rather work under.

Which has higher occupancy, Amsterdam or Rotterdam?

Effectively neither — they are level. Amsterdam sits at 30% and Rotterdam at 30%, a 0-point difference that is inside the noise of a median drawn from a listings snapshot. Over the last twelve months Amsterdam was flat and Rotterdam was flat, so the gap is closing.

Which has higher nightly rates, Amsterdam or Rotterdam?

Amsterdam, at £241 a night against £136 in Rotterdam — roughly 77.2% more. Revenue per available night agrees rather than contradicts: £33 in Amsterdam against £21, so the rate premium survives contact with the occupancy figures.

Is Amsterdam or Rotterdam riskier for Airbnb regulation?

We hold a verified regulation record for Amsterdam only, so we will not rank the two. Amsterdam caps entire-home letting at 30 nights a year, requires a licence, and treats letting as a change of use needing planning permission, and it is rated banned risk. Treat Rotterdam as unverified rather than unregulated, and check the local authority directly before committing.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, Amsterdam or Rotterdam?

Amsterdam, on occupancy: +0 points over the last twelve months against +0 points in Rotterdam. Nightly rates rose 29% in Amsterdam and rose 27.1% in Rotterdam over the same window. One year of movement is a direction, not a trend — weigh it against the regulation picture before treating it as momentum.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, Amsterdam or Rotterdam?

Amsterdam, with 6,477 active listings against 937 in Rotterdam. Size cuts both ways: a deep market gives you comparables, contractors and an exit, while a thinner one means fewer near-identical rivals competing for the same search results.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Amsterdam →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Rotterdam →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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