Chicago vs Columbus: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Chicago edges ahead of Columbus on higher occupancy (35.1% vs 32.9%), stronger RevPAR (£59 vs £46).

Head-to-head metrics

	Chicago	Columbus
Median occupancy	35.1%	32.9%
Median daily rate	£171	£138
Median RevPAR	£59	£46
Active listings	6,325	2,357
YoY occupancy	+2.2 pts	+0 pts
YoY daily rate	+53.9%	+57.7%
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Chicago vs Columbus

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — Chicago finishes narrowly ahead of Columbus. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 29.3% higher in Chicago: £59 against £46. Nightly rates favour Chicago: £171 against £138 in Columbus, a 24% premium. The margin is thin enough that a single strong year in Columbus would close it, so treat the ordering as a lean rather than a verdict.

Chicago takes both halves of the yield equation, which is less common than it sounds. It charges more per night — £171 against £138 — and still fills more of the year, 35.1% against 32.9%. 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 £59 against £46.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Columbus is not simply the weaker market of the two. Columbus is the less crowded of the two — 2,357 active listings to 6,325 — so a well-run property has fewer near-identical rivals to out-rank. Columbus sits at the cheaper end at £138 a night against £171, which lowers the bar for filling shoulder-season dates and usually tracks a lower purchase price too. If your model leans on that dimension, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

Neither Chicago nor Columbus currently has a verified short-term rental regulation record in our register, so the comparison above is a yield comparison only. Regulation is the single largest source of downside in this asset class — an unverified market is an unpriced risk, not an absent one.

The two calendars also behave differently. Chicago peaks in September at 54% and bottoms in February at 24.1%; Columbus runs from 51.5% in October down to 22.8% in February. Both swing by a similar amount across the year, so neither offers meaningfully steadier cash flow than the other.

Who each suits, then. Chicago suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry. It is also the momentum side of this pair. Columbus answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal. Every figure above comes from the same Inside Airbnb snapshot pipeline on both sides, dated 2026-09, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 6,325 active Chicago listings and 2,357 in Columbus.

Frequently asked questions

Is Chicago or Columbus better for Airbnb investment?

Chicago, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£59 vs £46), a higher nightly rate (£171 vs £138), and higher median annual revenue (£21,629 vs £16,723). Columbus is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a thinner competitive field (2,357 vs 6,325 active listings).

Which has higher occupancy, Chicago or Columbus?

Chicago, at 35.1% median occupancy against 32.9% in Columbus — a gap of 2.2 points. That is a real but modest edge; a well-run listing in Columbus can close most of it. Over the last twelve months Chicago gained 2.2 points and Columbus was flat, so the gap is widening.

Which has higher nightly rates, Chicago or Columbus?

Chicago, at £171 a night against £138 in Columbus — roughly 24% more. Revenue per available night agrees rather than contradicts: £59 in Chicago against £46, so the rate premium survives contact with the occupancy figures.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, Chicago or Columbus?

Chicago, on occupancy: +2.2 points over the last twelve months against +0 points in Columbus. Nightly rates rose 53.9% in Chicago and rose 57.7% in Columbus 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, Chicago or Columbus?

Chicago, with 6,325 active listings against 2,357 in Columbus. 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.

How much can you earn from an Airbnb in Chicago vs Columbus?

Chicago earns more: roughly £21,629 a year for a median listing against £16,723 in Columbus. Those are gross booking revenues before cleaning, management, platform fees, furnishing amortisation and tax — budget for a meaningful share of them, and note that a median listing is a median operator, not a good one.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Chicago →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Columbus →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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