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

Bottom line

New Orleans edges ahead of Chicago on higher occupancy (60% vs 54%), stronger RevPAR (£47 vs £36).

Head-to-head metrics

	Chicago	New Orleans
Median occupancy	54%	60%
Median daily rate	£111	£103
Median RevPAR	£36	£47
Active listings	6,086	4,939
YoY occupancy	—	—
YoY daily rate	—	—
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Chicago vs New Orleans

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — New Orleans finishes clearly ahead of Chicago. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 32% higher in New Orleans: £47 against £36. New Orleans's listings run at 60% occupancy against 54% in Chicago, worth 6 extra points of booked calendar every year. Those gaps are wide enough to survive a normal year's variance.

The two markets reach their revenue by different routes, which is what makes this pairing worth reading rather than just tabulating. Chicago is the rate market: £111 a night against £103, some 7.6% more, but it converts fewer of those nights at 54% occupancy. New Orleans is the volume market, filling 60% of its calendar at a lower headline price. Revenue per available night settles it: £47 in New Orleans against £36. Rate is what you advertise; RevPAR is what you bank.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Chicago is not simply the weaker market of the two. Chicago prices modestly above New Orleans — £111 a night to £103, about 7.6%. Its strongest submarket, Loop, clears £71 RevPAR on its own — city medians hide that kind of spread. If your model leans on nightly rate rather than volume, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

Neither Chicago nor New Orleans 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 51.4% and bottoms in February at 25.2%; New Orleans runs from 52.2% in August down to 29.9% in December. New Orleans is the steadier of the two at 22.3 points peak-to-trough against 26.2 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while Chicago concentrates its return into a shorter window and rewards operators who price the peak aggressively instead of holding a flat rate all year.

Who each suits, then. Chicago suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry and who can hold rate through the shoulder season rather than discounting to fill the calendar. New Orleans answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal: it is the market for an owner 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 2025-09, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 2,560 active Chicago listings and 1,475 in New Orleans.

Frequently asked questions

Is Chicago or New Orleans better for Airbnb investment?

New Orleans, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£47 vs £36), higher occupancy (60% vs 54%), and higher median annual revenue (£17,123 vs £12,988). Chicago is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a higher nightly rate (£111 vs £103).

Which has higher occupancy, Chicago or New Orleans?

New Orleans, at 60% median occupancy against 54% in Chicago — a gap of 6 points. That is a real but modest edge; a well-run listing in Chicago can close most of it.

Which has higher nightly rates, Chicago or New Orleans?

Chicago, at £111 a night against £103 in New Orleans — roughly 7.6% more. The nightly rate is not the whole story, though. On revenue per available night — rate multiplied by how often the room actually sells — New Orleans comes out ahead at £47 against £36, so New Orleans's cheaper nights are more than repaid by how often they fill.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, Chicago or New Orleans?

Chicago, with 6,086 active listings against 4,939 in New Orleans. 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 New Orleans?

New Orleans earns more: roughly £17,123 a year for a median listing against £12,988 in Chicago. 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.

What is the best time of year to rent out an Airbnb in Chicago or New Orleans?

Chicago peaks in September at 51.4% occupancy and troughs in February at 25.2%; New Orleans peaks in August at 52.2% and troughs in December at 29.9%. Because the peaks fall in different months, the two markets are partly complementary — a portfolio holding one of each has a flatter combined calendar than either alone.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Chicago →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in New Orleans →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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