Denver vs Hawaii: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Denver edges ahead of Hawaii on higher occupancy (58% vs 30%), stronger RevPAR (£39 vs £29).

Head-to-head metrics

	Denver	Hawaii
Median occupancy	58%	30%
Median daily rate	£99	£164
Median RevPAR	£39	£29
Active listings	3,654	22,154
YoY occupancy	+18.5 pts	+11.9 pts
YoY daily rate	-2.3%	+1.5%
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Denver vs Hawaii

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — Denver finishes decisively ahead of Hawaii. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 35.7% higher in Denver: £39 against £29. Denver sells 28 more points of its calendar — 58% median occupancy against 30% in Hawaii. That is not a rounding difference, and it compounds over a hold period.

The two markets reach their revenue by different routes, which is what makes this pairing worth reading rather than just tabulating. Hawaii is the rate market: £164 a night against £99, some 66.4% more, but it converts fewer of those nights at 30% occupancy. Denver is the volume market, filling 58% of its calendar at a lower headline price. Revenue per available night settles it: £39 in Denver against £29. Rate is what you advertise; RevPAR is what you bank.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Hawaii is not simply the weaker market of the two. Hawaii commands 66.4% more per night, £164 against £99. Hawaii is the deeper market at 22,154 active listings against 3,654, which usually means better comparables going in and a wider buyer pool coming out. If your model leans on nightly rate rather than volume, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

Neither Denver nor Hawaii 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. Denver peaks in October at 59.9% and bottoms in February at 31.7%; Hawaii runs from 48% in October down to 26.5% in May. Hawaii is the steadier of the two at 21.5 points peak-to-trough against 28.2 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while Denver 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. Denver 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. It is also the momentum side of this pair. Hawaii answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal: it is the market for an owner who can hold rate through the shoulder season rather than discounting to fill the calendar. 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 1,254 active Denver listings and 14,266 in Hawaii.

Frequently asked questions

Is Denver or Hawaii better for Airbnb investment?

Denver, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£39 vs £29), higher occupancy (58% vs 30%), and higher median annual revenue (£14,245 vs £10,485). Hawaii is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a higher nightly rate (£164 vs £99).

Which has higher occupancy, Denver or Hawaii?

Denver, at 58% median occupancy against 30% in Hawaii — a gap of 28 points. That is a wide spread by short-term rental standards and usually reflects a structural demand difference rather than better hosting. Over the last twelve months Denver gained 18.5 points and Hawaii gained 11.9 points, so the gap is widening.

Which has higher nightly rates, Denver or Hawaii?

Hawaii, at £164 a night against £99 in Denver — roughly 66.4% more. The nightly rate is not the whole story, though. On revenue per available night — rate multiplied by how often the room actually sells — Denver comes out ahead at £39 against £29, so Denver's cheaper nights are more than repaid by how often they fill.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, Denver or Hawaii?

Denver, on occupancy: +18.5 points over the last twelve months against +11.9 points in Hawaii. Nightly rates fell 2.3% in Denver and rose 1.5% in Hawaii 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, Denver or Hawaii?

Hawaii, with 22,154 active listings against 3,654 in Denver. 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 Denver vs Hawaii?

Denver earns more: roughly £14,245 a year for a median listing against £10,485 in Hawaii. 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 Denver →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Hawaii →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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