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

Bottom line

New Orleans edges ahead of Los Angeles on higher occupancy (60% vs 54%), stronger RevPAR (£47 vs £34).

Head-to-head metrics

	Los Angeles	New Orleans
Median occupancy	54%	60%
Median daily rate	£122	£103
Median RevPAR	£34	£47
Active listings	23,969	4,939
YoY occupancy	—	—
YoY daily rate	—	—
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Los Angeles 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 Los Angeles. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 39.1% higher in New Orleans: £47 against £34. New Orleans's listings run at 60% occupancy against 54% in Los Angeles, 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. Los Angeles is the rate market: £122 a night against £103, some 17.6% 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 £34. Rate is what you advertise; RevPAR is what you bank.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Los Angeles is not simply the weaker market of the two. Nightly rates favour Los Angeles: £122 against £103 in New Orleans, a 17.6% premium. Los Angeles is the deeper market at 23,969 active listings against 4,939, 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 Los Angeles 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. Los Angeles peaks in August at 52.2% and bottoms in January at 30.5%; New Orleans runs from 52.2% in August down to 29.9% in December. Both swing by a similar amount across the year, so neither offers meaningfully steadier cash flow than the other.

Who each suits, then. Los Angeles 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, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 11,708 active Los Angeles listings and 1,475 in New Orleans.

Frequently asked questions

Is Los Angeles or New Orleans better for Airbnb investment?

New Orleans, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£47 vs £34), higher occupancy (60% vs 54%), and higher median annual revenue (£17,123 vs £12,324). Los Angeles is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a higher nightly rate (£122 vs £103).

Which has higher occupancy, Los Angeles or New Orleans?

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

Which has higher nightly rates, Los Angeles or New Orleans?

Los Angeles, at £122 a night against £103 in New Orleans — roughly 17.6% 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 £34, so New Orleans's cheaper nights are more than repaid by how often they fill.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, Los Angeles or New Orleans?

Los Angeles, with 23,969 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 Los Angeles vs New Orleans?

New Orleans earns more: roughly £17,123 a year for a median listing against £12,324 in Los Angeles. 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 Los Angeles or New Orleans?

Los Angeles peaks in August at 52.2% occupancy and troughs in January at 30.5%; New Orleans peaks in August at 52.2% and troughs in December at 29.9%. Both markets peak in the same month, so holding one in each does nothing to smooth your calendar.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Los Angeles →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in New Orleans →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Ready to buy?

Get a full investment report on either city

Property-level financials, stress tests, and an AI verdict — £19 each.

Los Angeles report →New Orleans report →

From the same team

Already hosting? Meet HostPal

An AI concierge that answers your guests on WhatsApp 24/7 — in 50+ languages, from your own guidebook and house rules. Emergencies get escalated to you; the WiFi password doesn't. Live in under 10 minutes.

Try HostPal free for 7 days →