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

Bottom line

New Orleans edges ahead of New York City on higher occupancy (49.3% vs 32.9%), stronger RevPAR (£76 vs £55).

Head-to-head metrics

	New Orleans	New York City
Median occupancy	49.3%	32.9%
Median daily rate	£175	£152
Median RevPAR	£76	£55
Active listings	4,619	10,670
YoY occupancy	-5.5 pts	-9.3 pts
YoY daily rate	+68.8%	+31.5%
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: New Orleans vs New York City

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — New Orleans finishes decisively ahead of New York City. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 38.2% higher in New Orleans: £76 against £55. New Orleans sells 16.4 more points of its calendar — 49.3% median occupancy against 32.9% in New York City. That is not a rounding difference, and it compounds over a hold period.

New Orleans takes both halves of the yield equation, which is less common than it sounds. It charges more per night — £175 against £152 — and still fills more of the year, 49.3% 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 £76 against £55.

That verdict needs a caveat, because New York City is not simply the weaker market of the two. New York City is the deeper market at 10,670 active listings against 4,619, which usually means better comparables going in and a wider buyer pool coming out. New York City sits at the cheaper end at £152 a night against £175, 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 New Orleans nor New York City 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. New Orleans peaks in September at 49.2% and bottoms in December at 30.6%; New York City runs from 63.7% in September down to 38.9% in February. New Orleans is the steadier of the two at 18.6 points peak-to-trough against 24.8 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while New York City 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. New Orleans suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry. New York City answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal. It is the contrarian side: buying it means buying a market that has cooled. 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 4,619 active New Orleans listings and 10,670 in New York City.

Frequently asked questions

Is New Orleans or New York City better for Airbnb investment?

New Orleans, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£76 vs £55), higher occupancy (49.3% vs 32.9%), and faster rate growth (+68.8% vs +31.5% year over year). New York City is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a deeper market (10,670 vs 4,619 active listings).

Which has higher occupancy, New Orleans or New York City?

New Orleans, at 49.3% median occupancy against 32.9% in New York City — a gap of 16.4 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 New Orleans shed 5.5 points and New York City shed 9.3 points, so the gap is widening.

Which has higher nightly rates, New Orleans or New York City?

New Orleans, at £175 a night against £152 in New York City — roughly 15.2% more. Revenue per available night agrees rather than contradicts: £76 in New Orleans against £55, so the rate premium survives contact with the occupancy figures.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, New Orleans or New York City?

Neither is growing on occupancy — both cooled over the last year. New Orleans gave up 5.5 points and New York City 9.3, so New Orleans is the shallower decline rather than the winner. Nightly rates rose 68.8% in New Orleans and rose 31.5% in New York City over the same window.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, New Orleans or New York City?

New York City, with 10,670 active listings against 4,619 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 New Orleans vs New York City?

New Orleans earns more: roughly £27,865 a year for a median listing against £20,145 in New York City. 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 New Orleans →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in New York City →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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