Puglia vs Rome: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Rome edges ahead of Puglia on higher occupancy (30% vs 18%), stronger RevPAR (£25 vs £5).

Head-to-head metrics

	Puglia	Rome
Median occupancy	18%	30%
Median daily rate	£72	£110
Median RevPAR	£5	£25
Active listings	23,576	27,668
YoY occupancy	+11.4 pts	+5.3 pts
YoY daily rate	+2.4%	-7.9%
Regulation risk	—	medium
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Puglia vs Rome

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — Rome finishes decisively ahead of Puglia. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 382.4% higher in Rome: £25 against £5. Rome sells 12 more points of its calendar — 30% median occupancy against 18% in Puglia. That is not a rounding difference, and it compounds over a hold period.

Rome takes both halves of the yield equation, which is less common than it sounds. It charges more per night — £110 against £72 — and still fills more of the year, 30% against 18%. 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 £25 against £5.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Puglia is not simply the weaker market of the two. The twelve-month direction favours Puglia too: occupancy there moved +11.4 points while Rome moved +5.3 points. Puglia's calendar is the flatter of the two — 8.3 points between its best and worst month against 34.7 in Rome — which makes debt service easier to underwrite. If your model leans on that dimension, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

We hold a verified regulation record for only one side of this pairing. Rome applies no annual night cap and requires registration but no licence, on a medium risk rating. Puglia should be read as unverified rather than unregulated: check the local authority's own register before you underwrite anything there.

The two calendars also behave differently. Puglia peaks in August at 47.3% and bottoms in June at 39%; Rome runs from 62.9% in September down to 28.2% in December. Puglia is the steadier of the two at 8.3 points peak-to-trough against 34.7 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while Rome 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. Puglia suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry. It is also the momentum side of this pair. Rome 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 2025-09, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 20,801 active Puglia listings and 15,125 in Rome.

Frequently asked questions

Is Puglia or Rome better for Airbnb investment?

Rome, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£25 vs £5), higher occupancy (30% vs 18%), and a higher nightly rate (£110 vs £72). Puglia is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on the better occupancy trend (+11.4 points vs +5.3 points year over year).

Which has higher occupancy, Puglia or Rome?

Rome, at 30% median occupancy against 18% in Puglia — a gap of 12 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 Puglia gained 11.4 points and Rome gained 5.3 points, so the gap is closing.

Which has higher nightly rates, Puglia or Rome?

Rome, at £110 a night against £72 in Puglia — roughly 51.8% more. Revenue per available night agrees rather than contradicts: £25 in Rome against £5, so the rate premium survives contact with the occupancy figures.

Is Puglia or Rome riskier for Airbnb regulation?

We hold a verified regulation record for Rome only, so we will not rank the two. Rome applies no annual night cap and requires registration but no licence, and it is rated medium risk. Treat Puglia as unverified rather than unregulated, and check the local authority directly before committing.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, Puglia or Rome?

Puglia, on occupancy: +11.4 points over the last twelve months against +5.3 points in Rome. Nightly rates rose 2.4% in Puglia and fell 7.9% in Rome 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, Puglia or Rome?

Rome, with 27,668 active listings against 23,576 in Puglia. 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.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Puglia →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Rome →

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.

Puglia report →Rome 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 →