Airbnb and short-term rentals are often promoted with a very simple promise: a few well-priced nights would be enough to earn far more than with a conventional rental. The available figures tell a more nuanced story. In La Rochelle, a study based on tax, land registry, and tourist tax data shows that the wealthiest households do not necessarily rent out their properties more often, but they do manage to charge more.

To determine who makes money from Airbnb and short-term rentals, three questions must be separated: who owns the most highly valued homes, who receives the gross revenue, and who still keeps a profit after expenses. Yet the public data currently available do not provide equally precise answers for La Rochelle, Mallorca, and France’s major metropolitan areas. This gap does not prevent useful conclusions, provided that false comparisons are not invented.

La Rochelle: better-off owners do not rent more often, but they charge more

La Rochelle provides the strongest case. One study compared 606 houses listed on Airbnb with more than 20,000 houses that were not rented out. The research cross-referenced 2022 tourist tax receipts, land registry records, and household tax data available in the CASD secure environment.

The most interesting result is not that affluent households dominate numerically. They do not use Airbnb more frequently than others. Their advantage mainly comes from the value of the property offered: they can charge up to 50 euros more per night. Homes owned by renting households average 111 m², compared with 99 m² for non-renting households.

The average annual disposable income of renting households is 52,015 euros, compared with 47,129 euros for households that do not rent out a property. These figures do not prove that Airbnb activity alone explains the income gap. They do show, however, that owners able to monetize a larger and more expensive home begin with an obvious wealth advantage.

The real dividing line is therefore not simply between “small owner” and “professional.” It also runs between those who own an attractive, spacious, well-located property and those whose home leaves less room to raise the nightly price.

An honest comparison of cities: what we really know

Area Observed income Known investment Can actual profitability be calculated? What can be concluded
La Rochelle Up to €50 more per night for affluent households; average disposable income of €52,015 among renting households and €47,129 among non-renting households Not documented No, because purchase prices, expenses, and the number of rented nights are unavailable Larger homes and better-off households capture more value per night
Mallorca No quantified breakdown by owner type Not documented No The local conflict concerns the role of tourism and housing, not a measured individual return
Major French metropolitan areas No comparable data are available here for Paris, Lyon, Marseille, or other cities Not documented No No serious ranking can be established without consistent data

This table may seem frustrating, but it avoids a common mistake: confusing turnover, household income, and property investment returns. In La Rochelle, we know certain social and property characteristics of hosts, as well as the difference in nightly prices. We do not know the acquisition cost of the properties, their occupancy rates, management fees, renovation expenses, or actual tax burden. Announcing a rate of return would therefore be misleading.

Mallorca: strong opposition, but no accounting of the winners

In Palma on July 26, 2026, a demonstration organized by the Menys Turisme, Més Vida platform brought together around 25,000 people according to police and 70,000 according to organizers. The demands included limits on tourist rentals, a reduction in airline capacity, and an end to economic dependence on tourism. Clashes with law enforcement and injuries were also reported.

This mobilization reveals a strongly felt collective cost, without showing what share of the revenue goes to small owners, multiple-property owners, or platforms. The Mallorca case documents a conflict over land use, not the return on a tourist apartment.

In La Rochelle, the city government has sharply restricted short-term rentals in response to their growth. However, no available figure measures how many homes have been removed from the conventional rental market or the effect on rents. The local impact is therefore visible, but it cannot be quantified precisely.

Small owners, multiple-property owners, platforms: who captures the value?

With the available figures, it is impossible to allocate each euro precisely among these three groups. La Rochelle only allows us to establish that affluent households are not necessarily more likely to rent, but that they have larger properties and can charge higher prices. Nothing here makes it possible to measure the weight of professional multiple-property owners or the share retained by platforms.

A high nightly price does not guarantee a high profit. A property can display attractive gross revenue while absorbing substantial expenses. Conversely, an occasional host who already owns a primary residence may have little additional capital to commit, but still face cleaning, maintenance, utilities, vacant periods, and management time.

How to calculate your profitability before getting started

1. Calculate realistic gross revenue

Use the average price you can realistically collect, then multiply it by the number of nights you believe you can rent. Do not start from the highest price observed during an exceptional weekend. Build at least a cautious scenario, a central scenario, and a favorable scenario.

Annual gross revenue = average nightly price × nights actually rented.

2. Deduct all activity-related expenses

  • fees charged by intermediaries;
  • cleaning, linen, utilities, and small supplies;
  • insurance, maintenance, repairs, and furniture replacement;
  • non-recoverable condominium charges and periods without bookings;
  • management time or the cost of a property management service;
  • taxes and contributions applicable to your situation.

Income from a furnished rental falls under a specific tax category, distinct from the property income generated by an unfurnished rental. The calculation must therefore be made after checking your reporting regime, rather than relying solely on the amount paid by the platform.

3. Compare profit with the money actually committed

Profitability measures an investment’s ability to generate profit relative to the sums committed. Add together the purchase price, acquisition costs, renovation work, furnishings, and any other expenses required to launch the activity.

Net profitability = annual profit after expenses ÷ sums committed × 100.

4. Compare it with a conventional rental

Repeat exactly the same calculation using the annual rent from a long-term rental, its vacancy periods, non-recoverable expenses, maintenance, and taxation. Short-term renting only wins if its net profit genuinely exceeds that of a conventional rental after management time and the risk of variation are included.

5. Find your break-even point

The break-even point is the minimum turnover needed to cover expenses. For a tourist rental, ask how many nights must be sold before you begin to make money.

Minimum nights = annual expenses to cover ÷ average net margin per night.

This formula is more useful than a promise of a nationwide return. It turns your project into a local decision based on your price, your property, your expenses, and your regulations.

Conclusion: those with better assets win more easily, but not automatically

In La Rochelle, the observable advantage goes to households with larger homes that can charge more. In Mallorca, the scale of the protest shows that tourist rentals are also a housing issue and a matter of collective choice. For France’s major metropolitan areas, no serious ranking can be produced without comparable data on income, investment, and expenses.

The right question is therefore not “how much does Airbnb bring in?” but “how much will I have left after all expenses, relative to the capital committed, compared with a conventional rental?” Until that spreadsheet is completed using cautious assumptions, the displayed revenue is not profitability: it is only potential turnover.