Vacation rental stocking cost index (Nov 2026)
Short answer
Stocking a short-term rental with linens, towels, kitchen and coffee gear, safety equipment, cleaning tools and opening supplies costs about $1,750 for a studio that sleeps 2 and about $6,380 for a 6-bedroom that sleeps 14, or $940 to $4,150 for the must-haves alone. Per sleeping spot the full list falls from $874 to $456, because a kitchen and cleaning tools barely grow with the home. Prices were checked on US retailer pages Oct 30 to Nov 1, 2026, before tax and shipping; up to 13 lines per list have no checked price yet and are left out, never counted as $0.
- Studio, full list
- $1,748.32
- 6-bedroom, full list
- $6,384.09
- Must-haves
- $937 to $4,154
- Per sleeping spot
- $874 to $456
Must-haves and full list by rental size
Must-haves are what the first guest needs: made beds with spares, towels, dishes, a coffee maker, alarms and a vacuum. The full list adds what makes turnovers faster and the stay nicer, such as duvet covers, a kettle, a keypad lock and a laundry cart.
| Rental, beds and bathrooms | Must-haves | Full list | Per sleeping spot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio sleeps 2A Queen bed, 1 bathroom | $936.68 | $1,748.32 | $874.16 |
| 1-bedroom sleeps 4A Queen bed and a Full sofa bed, 1 bathroom | $1,203.91 | $2,118.49 | $529.62 |
| 2-bedroom sleeps 6Two Queen beds and a Full sofa bed, 1 bathroom | $1,706.15 | $2,791.63 | $465.27 |
| 3-bedroom sleeps 8A King bed, two Queen beds and a Full sofa bed, 2 bathrooms | $2,380.16 | $3,783.98 | $473.00 |
| 4-bedroom sleeps 10A King bed, two Queen beds, two Twin beds and a Full sofa bed, 2.5 bathrooms | $2,904.58 | $4,575.26 | $457.53 |
| 5-bedroom sleeps 12Two King beds, two Queen beds, two Twin beds and a Full sofa bed, 3 bathrooms | $3,568.76 | $5,588.79 | $465.73 |
| 6-bedroom sleeps 14Two King beds, three Queen beds, two Twin beds and a Queen sofa bed, 3.5 bathrooms | $4,154.18 | $6,384.09 | $456.01 |
Where the money goes
Bedding grows fastest: it is 31% of a studio's full list and 59% of a 6-bedroom's, because every bed gets three sheet sets. Kitchen, coffee and cleaning gear grows far more slowly, from $749 to $1,242, because one vacuum and one cookware set serve any size.
| Rental | Bedding | Bath | Kitchen | Coffee | Safety and entry | Cleaning and laundry | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $535.88 | $213.96 | $318.19 | $77.98 | $249.35 | $352.96 | $1,748.32 |
| 1-bedroom | $761.79 | $288.27 | $350.15 | $87.98 | $277.34 | $352.96 | $2,118.49 |
| 2-bedroom | $1,262.68 | $348.58 | $418.11 | $97.98 | $305.33 | $358.95 | $2,791.63 |
| 3-bedroom | $1,938.52 | $550.17 | $480.06 | $107.98 | $342.31 | $364.94 | $3,783.98 |
| 4-bedroom | $2,512.35 | $682.69 | $501.02 | $137.97 | $370.30 | $370.93 | $4,575.26 |
| 5-bedroom | $3,188.19 | $814.46 | $662.96 | $147.97 | $398.29 | $376.92 | $5,588.79 |
| 6-bedroom | $3,741.05 | $965.97 | $700.92 | $157.97 | $435.27 | $382.91 | $6,384.09 |
Cost per sleeping spot
A sleeping spot is one guest place in a bed: 2 in a Full, Queen, King or sofa bed and 1 in a Twin. Spreading the fixed kit over more spots cuts the full list from $874.16 per spot in a studio to $456.01 in a 6-bedroom.
Method
- Sample rentals. Seven layouts from our cost-to-stock pages, a studio to a 6-bedroom, with the beds and bathrooms in the first table. Each layout's beds sleep exactly its listed guest count.
- Counts. Our planner builds the list with laundry on site and nothing owned: three sheet sets per bed and three towel cycles per guest (one in use, one in the wash, one spare), hand towels per bathroom, dishes for every guest plus two, and one smoke alarm per bedroom plus one for the living area. How we count has every rule.
- Prices. One example product per line, the planner's default pick: the first checked product that fits the bed size. Each price is the one the retailer's US product page showed on the check date, before sales tax and shipping. Products and pack sizes are in our picks.
- Must-haves are the lines the planner marks for before the first guest; the full list adds the lines for the first few stays and the ones to buy when turnovers show the need.
- Areas. Bedding: sheets, pillowcases, protectors, duvets and covers, pillows and sofa-bed blankets. Bath: towels, washcloths, bath mats, plungers and a hair dryer. Kitchen: dishes, flatware, glasses, cookware, a knife, a cutting board and dish towels. Coffee: coffee maker, kettle and mugs. Safety and entry: smoke and CO alarms, an extinguisher, a first-aid kit, self check-in hardware and a doormat. Cleaning and laundry: a vacuum, a mop, cloths, a laundry cart, laundry bins and a lockable owner's closet.
- Dates. Prices checked Oct 30 to Nov 1, 2026; index updated Nov 1, 2026. When a price changes, the cost pages and this index change together.
Where the prices come from
63 products from 3 US retailers price every line in all seven rentals. Share of the seven full lists combined:
| Retailer | Products | Share of cost |
|---|---|---|
| IKEA US | 35 | 61% |
| Target | 25 | 35% |
| The Home Depot | 3 | 4% |
What's not included
- Furniture, mattresses, appliances, TVs and decor
- Permits, registration and license fees
- Insurance
- Sales tax, occupancy tax and income tax
- Shipping, delivery and installation
- Consumables such as toilet paper, soap and coffee, which are on the restock list
For the full startup budget, including software and a cash buffer, see Airbnb startup costs.
Download and cite
rental-stocking-cost-index.csv (UTF-8 CSV, one header row). One row per rental: bedrooms, bathrooms, sleeps, beds, must-have and full-list dollars for each area, totals, per sleeping spot, line counts and the check dates.
The data is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0: copy, chart or republish it, including commercially, with credit to HostCalmly and a link to this page.
How to cite
HostCalmly. "Vacation rental stocking cost index (Nov 2026)." https://hostcalmly.com/data/rental-stocking-cost-index/ (updated Nov 1, 2026). Licensed CC BY 4.0.
More data: software prices for 1–5 homes · all data
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CSV, CC BY 4.0. Updated Nov 1, 2026; prices checked Oct 30 to Nov 1, 2026.
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