Serviced accommodation calculator
Serviced accommodation calculator: nightly rate, occupancy and profit
Enter the nightly rate, the share of nights you expect to fill and the monthly costs, for a flat you rent from a landlord or one you buy. The calculator shows the monthly profit, the return on the cash you put in, a stress test at 75% occupancy and the profit at every occupancy level from 20% to 100%. It works for SA, short lets and holiday lets.
Work out your own figures
Choose how you hold the property, then fill in what you know. A blank box counts as nothing. The answer comes from the same engine as the full calculator.
What each box means
- Nightly rate and occupancy
- The average price a guest pays per night, and the share of the year's nights you expect to sell. Revenue is the two multiplied by the days in a year.
- Booking channel commission
- What the booking sites take, as a share of the revenue. It rises and falls with the revenue.
- Rented from a landlord
- The rent you pay each month, the deposit and rent in advance, and the cost of furnishing the flat for guests.
- Bought with a mortgage
- The price, the deposit, the mortgage and who is buying, which sets the stamp duty.
- Running costs
- A serviced let pays its own bills, council tax, insurance, and cleaning and consumables between guests.
Why occupancy matters so much
Most of the costs stay the same whether a flat is full or empty, so profit moves faster than occupancy does. The calculator re-runs the whole calculation at every level from 20% to 100%, holding everything else the same. The lowest level that still shows a profit is your break-even point; the further it sits below your forecast, the safer the deal.
The stress test holds occupancy at 75% when your forecast is higher, which shows what a quieter year would leave.
Rent-to-rent or buy
In serviced accommodation rent-to-rent you rent a flat from a landlord and let it by the night, so the cash up front is small and the rent you pay is the largest cost. Buying puts more cash in, adds stamp duty with the 5% surcharge and a mortgage, and gives you the gross yield on the price. The rent-to-rent calculator also covers HMOs let by the room.
Tax and the rules
The furnished holiday let tax rules ended on 6 April 2025. Serviced accommodation profits are now taxed like other property income, or as trading income if you provide substantial services, so Section 24 applies to a flat an individual buys with a mortgage. Check with the council whether short lets need planning permission or a licence where the flat is, and with the landlord or the lender that they allow them.
A worked example
A flat rented from a landlord for £1,400 a month lets for £140 a night, with occupancy of 80% and booking commission of 15%. It is the example from the serviced accommodation guide.
| Nightly rate | £140 |
|---|---|
| Occupancy | 80% |
| Booking commission | 15% |
| Rent to the landlord per month | £1,400 |
| Cleaning and consumables per month | £350 |
| Set-up and furnishing | £5,000 |
| Revenue per year | £40,880 |
|---|---|
| Running costs per month | £2,691.00 |
| Profit per month | £715.67 |
| Cash needed up front | £7,800 |
| Cash-on-cash return | 110.1% |
| Profit per month at the stress test occupancy | £502.75 |
| Profit per month at the lowest occupancy shown | -£1,456.08 |
| Profit per month at full occupancy | £1,439.58 |
At 80% occupancy the flat makes £715.67 a month. At 60% it makes -£8.25, and at 70% £353.71, so the break-even point sits between those two.
Questions and answers
How do I calculate serviced accommodation profit?
Multiply the nightly rate by occupancy and by 365 for the year's revenue. Take off the rent or mortgage, utilities, council tax, insurance, cleaning and commission. In the example, that leaves £715.67 a month.
What costs should I include for a serviced accommodation rent-to-rent?
Rent to the landlord, electricity, water, gas, internet, TV licence, council tax, insurance, cleaning and consumables, and the booking channel's commission as a percentage of revenue. Add the set-up cash separately.
How does occupancy change serviced accommodation profit?
Revenue rises and falls with occupancy while most costs stay the same, so profit moves faster than occupancy does. Deal Analyser re-runs the maths from 20 to 100 per cent occupancy so you can see the effect.
What is the break-even occupancy for a serviced let?
It is the occupancy at which the monthly profit is zero. Read it from the occupancy sweep: it is the lowest level that still shows a profit. The further it is below your forecast, the safer the deal.
Are furnished holiday let tax rules still in place?
No. The furnished holiday let tax rules ended on 6 April 2025. Serviced accommodation profits are now taxed like other property income, or as trading income if you provide substantial services. Ask an accountant about your own position.
Can I use it for serviced accommodation I buy?
Yes. Choose Bought with a mortgage and enter the price, the deposit and the mortgage rate. The calculator adds the mortgage payment, the stamp duty and the gross yield on the price.
Read the guides
Other calculators
These figures are estimates from the Deal Analyser calculator, using the UK rules as checked on 10 October 2026. They are not financial, tax or legal advice. Check them for your own deal, and take advice from a regulated adviser, accountant or solicitor before you commit.
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