Airbnb vs. Ohana in 2026: Lower Fees and Middle-Term Stays
Airbnb's service fee is 15.5% for most hosts. Ohana's is 7%, on sublets that average 75 nights, with a deposit and rent held until move-in.
Airbnb and Ohana both list furnished places, and the fee is where they split. Airbnb's single service fee is 15.5% for most hosts. Ohana's standard service fee is 7%, and the monthly price on the listing already includes it. The apartments are cheaper for a second reason: on Ohana, many hosts are tenants who want someone they trust to take over the apartment while they are away. They are covering their rent, not running a short-stay business.
The lower prices come from communities Ohana runs: Girls Who Sublet (148,324 Instagram followers), Artists Who Sublet (36,817 Instagram followers), NYU Subletting (13,799 Instagram followers), and Columbia Subletting (7,608 Instagram followers), as of November 14, 2026.
The stay is different too. A booked sublease on Ohana lasts 75 nights on average, and the typical one lasts 69 nights, a bit more than two months. The booking is built for that middle stretch, with a security deposit, a video introduction, and a sublease.
How Airbnb and Ohana compare
| Airbnb | Ohana | |
|---|---|---|
| Service fee | A single fee of 15.5% for most hosts. Hosts in Brazil and Mexico pay 16%. | A standard fee of 7%, included in the listed monthly price. |
| Who is listing | Hosts pricing a short stay, often as a business. | Tenants covering rent while they are away, plus professional hosts and Ohana communities. |
| How long people stay | Usually a few nights. | Booked subleases average 75 nights. The typical stay is 69 nights. |
| How you find it | Search the marketplace. | Search, plus Instagram, TikTok, and 86 university pages. |
| Before you pay | Message the host and book on Airbnb. | A video introduction with the host, then a sublease Ohana writes. |
| Your money | Charged by Airbnb under its payment rules. | A security deposit, and rent held until you confirm you moved in. |
The fee is 7%, not 15.5%
Airbnb has been moving hosts onto one service fee instead of a separate host fee and guest fee. For most hosts that single fee is 15.5% of the booking. In Brazil and Mexico it is 16%. Under the older split, guests often paid about 14% to 16.5% on top of a smaller host fee.
Ohana's standard service fee is 7%. You see it in the monthly price, so the number on the listing is the number you compare. At those rates, the fee on $2,000 is $310 at 15.5% and $140 at 7%.
Prices stay lower because people want the apartment covered
A tenant leaving for a semester is not trying to earn a profit on the nights. They want a person they trust in the apartment, and they want the rent covered so they are not paying for an empty place. A student abroad may leave a furnished room for the term. Someone on a work trip may take less than the open-market rent rather than leave the apartment vacant.
Those apartments show up in communities Ohana runs, including Girls Who Sublet (148,324 Instagram followers), Artists Who Sublet (36,817 Instagram followers), NYU Subletting (13,799 Instagram followers), and Columbia Subletting (7,608 Instagram followers). Of the homes with upcoming availability on November 14, 2026, 1,325 came through a community. Ohana had 8,103 homes available that day, 4,116 of them in New York City.
Against the published New York neighborhood median, with 40% added for furniture, 1,923 of 2,071 Ohana listings are priced below it. The typical listing is 30% under. The price includes Ohana's fee.
Younger renters find Ohana where they already are
A lot of the people looking for a few months, not a weekend, are students and other younger renters. They do not start on a vacation site. They start on Instagram, TikTok, and a school page.
Ohana is in those places. Community accounts on Instagram and TikTok post the apartments, and Ohana has 86 university pages, including NYU and Columbia. The booking still happens on Ohana, so the group chat and the sublease are the same path. That is the community feel: you heard about the place from people at your school or in a community you follow, and you can still meet the host, sign an agreement, and pay through the platform.
Built for a couple of months, not a weekend
Airbnb is built for short stays. Ohana's booked subleases land in the middle: long enough to move in, short of a year-long lease. Across booked subleases, the average stay is 75 nights and the typical stay is 69 nights.
The process matches that length. You meet the host on a video call before you book, so you can ask about roommates, furniture, utilities, and move-in. Ohana collects a security deposit. On booked stays the typical deposit is $2,000. Ohana writes the sublease, and rent is not released to the host until you confirm you moved into the apartment you paid for.
Which should you choose?
Airbnb fits a short trip, when you want a place for a few nights and you are paying a host who runs the stay as a rental.
Ohana fits a month or a season. The fee is 7% instead of 15.5%, the homes include apartments from people covering their own rent, and the booking is set up for the weeks in between a weekend and a full year.
Find your next sublet on Ohana
Questions people ask
Is Ohana cheaper than Airbnb?
Ohana's standard service fee is 7%, included in the listed monthly price. Airbnb's single service fee is 15.5% for most hosts, and 16% in Brazil and Mexico. At those rates, the fee on $2,000 is $140 versus $310, before you compare the rent itself. In New York, 1,923 of 2,071 Ohana listings with a published neighborhood median are priced below it.
How long is a typical Ohana stay?
Booked subleases average 75 nights. The typical one is 69 nights, a bit more than two months.
Does Ohana take a security deposit?
Yes. A security deposit is part of the booking. On stays that have been booked, the typical deposit is $2,000. Rent is released to the host only after you confirm you moved in.
Why do younger renters use Ohana?
They find apartments through Instagram, TikTok, and university pages. Ohana runs those community accounts and has 86 university pages, including NYU and Columbia, then books the stay with a host introduction and a sublease.