What OTAs really cost

The Real Cost of an OTA Booking: 6 Costs Beyond the Commission

By MarginStay7 min readPublished Updated

Short answer

An OTA booking usually costs a hotel more than its headline commission. Base rates run about 15% to 22%, and paid visibility programs, guest discounts, cancellations and lost repeat business add to it. In the example below, a 15% base rate becomes a real cost of 26% to 31% of the list price.

This is the guide to read before you compare channels. It covers six costs, with sources, and ends with a worked example. Facts about Booking.com and Expedia come from their own partner sites, and rates from third-party guides are labeled. For the detail on each platform, see how much Booking.com charges hotels and how much Expedia charges hotels.

1. What is the base commission on an OTA booking?

Booking.com charges a set percentage of the total booking amount, including fees you charge, once the guest checks out. Expedia Group sets your rate in your agreement. Third-party guides report about 15% to 17% for most independent hotels on Booking.com and 18% to 22% on Expedia Group (BookingWhizz's guide), and a range of 15% to 30% or more across booking sites (Cloudbeds' commission guide). Your own percentage is in your agreement.

2. How much do paid visibility programs add?

Each big booking site sells a way to rank higher. Booking.com's Preferred Partner program adds what it calls a small increase in commission, and BookingWhizz, a third-party guide, puts it at a minimum of about 3 points. Its Visibility Booster lets you choose the extra commission yourself for chosen dates. Expedia's Accelerator adds compensation you choose, paid only when the stay happens. All three are optional, and each exists because it moves your listing up the results, which is why competitors use them. The sources are Booking.com's Preferred Partner page and Visibility Booster page, and Expedia's Accelerator page.

3. What do guest discounts like Genius cost?

Booking.com's Genius program is a discount, not a commission. Joining puts a 10% discount on your least expensive and most popular room type, and higher levels offer 15% or 20%. Booking.com says the average partner sees 30% more search views, 45% more bookings and 40% more revenue with the discount's cost included (Genius page). Whether that trade works for your hotel depends on your rooms and your season, so run it with your own numbers. The discount lowers the price the guest pays, and the commission is then charged on the lower price.

4. What do cancellations and no-shows cost?

Cloudbeds' State of Independent Hotels study found that almost 22% of OTA bookings were cancelled, against 10.6% of direct bookings. It also found that the average cancellation lead time rose to 39 days in 2025, up from 35 days in 2023 (PhocusWire). Every cancelled room must be resold or it stays empty. On top of that, Booking.com charges commission on non-refundable bookings whether or not the guest stays, and on no-show fees you charge (see how much Booking.com charges hotels).

5. What else gets charged on top?

Cloudbeds' commission guide lists further costs beyond the base commission: commission on upsells such as breakfast, parking and late checkout, the way VAT, GST and local taxes are treated, channel manager fees charged per connection or per booking, and sponsored placements. Booking.com, for example, does not charge commission on local taxes such as city tax, but in most countries it does charge it on VAT or GST. None of these looks large on its own. Together they are the reason many hotels find their real percentage is above the one in the contract.

6. What is the cost of losing the guest relationship?

This one has no line on an invoice. When a guest books directly, you have a direct way to invite them back. A guest who books through a booking site often returns through the booking site. Cindy Estis Green of Kalibri Labs put it this way in 2017: "This is not a cost issue, this is a control of the customer issue" (Hotel Management, 2017). The cost of winning a guest is also rising. Cloudbeds found that the cost of acquisition rose 25% between 2019 and 2025, while revenue per available room rose 19%.

What does it all add up to on a $200 night?

Here is one illustrative room night at a $200 list price. It stacks the costs above one at a time: a 15% base rate, an assumed 3-point Preferred Partner increase, a 10% Genius discount and an assumed 5-point Visibility Booster.

ScenarioGuest paysCommissionYou keepCost vs $200 list
Base rate only (15%)$200.00$30.00$170.0015.0%
Plus Preferred Partner (18%)$200.00$36.00$164.0018.0%
Plus Genius 10% discount$180.00$32.40$147.6026.2%
Plus Visibility Booster (23%)$180.00$41.40$138.6030.7%

Illustrative. Assumes the discount applies to this room type. Excludes taxes, payment fees and cancellations, which would raise the cost further.

For context, Kalibri Labs, which analyzes hotel transaction data, found that US hotels spent an average of 19.8% of guest-paid revenue on customer acquisition across all channels in 2015, with a range of 15% to 25% (PhocusWire). That data is old, but it shows the all-in cost is well beyond any single commission line.

What can a hotel do about it?

  1. Know your real number. Follow the steps in how much Booking.com charges hotels and how much Expedia charges hotels.
  2. Track what you keep per room night by channel. Hotel analysts call it net ADR: the rate left after commission, discounts and fees.
  3. Move some bookings to your own website. Our guide to direct booking vs OTA: what each booking really costs shows the sums, and Google's free booking links is a free place to start.
  4. Keep booking sites where they earn their cost, such as filling quiet dates, and switch off programs that do not pay back.

MarginStay helps independent hotels bring in direct bookings, so we have a stake in this topic. Facts about Booking.com and Expedia come from their own partner sites. The worked example uses assumptions stated above and is illustrative.

OTA costs: quick answers

What is the total cost of an OTA booking for a hotel?

It is the commission plus paid visibility programs, discounts you fund, cancellations and other fees. Third-party guides report base rates of about 15% to 22%. Stacked add-ons can push the real cost to 26% to 31% of the list price, as in our example. Your own figure depends on your agreements.

Is Booking.com's Genius discount included in the commission?

No. Genius is a discount you offer, not part of the commission. Joining applies a 10% discount to your least expensive and most popular room type, and higher levels offer 15% or 20%. It lowers what the guest pays, and commission is then charged on the discounted booking.

Do OTAs charge commission when a guest cancels?

It depends on the booking. Booking.com charges commission on non-refundable and partially refundable bookings even if the guest does not stay, and on cancellation or no-show fees you charge. Check your agreement for the exact terms on each booking site you use.

How do I work out my hotel's real cost per booking?

For one month, add up commissions, program fees and discounts on OTA bookings, then divide by the total value of those bookings at the list rate. Do the same for direct bookings, including ad and booking-tool costs. Then compare what you keep per room night, often called net ADR.

Are OTAs still worth it?

For many hotels, yes, for reach and for filling quiet dates. The aim is a healthy mix, not zero. Cloudbeds found OTAs made up 52.7% of independent hotel bookings in North America in 2025, so many hotels have room to move some bookings to their own website.

See what a lower cost per booking is worth

Enter your monthly booking-site bookings and commission in our calculator, and see what your hotel could save.

See your numbers

Sources