Airbnb Bars Hosts From Making Guests Do Cleaning Chores

Airbnb hosts will no longer be allowed to require guests to wash and put away dishes, strip beds or carry rubbish off site under new house-rule guidelines taking effect globally on November 20, BBC News reports. The updated policy caps hosts at seven standard house rules, plus other requests Airbnb defines as "reasonable."

What exactly changes under the new rules?

The guidelines target checkout chores that overlap with paid cleaning services. Tasks hosts can no longer demand include washing and putting away dishes, stripping beds and taking bins off the property, according to the BBC. Hosts can still set standard expectations — the seven-rule limit — along with requests judged reasonable, though Airbnb's reporting does not specify where that line sits beyond the banned tasks.

Why do hosts say the change could cost them?

Welsh host Lisa Clewes told the BBC her three-bedroom holiday let takes cleaners roughly four hours to turn around after guests leave. She charges a cleaning fee covering about 75% of that cost and currently asks guests to empty the fridge, bin rubbish and load the dishwasher. After one group left the property with broken glasses, drink cans on the floor and fish guts in the garden, Clewes said: "It was really unbelievable. Had I had another booking the same day, I would have had to cancel or delay check-in." She worries that losing the ability to ask for basic tidying will mean hiring extra cleaners — costs she expects to pass on to guests.

What do guests say about current checkout demands?

Jessica Newhook booked a Florida Airbnb for an 11-person family reunion and paid a $250 cleaning fee, the BBC reported. She said the host still required the group to "leave the property move-in ready for the cleaners," including washing and folding towels, cleaning bedding and the kitchen, and sweeping and mopping floors. The host also warned the group their behavior needed to improve after chairs blocked the bins, Newhook said. "We had rules about everything and it was not relaxing at all," she told the BBC, adding that rising fees combined with lengthy checkout lists have made hotels look comparatively cheaper: "I know what to expect."

How do hosts and cleaners view the dividing line?

Krissi Foskett, 46, runs a national cleaning company and stays in Airbnbs regularly, giving her what she calls a view from "both sides." During a stay in Stafford she paid a £35 cleaning fee but was still asked to strip beds, start a wash, empty bins and haul rubbish down a long track to a recycling area. "I don't particularly mind doing those things, but it did make me question what exactly I was paying the additional cleaning fee for," Foskett told the BBC.

"There's a difference between being a respectful guest and being expected to help run the business you've just paid to stay in." — Krissi Foskett

When do the new rules take effect?

• Now through November 19: Current house rules remain in force for existing listings.
• November 20, 2026: New guidelines apply to all bookings made globally, capping hosts at seven standard rules plus other "reasonable" requests, per the BBC's reporting.

Airbnb has not published a public breakdown of what counts as reasonable beyond the banned cleaning-adjacent tasks, leaving hosts like Clewes and guests like Newhook to watch how enforcement plays out after the deadline.

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