Airbnb bans ‘most hated’ checkout rules for guests
Updated . First published
Airbnb has announced major changes to the house rules hosts can set for their guests, including getting rid of one of the most annoying parts of checking out.
Social media has regularly been flooded with complaints about 10-point cleaning checklists that guests need to complete before leaving a property, or face a hefty fee. But that will now become a thing of the past.
Airbnb has made a major policy change to stop hosts from requesting extensive clean up. Getty Images/iStockphoto
The holiday rental platform is introducing a new global House Rules policy that takes effect on 20 November 2026, preventing hosts from enforcing excessive checkout chores.
“House rules help guests understand what hosts expect, but we’ve heard from our community that they can be confusing, onerous, and hard to manage,” an Airbnb spokesperson shared in a statement with nine.com.au.
“So we’ve redesigned them to make them easier to discover and clearer to set, alongside a new policy that keeps requests reasonable, with no surprises.”
Under the new policy, hosts can choose from seven standard House Rules, those include two new rules: maximum number of overnight guests and lock up at checkout.
Any additional checkout instructions are to be included under Requests “as long as they’re reasonable under the new policy”.
“For example, guests shouldn’t be asked to wash and put away dishes, but you can ask them to put used dishes in the sink,” the update read.
Hosts are also prohibited from restricting access to amenities promised in the listing or slapping guests with surprise fines (AirCover already protects hosts against accidental damage).
The changes have sparked a heated discussion on social media between hosts and guests with one Reddit post garnering over 1500 comments in a few hours.
Many travellers had gone back to staying at hotels over the requirements. iStock
“Like those that have $200 cleaning fees, but also want you to do all the cleaning before you leave,” one person pointed
“The people who own the airbnbs can handle cleanup, trust me. They just seriously, genuinely don’t want to and want to pass it off to the person renting,” another wrote.
“The most hated thing for me was having to pay a cleaning fee and still having to clean the house,” was another response.
Some said the changes while welcomed have come taken too long to be introduced.
“Too late. So many of us have moved on back to hotels. Less hassle and cheaper,” one person wrote.
No more washing dishes required. Getty
Meanwhile, many hosts are less than impressed with the updates.
“Why are they removing host functionality? It’s our homes, we should have a say in guest expectation/behaviour,” one frustrated host shared online.
Airbnb confirmed hosts remain in control of their house rules and requests, and can update them anytime.
If a request doesn’t follow the policy, the company will flag the issue, and they can appeal if they disagree.
Cleaning fees have not been shown to guests since a pricing update in 2025. Like other types of accommodation, host have been able to choose to factor cleaning costs into the price of the stay.
