Ever wondered where short-term rentals are most popular? AirDNA’s new Hottest Cities report has the answers. We reveal the 30 American cities that are currently experiencing the largest Airbnb and Vrbo listing growth. (Whether you avoid or invest in these locations is up to you.)

The Hottest Short-Term Rental Cities in the U.S. for 2023 | AirDNA

At AirDNA, we’re devoted to digging through the data to help hosts and investors determine which cities are most profitable when it comes to short-term rental (STR) investments.

And as evidenced in our latest Best Places to Invest report, many of those locations are no longer traditional vacation destinations. This is because the STR space has matured and evolved in recent years, and many beach and mountain towns are more competitive than ever.

This still begs the question, though: Which cities are most popular? Where is supply growing fastest?

We dove back into our database to help you understand—with unmatched accuracy—which cities have seen the greatest listing growth, investor interest, and nightly prices over the past year. This report is less about what could happen and more about what has happened. (STR supply hit record levels in 2022, growing 20% year over year to 1.3 million listings.)

Whether you avoid or invest in these markets—that decision is up to you. But the following list gives you a better sense of where real STR growth is happening right now.

Hottest Cities for Short-Term Rentals in 2023

With the largest YOY supply increase in the country, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona earned the top spot on our hottest markets list for its rapid growth in listings and search popularity. Loved for its warm weather and scenic desert landscapes, the city draws hikers, bikers, golfers, and outdoor enthusiasts from across the country. Demand for short-term rentals in the sunniest city in the country jumped a whopping 52% last year, and listings increased 60% YOY, an addition of nearly 13,000 listings. The greatest supply growth was among downtown homes (54% YOY). 


If you’re looking for delicious Tex-Mex and barbeque, historic landmarks, live music, and passionate sports fans in a bustling business hub, then Dallas would be the place to visit. Affordable home values averaging around $350K have made Dallas an attractive city for short-term rental investors looking to meet demand in a city where employment has grown rapidly in the past year (6.4% YOY). Supply in the Big D grew 18% YOY with the greatest growth seen among downtown homes (41.7% YOY).

Home to NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Houston can be an exciting city to learn about space exploration while visiting notable art museums and immersing yourself in the food and culture of the city’s diverse ethnic neighborhoods. As the “Energy Capital of the World,” Houston is the headquarters for several large oil and gas companies that fuel its strong job economy. Home values around $270K and strong demand for short-term rentals led Houston to add 3,200 new listings last year (the second-largest number of new listings on our hottest markets list). Houston’s 19% YOY supply growth was led mostly by growth in downtown home listings (37.7% YOY).

The tallest arch in the world is hard to miss if you’ve ever visited the city that was the “Gateway to the West'' for the westward movement of settlers in the 1800s. A major transportation hub, St. Louis offers visitors family-friendly fun at lush public parks, museums, and even the local Six Flags. With average home values around $200K, St. Louis has the highest investability on our list with a yield rate of 14.8%. St. Louis also had the largest ADR growth on our list (17% YOY), an indication of strong pricing power for STR owners. Listings grew 33% YOY with the greatest growth seen among suburb apartments (41.2% YOY). 


Known for The Alamo and the River Walk, San Antonio is a city that attracts visitors looking to immerse themselves in the city’s vibrant history, Spanish colonial architecture, and Tex-Mex cuisine. Home to several military bases, including Lackland Air Force Base where basic training is held for new airmen, San Antonio has a large military presence and is often visited by military family members. Home values around $300K make San Antonio an affordable city for short-term rental investors with an expected yield of 11.5%. Listings in this historically rich city grew 28% YOY with the largest growth seen among suburb homes (43.1%). 


Finding the best places to buy a vacation home is one thing, but what about the best properties? Use Rentalizer, the Airbnb calculator, to enter any address and see its projected performance on Airbnb and Vrbo.

No more guesswork or friend-of-a-friend advice. Welcome to the new way to find the best vacation rental locations. 

This beach city is called the “Sunshine City '' for its Guinness World Record of 768 days of consecutive sunshine. If you’re not enjoying the sun at the city’s award-winning beaches, you can explore the Salvador Dali Museum, stroll St. Pete Pier, hike the Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, or go see a show downtown. Short-term rental investors can expect home values around $520K, high occupancy, and around 11% yield. Listings grew 16% over the last year, with the strongest growth seen among suburban homes (47.5% YOY). 

Home to NASCAR, Charlotte hosts several races every year at Charlotte Motor Speedway and has a NASCAR Hall of Fame. For those that are not race car enthusiasts, there's several art museums, performing arts venues, and Freedom Park with 100 acres of paved trails and sports fields for recreational activities. With strong demand growth and affordable homes values around $330K, Charlotte was the second-highest searched city on our list of hottest markets. Charlotte’s 23% YOY supply growth was led mostly by growth in downtown home listings (33.1%). 

Just across the bay from St. Petersburg, Tampa came in number eight on our list of hottest markets for its search popularity and strong supply growth. The “Cigar Capital of the World” is known for its vibrant Cuban community and popular theme parks, museums, and sports teams. Affordable home values around $310K coupled with strong home appreciation (13% YOY) and short-term rental occupancy make Tampa an attractive city for investors. Last year, short-term rental listings grew 25%, with the greatest growth seen among suburb homes (50.8%). 

Known as the home of the Ohio State Buckeyes, Columbus, Ohio attracts significant migration with its top-ranked universities, low cost of living, vibrant sports and art culture, and diverse and growing job economy. Affordable home values averaging around $250K and growing demand for short-term rentals made Columbus the highest-searched city on our list. Since 2022, available listings in Columbus have increased 37% year over year, with average daily rates (ADR) rising 10%. Supply growth has been the strongest among homes in downtown Columbus, with 44.2% growth last year.

Referred to as the “Smithsonian of the South,” Raleigh is historically and academically rich, with more than 40 free landmarks and museums and several prestigious universities and research centers. For those looking for recreation, the city has more than 10,000 acres of parkland for hiking, biking, picnicking, and fishing. Home values in Raleigh average around $350K, and large demand growth (25% YOY) has driven significant supply growth in the last year (33% YOY). The greatest supply growth was among downtown homes (36.7% YOY). 

These cities are also hot STR investment locations in 2023, but just missed making our top 10 list:

Methodology: How we calculated the hottest cities


We used our property-level performance data for STRs and indexed around the pillars listed below.


How many new STR properties have been added in the past year? This metric calculates the change in the number of listings from last year to this year. 


Our Rentalizer™ platform—used by hundreds of thousands of users to predict earning potential for any property in the world—provides us insight into some of the most popularly searched markets. In Q1 2023, we tracked 1.8 million address searches for U.S. properties. To make accurate comparison between cities of different sizes, we divided the number of searches for each city by the number of active STRs. This provides a ratio of new investment interest versus existing supply.


What did properties charge per night this year compared to last? By calculating year-over-year changes in average daily rate (ADR), this metric reflects pricing growth as a result of shifts in demand and guest preferences. 

Note: This index does not account for STR regulations. Always research local requirements before investing in a property.

Let’s be unambiguous: AirDNA never provides financial advice. Where you do and don’t invest is up to you. But we’re always here, as your data partner, to help you make confident decisions with accurate insights.

Many investors will choose to avoid hot cities with rising supply. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to find success in these places. If you can find the right property at the right price in a place like Phoenix or Dallas, you could set yourself up for true long-term success.

On the other hand, some investors seek lucrative opportunities in cooler locations. Again, this is completely possible.

The path you chart is up to you. Just think of data tools like Rentalizer™ and MarketMinder™ as your map and compass, respectively, along the way. (These tools will also help you factor in important variables like demand and occupancy, too.)

And remember: For a rundown of markets—popular or not—that can offer big returns on investments, check out our latest Best Places to Invest report.


2022 was a year of record-breaking supply growth for the STR industry. Racing to catch up after a year of unprecedented STR demand in 2021, supply grew 20% YOY in 2022, jumping from nearly 1.1 million available listings at the start of the year to 1.3 million listings at year’s end. 


Our hottest markets won distinction with their significantly larger-than-average supply growth last year. Compared to the 20% YOY growth we saw across all markets, the top 10 hottest markets had an average supply growth of 33% and experienced faster listing growth across real estate and location types. 

Supply growth in the U.S. for the last year has favored houses over apartments and condos. Last year, supply growth for houses across all U.S. markets was 24% and 16% for apartments and condos. In our top 10 hottest markets, those trends were amplified, with supply up 40% for houses and 22% for apartments and condos. Large listing growth has driven occupancy declines for houses and villas across US markets in the last year (-2.9%), while apartments and condos with less listing growth have seen positive occupancy growth (0.7%). 

In contrast to market trends across large U.S. cities, our top 10 hottest markets also had higher proportions of suburb listings versus urban listings. Across large cities in the U.S., there is a fairly even split between urban and suburb listings. However, in our top 10 hottest markets, suburb listings made up 64.2% of listings over the past year, while urban listings made up 35.8% of listings. Migration and limited housing options for students, workers, and digital nomads have been the main drivers of demand for suburban listings and longer-term stays (28+ days) in hot markets. Last year, supply growth for suburb listings in our hottest markets was 36%. 

With mortgage rates rising and revenue premiums shrinking as a result of rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve, we expect supply growth for U.S. short-term rentals to slow significantly in 2023. However, in our hottest markets where investor interest is high, supply growth could continue. Short-term rental investors that currently own properties in hot markets or are interested in investing in hot markets, should be keeping a careful eye on their occupancy and average daily rates (ADRs) to ensure competitiveness. 



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The Hottest Short-Term Rental Cities in the U.S. for 2023 | AirDNA

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