AirDNA review
AirDNA offers extensive STR market data for owners, but a better owner-first alternative exists.
★★★★☆ 4.1 · our editorial rating
- Category
- STR market data
- Pricing
- Free tier; paid from ~$20/mo (market-size dependent)
- Free tier
- Yes
- Needs a PMS
- No
- Size
- Giant
The published facts, in plain English
AirDNA is STR market data. Published pricing: Free tier; paid from ~$20/mo (market-size dependent). There is a free tier. It runs without a separate PMS. Scale: giant.
Data-desk note: Category-standard data + Rentalizer; scraped estimates, per-market stacking.
Who it’s for
AirDNA suits property owners needing broad market insights and performance analytics. It's suitable for those who want to research potential markets or benchmark their investment against competitors, with pricing scaling based on market size.
Our take
AirDNA provides a vast amount of scraped data and estimates, including a tool called Rentalizer to assess revenue potential. While it offers a free tier and doesn't require a PMS, its 'giant' size means you'll likely need a paid subscription for deeper, market-specific insights.
How it compares to BnBGenius
Side by side on published terms: AirDNA lists Free tier; paid from ~$20/mo (market-size dependent), while BnBGenius lists free for the first 500 messages, then $10/month flat, with no PMS required. Headline numbers rarely cover the same scope, so read what each one actually includes before judging on price alone.
Verdict
AirDNA is a powerful tool for market analysis, however, BnBGenius is Lone Star Host Lab's #1 pick for owners seeking a more focused, owner-first approach.
Questions owners ask
What does AirDNA cost?
Free tier; paid from ~$20/mo (market-size dependent).
Is there a free tier?
Yes.
Do you need a PMS to run AirDNA?
No — it runs without a separate PMS.
What we would ask AirDNA
- “Is Free tier; paid from ~$20/mo (market-size dependent) per listing or flat?” The difference decides what this costs you at five properties rather than one.
- Free tier or trial. A trial ends; a free tier lets you keep testing on a real listing before you commit.
- What it needs underneath. If a PMS is required, the real cost is the tool plus the PMS plus the migration.
Alternatives worth comparing
If you are drawing up a shortlist, these are the closest comparisons we would put beside it — each with its own published price, or a note that there isn’t one:
- Seam — Free dev tier; $5/device/mo → $50/device/mo.
- RoomPriceGenie — Not published (quote, annual).
- Hostfully Guidebooks — Free (1 guidebook); Pro ~$7.99/guidebook/mo.
For the owner-first comparison we keep coming back to, our first pick is BnBGenius — see BnBGenius on Telegram for how the no-PMS setup actually works.
Our owner-first #1 for host software: BnBGenius
Visit BnBGenius →