The short answer
A Booking.com booking costs the contractual commission, possibly payment fees, and for some properties VAT on the commission. Because the commission is usually calculated on the gross amount, its share of net revenue is higher than the contract rate. Direct bookings also cost money, but usually much less. Since Booking.com was designated a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act in 2024, the platform may no longer stop you offering better prices on your own website.
Key takeaways
- Calculate the commission against your net revenue, not the gross price. The share is higher than the contract rate.
- Depending on the contract, payment fees come on top and, if you are a small business, possibly VAT that you cannot reclaim.
- Direct bookings cost money too: payment provider, website, advertising. A fair comparison has to show both sides.
- Booking.com has been a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act since 13 May 2024. Price parity clauses towards your own channels are therefore no longer permitted.
Why the contract rate misleads
The partner contract states a percentage. Many properties calculate directly against the room rate and arrive at a manageable figure. However, the commission is usually calculated on the booking amount including VAT, whereas your revenue is the amount excluding VAT. Which charges are excluded, such as a separately shown local tourism tax (Ortstaxe), is set out in your contract terms.
A worked example with sample values that you replace with your own:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Room rate per night, incl. 10 % VAT | EUR 150.00 |
| of which VAT | EUR 13.64 |
| Net revenue | EUR 136.36 |
| Commission, example rate 15 % of the gross amount | EUR 22.50 |
| Commission as a share of net revenue | 16.5 % |
A 15 percent commission in your contract becomes 16.5 percent of your net revenue. With annual revenue through the portal in the six-figure range, the difference is noticeable. In Austria, the reduced VAT rate of 10 percent applies to accommodation; for other countries, use the rate that applies there.
What else comes on top
- Payment processing: if the platform handles payments for you, it may charge its own fees. The amount is in your contract or in the extranet.
- Visibility programmes: programmes that promise more visibility in return for a higher commission raise the rate for the affected bookings.
- VAT on the commission: the commission invoice comes from abroad. If you are a small business without input VAT deduction, you may bear the VAT on it yourself. Clarify this with your tax adviser.
What a direct booking costs
An honest calculation also deducts something from direct bookings. Payment through a provider such as Stripe incurs fees that depend on the card and its origin. The website itself costs money once and on an ongoing basis, and anyone who runs advertising pays for clicks. The difference is that these costs are largely fixed or plannable and do not rise automatically with every euro of revenue.
With the commission calculator, you enter your own figures and see what shifting bookings to the direct channel means over a year.
Parity clauses: what has changed
For a long time, booking portals required that hotels were not cheaper on their own websites than on the portal. In Austria and Germany, such clauses were restricted several years ago. Since the European Commission designated Booking as a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act on 13 May 2024, the following applies to Booking.com across the EU: the platform may not prevent business users from offering the same services through their own channels at other prices or on other terms.
Many properties still prefer advantages to discounts: breakfast included, later check-out, flexible cancellation. This protects the price structure and is easy for guests to compare, provided your direct booking website shows the advantages in the right place.
What you can do now
- Gather your own figures: commission invoices for the last twelve months, and revenue by channel from your property management system.
- Calculate the net share: commission and fees against the net revenue of the channel.
- Check the direct share: how much revenue comes in directly today, and how many guests come back?
- Test the booking path: book yourself on your website from a smartphone. How long does it take, and where does it stall? Our technical check does this for you.
Sources and further reading
- European Commission: list of gatekeepers under the Digital Markets Act
- European Commission: designation of Booking as a gatekeeper (13 May 2024)
- Regulation (EU) 2022/1925 (Digital Markets Act), EUR-Lex
- Booking.com Partner Hub: Understanding our commission
- Business Service Portal (Unternehmensserviceportal): VAT rates in Austria
Häufige Fragen
Is the Booking.com commission calculated on the gross price?
As a rule, it is calculated on the booking amount including VAT. Which charges are excluded is set out in your contract terms. Because your revenue is the amount excluding VAT, the commission’s share of your net revenue ends up higher than the contract rate suggests.
Am I allowed to be cheaper on my own website than on Booking.com?
As a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act, Booking.com may no longer prevent you from doing so. Many properties still work with advantages rather than discounts, such as breakfast included or flexible cancellation, because that protects their price structure and is easy for guests to compare.
Are direct bookings free?
No. Payment fees, your website and advertising all cost money. These costs are largely plannable, however, and usually lower than a commission that depends on revenue. A fair comparison has to include the costs of your own channel as well as the portal’s commission.
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