Revenue management, answered

Do I need a separate comp set for each booking channel, or does one cover Airbnb, Vrbo and the rest?

One comp set per market works for most portfolios. Channel mix affects demand signals, but your competitors are operating the same properties across all platforms. Build your comp set around the property and market, not the booking channel.

By Jack Murphy, Head of Revenue Management at UpRev. Running pricing for US vacation rental managers since 2017. Last updated September 1, 2026.

Why Channel-Specific Comp Sets Rarely Add Value

A beachfront four-bedroom in your market competes with the same properties whether the guest books on Airbnb, Vrbo, or direct. Splitting comp sets by channel fragments your view of true market positioning and creates extra maintenance work without a meaningful pricing edge. The rate you set flows to all channels anyway, so your comp baseline should reflect the full market.

When a Second Comp Set Is Worth Building

If a significant share of your portfolio sits in a market where one channel dominates heavily, for example a rural cabin market where Vrbo drives the majority of bookings, you may want a secondary reference point to track that channel's rate trends separately. This is a monitoring exercise, not a separate pricing foundation. Use it to spot channel-specific rate gaps, then fold those insights back into your primary comp set decisions.

How to Keep Your Comp Set Tight and Actionable

Limit each comp set to properties that genuinely compete on bedroom count, amenities, and location, typically eight to fifteen properties maximum. Review your comps quarterly and after any major market shift, such as new inventory opening or a large property changing ownership. A bloated or stale comp set is a bigger pricing risk than ignoring channel-level nuance.