Revenue management, answered

What do the 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentile price bands mean, and are they listed prices or booked prices?

These percentiles rank comparable listings by price at a given point in time. The 25th is the budget tier, 50th is the market midpoint, 75th is upper-mid, and 90th is premium. Most market data sources report listed prices, not confirmed booking prices.

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

Why the Booked vs. Listed Distinction Matters

Listed prices are what owners advertise, booked prices are what guests actually paid. In soft markets, heavy discounting means the booked price can run meaningfully below the listed price. When you benchmark a portfolio against percentile bands, you need to know which you are looking at or you risk pricing your units against rates that never cleared the market.

How to Use Percentile Positioning Operationally

Most well-run portfolios target the 50th to 75th percentile range as a baseline, then adjust by quality tier, lead time, and demand signal. A property with stronger amenities and reviews should hold the 75th percentile or above without sacrificing occupancy. If a unit is sitting at the 90th percentile and pace is lagging, that is a clear signal to pull price down rather than wait out the calendar. Regularly auditing where each property lands across the percentile bands by booking window gives you a consistent framework for rate defense and compression decisions.