Revenue management, answered

Where does the booking channel's commission belong in my pricing setup?

Channel commission belongs in your net-rate floor, not layered on top of your guest-facing price. Build your minimum acceptable net revenue first, then gross it up by the channel's commission rate before publishing. That keeps your yield targets intact regardless of which channel books.

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

Set Your Floor on Net Revenue, Not Gross

Your pricing discipline should start with what the owner actually receives after commission, not the number a guest sees. When you anchor on gross price and treat commission as an afterthought, you risk accepting bookings that fall short of your revenue targets. Calculate the minimum acceptable net for each property and work backward to the published rate for each specific channel.

Account for Commission Differences Across Channels

Different channels carry materially different commission structures, and your published rates must reflect that. A rate that hits your target on a lower-commission direct or OTA channel may underperform on a higher-commission platform if you publish the same number across the board. Maintain channel-specific rate rules so your net yield stays consistent regardless of where the booking originates.

Communicate This Logic to Your Owner Clients

Owners often see the gross booking amount and compare it to rates on competitor listings without understanding the commission deduction. Build your owner reporting around net revenue so conversations stay grounded in what actually matters. This also protects your pricing decisions from being second-guessed based on surface-level rate comparisons.