By Ryan Drew | Superhost and Vacation Rental Expert | Last Updated August 14, 2026
When I shopped for insurance for one of my own short-term rentals, I found that Airbnb insurance was much more complicated than simply adding a guest to a standard homeowners policy. I obtained and compared actual short-term rental insurance quotes, including detailed quotes from Proper Insurance and CBIZ. This 2026 guide keeps that firsthand comparison, updates the Airbnb AirCover information, and explains what hosts should look for when comparing dedicated short-term rental insurance.
Quick answer: For a full-time Airbnb or vacation rental, Proper Insurance is my top overall pick because its policy is specifically built for short-term rentals and combines property, commercial liability, and business-revenue coverage. My original comparison also found CBIZ competitive, but the pricing below is based on quotes I personally received at the time—not guaranteed 2026 rates.
Airbnb’s AirCover is useful protection, but its $3 million Host damage protection is not an insurance policy. Airbnb separately provides up to $1 million in Host liability insurance.
Check Your Proper Insurance Quote →Here are the Best Airbnb Insurance Providers for Hosts in 2026:
How I Ranked the Best Short-Term Rental Insurance Options
I do not think the best Airbnb insurance can be determined by premium alone. The cheapest policy can be a bad deal if it leaves a major gap in guest-caused damage, commercial liability, business income, or the way you actually use the property. For this update, I compared the providers and programs around the coverage questions that matter most to an Airbnb or vacation rental owner.
- Short-term rental specialization: Is the product actually designed for paying short-term guests, or is it primarily a homeowners policy with a limited home-sharing endorsement?
- Property and contents: Can the policy protect the building, furniture, appliances, and other contents used in the rental?
- Guest-caused damage: How does the product address damage caused by a paying guest, and what exclusions or limitations apply?
- Commercial liability: Does the liability coverage reflect the business exposure created by repeatedly inviting paying guests onto the property?
- Loss of rental income: Can the policy replace rental revenue when a covered loss makes the property uninhabitable?
- Booking-channel flexibility: Does the protection follow the property when bookings come from Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, or your own direct-booking site?
- Occupancy flexibility: What happens when the owner uses the property personally or when the property is temporarily vacant?
- STR-specific risks and amenities: Pools, hot tubs, docks, bicycles, watercraft, pets, bed bugs, squatters, liquor liability, and other exposures can matter far more at a vacation rental than at an ordinary home.
- Policy structure: I distinguish between a dedicated year-round property policy, a homeowners endorsement, and reservation-based protection. Those products solve different problems and should not be treated as interchangeable.
Most importantly, I personally obtained detailed quotes from Proper and CBIZ. Those quote comparisons are the strongest firsthand part of this article, so I have kept the original coverage details and premiums below. The dollar amounts are historical and should not be interpreted as what either company will quote your property today.
Best Airbnb Insurance: Quick Comparison
| Option | Best For | Type of Protection | My Take |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proper Insurance | Full-time STR owners wanting one purpose-built policy | Dedicated short-term rental property, liability and business-revenue policy | Best overall from the options I evaluated |
| CBIZ Vacation Rental Insurance | Owners wanting a specialized commercial vacation-rental program | Year-round commercial vacation rental coverage placed through CBIZ | Best direct comparison to Proper; I obtained a detailed quote from both |
| Allstate HostAdvantage | Eligible homeowners who occasionally home-share | Home-sharing coverage added to an eligible homeowners policy | Worth asking about for occasional hosting, but not the same product category as a dedicated commercial STR policy |
| Safely | Hosts/property managers wanting reservation-based guest protection | Short-term rental protection tied to reservations | Useful supplemental model, especially across multiple booking channels |
| Liberty Mutual | Owners comparing conventional second-home/rental coverage with an agent | Property insurance varies by property use and underwriting | Ask specifically whether your exact short-term rental activity is covered; the Safeco brand was retired in 2026 |
This table intentionally does not include Steadily or Obie as if they were insurance carriers. Both can be useful insurance-shopping platforms/agencies, but policies can be placed with underlying carriers. That is a different relationship than comparing the actual coverage program or carrier behind a policy. If you use an insurance marketplace or agency, always look at the insurer named on the quote and the actual policy form—not only the brand on the website.
Why Proper ranks #1 here: I wanted a policy built around short-term rental use rather than relying on Airbnb’s protection or trying to stretch a conventional residential policy into a commercial use. Proper’s current short-term rental product is designed to cover the property during guest stays, personal use, and vacancy, with property, commercial liability, and business-revenue coverage in one policy. That structure lines up most closely with what I want protecting a dedicated STR.
- Proper Insurance
- CBIZ Insurance Services, Inc.
- Allstate HostAdvantage
- Safely Insurance
- Liberty Mutual (formerly Safeco)
These short-term rental insurance quotes were for a:
- Single-family home
- Two bed
- One bath
- Stick framed home
- Standard lot
- Small detached garage
- Full-time Airbnb rental property
The liability limits, personal injury limits and deductibles were very close to the same for each quote. Please keep in mind that each company covers different items, so make sure to read through your quote. Although the price may vary, the provider may offer better coverage.
Standard Homeowners Insurance Limitations & Business Pursuits Exclusion Clause
Let’s cover standard home insurance first. Most standard homeowners insurance policies carry a “business pursuits exclusion,” essentially voiding any related claims if your home is used as a business.
Many insurers will actually terminate your policy immediately upon hearing you are considering using your home as a short-term rental business. So be careful!
That leaves us Airbnb’ers in a tough spot. How do we run a business out of our primary residence and still be covered? Read on to get more information on my top 5 insurance companies for short-term rentals.
Our List Of Short-Term Rental Insurance Carriers:
Proper Insurance
Proper Insurance offers a tailored short-term rental insurance policy classified as a commercial policy. Proper’s policy completely replaces your standard homeowner’s policy. Proper utilizes policies through Lloyds of London, and Proper was started by employees at CBIZ (See below).
Proper Insurance Coverages Included in My Historical Quote ($1,600 Per Year Premium with $1,000 Deductible):
Important: This is the quote I received when I originally researched this article. Premiums and underwriting vary by property, location, limits, claims history, and other factors. Treat these figures as a firsthand historical comparison, not a current 2026 price quote.
- Building Damage Caused By a Guest (Accidental, Malicious or Intentional)
- Contents Damage Caused By a Guest (Accidental, Malicious or Intentional)
- Theft- Including by Guest
- Commercial General Liability Coverage
- Personal & Advertising Injury with Invasion of Privacy
- Liquor Liability
- Animal/ Pet Liability
- Communicable Disease (Only Necessary if Your are Providing Food)
- Assault & Battery with Sexual Molestation
- Amenities On & Off Premises (Hot Tubs, Pools, Docks, Bicycles, Kayaks, Etc.)
- Personal Liability
- Ordinance or Law- Increased Cost of Construction
- Business Income
- Backup of Sewers and Drains
- Collapse by Sinkhole, Ice, Snow or People
- Debris Removal
- Unscheduled Structures
Available / Optional Proper Insurance Coverages Not Included in My Historical Quote
- Bed Bug Extermination
- Squatters and Eviction Expenses
- Ordinance or Law- Undamaged Portion of Building
- Equipment Breakdown
Check out our in-depth review of Proper Insurance here.
CBIZ Insurance Services, Inc.
CBIZ provides commercial short-term rental insurance through Berkshire Hathaway. They were the first to offer short-term rental coverage, seeing that no other companies provided this type of insurance. In addition, they are a publicly traded company, offering more stability for their customers.
Their policies are designed for guest stays from 1 day up to six months. CBIZ insurance completely replaces your standard homeowner’s policy, providing full coverage during a guests stay, during times when the home is vacant or occupied by the homeowner.
CBIZ’s insurance policies are also crafted to allow hosts the option of providing guests with one bottle of wine/ champagne, or a six-pack of beer.
CBIZ Insurance Coverages Included in My Historical Quote ($1,686 Per Year Premium with $1,000 Deductible):
Important: This is the quote I received when I originally researched this article. Premiums and underwriting vary by property, location, limits, claims history, and other factors. Treat these figures as a firsthand historical comparison, not a current 2026 price quote.
- Building Damage Caused By a Guest (Accidental Only)
- Contents Damage Caused By a Guest (Accidental Only)
- Theft- Including by Guest
- Commercial General Liability Coverage
- Personal & Advertising Injury with Invasion of Privacy
- Amenities On & Off Premises (Hot Tubs, Pools, Docks, Bicycles, Kayaks, Etc.)
- Ordinance or Law- Increased Cost of Construction (Only for the Damaged Portion of the Home– Not for any Rules that Trigger Undamaged Portion to to Upgraded)
- Business Income
- Backup of Sewers and Drains
- Collapse by Sinkhole, Ice, Snow or People
- Debris Removal
CBIZ Excludes (Does Not Cover):
- Personal Liability
- Theft By Guest
- Liquor (Where Host Provides Liquor)
- Pet Claims
- Assault,/ Battery/Molestation by Guests
- Communicable Diseases
- Unscheduled Structures
Available / Optional CBIZ Insurance Coverages Not Included in My Historical Quote
- Bed Bug Extermination (+$100)
- Squatters & Eviction Expenses
- Ordinance or Law- Undamaged Portion of Building
- Equipment Breakdown
Take a look at our in-depth article where we compare Proper Insurance VS. CBIZ here.
Allstate HostAdvantage
Allstate’s HostAdvantage is comparable to Proper Insurance and CBIZ. The notable differences being Allstate’s limits of coverage and lack of enhancements when compared to the competition’s offerings.
Other than Proper Insurance, Allstate is the only short-term rental insurance provider that offers coverage for damage caused by a guest. The difference is that AllState has a limit of $10K, so if the damage costs exceed that amount, there is no additional compensation to the host.
And this is only for accidental damage. If guests throw a party for example and have 20K in damage, that’s considered malicious damage and wouldn’t be covered under Allstate’s policy. Proper covers both up to the limits of the policy.
If your guests leave the property your coverage stops. Other insurance like Proper provides coverage even while your guests are off the property grounds.
Allstate does not have coverage for squatters or bed bugs. As bed bugs are the most common cause of claims for hosts, this is a pretty serious enhancement to leave out.
Here are the current states that Allstate provides home-sharing coverage:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- California
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Maine
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wisconsin
Safely Insurance
Safely provides premises and liability insurance for homeowners. They also provide liability coverage for the property manager, guests’ personal property, and provide background checks for guests staying in your home.
Costs range from $30-$50 per stay, depending on coverage. This cost could be woven into your cleaning fee, or by boosting nightly rates. They are also compiling a list of “bad guests” so homeowners can be alerted even if the background check comes back clean.
Safeco Insurance Company
During my insurance search, I reached out to a local insurance broker who was able to locate a policy through Safeco Insurance Company. Their standard policy does not exclude the home being used part-time as a short-term rental.
The policy was only a couple hundred dollars more than my current homeowners policy which was rather surprising.
It does require the homeowner to be living in the home part-time.
If you operate your Airbnb solely as a short-term rental, you would need to go with Safeco’s commercial/ landlord policy for rental properties.
Airbnb & Short-Term Rental Insurance FAQs
Does homeowners insurance cover Airbnb?
Do not assume it does. Airbnb itself tells hosts to review their homeowners or renters policy because not all plans cover property damage or losses caused by paying guests. Some insurers offer home-sharing endorsements for eligible situations, while dedicated STR properties may require specialized or commercial coverage. Tell the insurer exactly how the property is used and get the answer in writing.
Do I need short-term rental insurance if Airbnb gives me AirCover?
I would not treat AirCover as a replacement for the property’s underlying insurance. Airbnb explicitly says AirCover’s Host damage protection and Host liability insurance do not take the place of homeowners, renters, or adequate liability coverage. Host damage protection is also not itself an insurance policy.
What if I also list on Vrbo or take direct bookings?
This is one of the strongest reasons to think in terms of property-level STR insurance rather than relying entirely on booking-platform protection. Ask whether the policy covers your rental activity regardless of whether the reservation originated on Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, or your own website.
Is short-term rental insurance more expensive than homeowners insurance?
It can be because a short-term rental creates business and guest exposures that an owner-occupied home does not. But there is no responsible universal price estimate. Location, replacement cost, amenities, revenue, deductible, liability limits, claims history, occupancy, and local catastrophe exposure can all materially change the premium. Get property-specific quotes.
What insurance matters most for an Airbnb with a pool or hot tub?
Liability deserves special attention, but do not stop there. Ask whether the amenity is accepted by underwriting, whether there are fencing or safety requirements, whether injuries connected to the amenity are covered, and whether the policy imposes special exclusions or sublimits. CBIZ, for example, specifically advertises amenity coverage for pools and hot tubs in its current vacation rental program.
Should I use an insurance broker or buy directly?
Either can work. The important thing is knowing who actually underwrites the policy and reading the coverage form. A marketplace or agency can make it easier to compare or bind policies, but the brand that gives you the quote may not be the insurance carrier ultimately taking the risk. That is why I did not rank Steadily or Obie as if they were carriers in the table above.
Bottom Line: What Is the Best Insurance for Airbnb Hosts?
For a dedicated short-term rental, I would start by getting a quote from a specialist rather than assuming AirCover or a standard homeowners policy is enough. Proper remains my top overall choice from the companies I evaluated because its policy is built around the risks of operating a short-term rental: the property itself, guest-related liability, and rental revenue.
That does not mean Proper will automatically be the cheapest or best policy for every property. Insurance is highly property- and state-specific. Use the detailed historical quotes in this article to understand the coverage categories, then compare today’s actual policy forms, exclusions, deductibles, limits, and premiums for your property.
Can a Standard Homeowners or Landlord Policy Cover an Airbnb?
Sometimes an insurer offers a home-sharing endorsement or another option for limited short-term rental use, but the details vary by carrier, state, property use, and underwriting rules. Do not assume a familiar homeowners or landlord insurer either covers or excludes Airbnb based on a generic company list. Ask the carrier or agent to confirm your exact short-term rental use in writing and review the exclusions and endorsements in the actual policy.
Related Questions:
Proper vs. CBIZ: The Two STR Insurance Quotes I Actually Compared
This is the part of the comparison I would pay the most attention to because it is based on an actual shopping experience rather than a feature list copied from insurer websites. When I originally researched insurance for my short-term rental, I requested detailed quotes from both Proper and CBIZ and compared the coverage line by line.
My historical Proper quote was $1,600 per year with a $1,000 deductible. My historical CBIZ quote was $1,686 per year with a $1,000 deductible. Those numbers were close enough that I would not have made the decision based on an $86 annual premium difference. The more important question was what each policy actually covered and how that coverage fit the way the property was being operated.
That lesson still applies in 2026. Insurance pricing has changed, properties are underwritten individually, and CBIZ launched a redesigned national vacation rental program in 2025. Do not use my old premiums as a price prediction. Use them as evidence of why two apparently similar STR policies need to be compared on coverage rather than headline price.
Where Proper Stands Out
Proper’s current product is a purpose-built Commercial Homeowners policy for short-term rentals. Proper says the policy is designed to replace a standard homeowners or landlord policy rather than simply sit beside it as a home-sharing add-on. Its core pitch is straightforward: protect the building and contents, provide commercial general liability, and protect business revenue when a covered loss takes the property offline.
I also like the occupancy logic for a true vacation rental. A dedicated STR may be occupied by paying guests one week, used personally the next, and vacant after that. Proper currently states that its short-term rental coverage is designed to protect the property during personal use, paying guest stays, and vacancy. That is the kind of question I would specifically ask any competing insurer to answer in writing.
Where CBIZ Stands Out
CBIZ is not merely a generic homeowners broker dabbling in Airbnb. Its vacation rental division says it has specialized in vacation rental properties since 2002. Its current program is a commercial vacation rental policy backed by A-rated carriers and can include replacement-cost property coverage, guest-caused property damage, commercial general liability, business-income protection, contents, additional structures, and amenity coverage.
CBIZ’s current published liability structure is also useful for comparison: its vacation rental program lists a $2 million general aggregate, $1 million per occurrence, $1 million personal/advertising injury, and $5,000 medical payments, subject to the policy terms. It also advertises coverage for common vacation-rental amenities such as pools, hot tubs, docks, bicycles, exercise equipment, and non-motorized watercraft, plus up to $25,000 for certain bed-bug cleanup/removal and resulting rental-income loss.
How I Would Choose Between Proper and CBIZ Today
I would get fresh quotes from both and compare the actual forms side by side. I would specifically line up building replacement cost, contents, guest damage, liability limits, business-income methodology, water/sewer backup, amenities, deductibles, exclusions, personal use, vacancy, and any STR-specific endorsements. If one policy is $200 cheaper but creates a meaningful gap around a pool, guest damage, or lost revenue, the cheaper premium is not necessarily the better deal.
Proper remains my top overall starting point because its entire product is built around the short-term rental use case. CBIZ is the alternative I would quote alongside it because it also operates a specialized commercial vacation-rental program rather than treating Airbnb as an afterthought.
Is Airbnb AirCover Enough Insurance for a Host?
Airbnb now calls its host protection program AirCover for Hosts. As of 2026, it includes up to $3 million in Host damage protection and $1 million in Host liability insurance, along with guest identity verification, reservation screening, and a 24-hour safety line.
The distinction matters: Airbnb states that Host damage protection is not an insurance policy. It reimburses hosts for certain guest-caused damage when the guest does not pay, subject to terms and exclusions. Host liability insurance is a separate insurance component for certain situations where a host is legally responsible for bodily injury or property damage.
Why AirCover Does Not Replace Your Property Insurance
AirCover should not be confused with a homeowners, landlord, or dedicated short-term rental property policy. Airbnb itself recommends that hosts consider personal insurance for property damage that Host damage protection does not protect. AirCover also revolves around Airbnb hosting, while many hosts accept Vrbo, Booking.com, or direct reservations.
AirCover vs. Dedicated Short-Term Rental Insurance
| Question | Airbnb AirCover | Dedicated STR Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Guest-caused property damage? | Certain qualifying damage under Host damage protection | Depends on policy; specialized policies may provide broader property coverage |
| Liability protection? | Up to $1M Host liability insurance, subject to terms | Policy-specific liability limits and terms |
| Is damage protection an insurance policy? | No | Yes, when purchased as an insurance policy |
| Non-Airbnb bookings? | AirCover is tied to Airbnb hosting | Can be written around the STR property rather than one platform |
| Underlying building/contents insurance? | Not a replacement for your property insurance | Can insure building and contents, depending on policy |
What to Compare Before Buying Airbnb Insurance
- Guest-caused damage: Ask how accidental, malicious, and intentional damage are treated.
- Commercial liability: Verify limits and exclusions for pools, hot tubs, bikes, docks, or other amenities.
- Business income: Ask how lost rental revenue is calculated after a covered loss.
- Occupancy: Confirm coverage during guest stays, owner stays, and vacancy.
- Booking channels: Make sure coverage is not limited to Airbnb if you also accept Vrbo or direct reservations.
- Replacement cost and deductibles: Compare settlement basis, sublimits, and deductibles—not just premium.
- STR-specific exposures: Ask about pets, bed bugs, squatters, liquor liability, privacy claims, and detached structures where relevant.
For my own comparison, Proper stood out because it was designed specifically around short-term rental use rather than treating hosting as a small endorsement to a conventional residential policy. Proper currently describes its policy as replacing standard homeowners or landlord coverage and combining building, contents, commercial liability, and business-revenue protection.
Additional Umbrella Insurance Coverage For Airbnbs:
An additional umbrella policy may be a wise decision if you are going with a company similar to Safeco. You should talk to your insurance agent about potentially adding on an additional umbrella policy of 1-2 million dollars. This would cover unforeseen mishaps that may take place by guests in or on your property, where your primary insurance may fall short.
