I use Airbnb for almost all of my holiday accommodation these days. You can find amazing bespoke places to stay, often in beautiful areas, for far less than an equivalent place offered by a more traditional holiday rental. And because you are staying in somebody’s house (or room), there is far more availability to choose from in remote regions. But did you know that there’s a secret money hack that could save you hundreds of pounds each year on Airbnb fees? Read on to find out…
Airbnb is the best!
I always consider Airbnb as the first choice for my accommodation when organising a holiday. In my entire adult life, I’ve never used a travel agent, and have only taken one package holiday (to Bodrum, Turkey in April 2025) – the remainder have all been self-organised. I like organising holidays – I enjoy the freedom of planning things myself. If you’re reading this, you probably do too. Well, how to save money on Airbnb? Here comes the magic…
Introducing cash back
Cash back is a rewards program that returns back a percentage of the purchase amount to the cardholder. It’s not free money – you have to make a purchase to qualify for cash back. It works like this:
- In order to generate revenue, many online retailers will have affiliate partnerships with other websites to promote their business.
- Now, my two favourite cash back websites are Cheddar and Topcashback. By clicking on the Topcashback link, you’re taken to my referral page for the website. Whenever someone sets up an account, I get a small referral fee (and you also get a reward).
- This is essentially how cash back sites work, but on a much larger scale. Topcashback and Cheddar both have affiliate partnerships with thousands of online retailers. They are paid a fee by the retailer every time a customer buys something from one of their affiliate links.
- The magic of cash back is that they share their fee with you. This appears to you as a percentage return on your purchase (usually somewhere between 1-5%), which is added to your cash back wallet. You can then choose to pay this into your bank account.
Introducing… gift cards
Cheddar provides you with instant cash back on gift card purchases. Almost all online retailers have e-gift cards, including Airbnb. Cheddar gives 4% cash back on Airbnb gift card purchases. Unfortunately, the maximum amount you can put on a single gift card is £100, so you’ll need to make multiple purchases if paying for a holiday.
I recently paid £1,350 for accommodation for a two-week road trip across Scotland using this method. It’s not perfect as I had to make 13x £100 gift card purchases and 1x£50 purchase, and then add them all to my Airbnb account. On Airbnb, go to Account settings/ Payments/ Add gift card to do this. It was about 20 minutes work – but I made £57.30 in cash back (which equates to £171.90 hourly rate). I also got a £5 bonus for my first purchase with Cheddar, and because I bought so many gift cards, Cheddar gave me ‘boosts’ with up to 4.5% cash back on some purchases.
Overall, it’s a great way to save money. If you’re already buying something, make sure to check if there is cash back offered, either through buying gift cards on Cheddar, or through ‘normal’ affiliate links with websites like Topcashback. DON’T buy things just for the sake of it so you can get a good cash back deal. Employ this money hack only when you need it.
Bonus – stack your cash back!
In some cases, you can get cash back multiple times on the same purchase. You can get one layer of cash back through buying gift cards from Cheddar or TopGiftCards. But wait, there’s more! You can then get a second layer of cash back by using these gifts cards to make purchases online through affiliate links provided by Topcashback (or your preferred cash back website). So, all in all:
- First layer of cash back from buying gift cards.
- Second layer of cash back from using these gift cards to make purchases through affiliate links on a cash back website.
Just make sure you load the gift cards with only the money you need (and no more), as many retailers don’t offer cash refunds on their gift cards.
So there we have it, how you can easily save money on Airbnb. A money hack that you should use wherever possible when making online purchases. It could save you thousands of pounds when employed over many years. I certainly plan to keep deploying it with Airbnb.
FAQ
Yes, buying Airbnb gift cards through reputable platforms like Cheddar or Topcashback is safe. These gift cards work just like regular Airbnb credit and can be added to your account for payment. Always ensure the website is legitimate and that you only load the amount you need, as refunds on gift cards are rarely available.
Savings depend on your holiday spend and cash back rates. For example, spending £1,350 on Airbnb using gift cards and Cheddar’s 4% cash back returned around £57, plus bonus boosts. Over multiple trips, this can amount to hundreds of pounds saved annually, without altering your travel plans.
Yes, most platforms cap gift card amounts, usually at £100. For larger bookings, you’ll need to purchase multiple cards. While this can be slightly time-consuming, adding them to Airbnb is straightforward, and the accumulated cash back makes the effort worthwhile.
Absolutely. You can earn one layer of cash back when buying gift cards and a second layer when using those gift cards through affiliate links on sites like Topcashback. Always check the terms and only spend what you planned to avoid holding excess gift card balances.
No, this cash back hack works with many online retailers offering gift cards through Cheddar, Topcashback, or similar platforms. It’s a flexible strategy for holidays, shopping, and subscription services – wherever you would normally pay online.
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