Is Airbnb legal in San Diego?

Short-term rentals in San Diego are legal only when the host complies with the city's rules. The current regime: Permitted with tiered licensing, whole-home STRs capped citywide by lottery. Permit or registration requirement: Short-Term Residential Occupancy (STRO) license required; four tiers from part-time home sharing to whole-home; annual fees vary by tier. Operating without the required registration can lead to fines and platform delisting, San Diego is among the markets where Airbnb and Vrbo are required or pressured to remove non-compliant listings. Check the city's official short-term rental page before listing, because ordinances in this space are amended frequently.

Do I have to live in the property to rent it short-term in San Diego?

Primary-residence requirement in San Diego: No for whole-home licenses (Tier 3/4), but those licenses are capped and allocated by lottery. Night caps: Tier 1 (whole home, part-time) limited to 20 days/year; other tiers uncapped but license-limited. This is the single biggest factor separating investor-friendly STR markets from restricted ones, where a primary-residence rule applies, a pure investment property generally cannot operate as a short-term rental at all, and investors instead look at 30-plus-day furnished rentals, which most STR ordinances (including San Diego's) do not cover.

What taxes do short-term rental hosts pay in San Diego?

Lodging taxes for short-term stays in San Diego: City transient occupancy tax of 10.5% plus a tourism marketing district assessment on stays under 30 days. On top of lodging taxes, STR income is ordinary taxable income at the federal and state level, and hosts averaging short stays with substantial services may owe self-employment tax. Airbnb and Vrbo collect and remit some lodging taxes automatically in many jurisdictions, but the host remains legally responsible for confirming full compliance, verify current rates with the city and state revenue departments, as they change often.

San Diego Short-Term Rental Laws (2026)

California · Last reviewed: July 2026

San Diego uses a tiered Short-Term Residential Occupancy license system: home-sharing is broadly allowed, but whole-home licenses are capped near 1% of the city's housing stock (with a separate Mission Beach allocation) and distributed by lottery. It is one of the few large California cities where a non-resident investor can legally run a whole-home STR, if they win a license.

General information, not legal advice. Verify with the current statute or a local attorney before acting.

San Diego Airbnb rules at a glance

Status	Permitted with tiered licensing, whole-home STRs capped citywide by lottery
Primary residence required	No for whole-home licenses (Tier 3/4), but those licenses are capped and allocated by lottery
Permit / license	Short-Term Residential Occupancy (STRO) license required; four tiers from part-time home sharing to whole-home; annual fees vary by tier
Night caps	Tier 1 (whole home, part-time) limited to 20 days/year; other tiers uncapped but license-limited
Lodging taxes	City transient occupancy tax of 10.5% plus a tourism marketing district assessment on stays under 30 days

Key rules for hosts in San Diego

Whole-home STRO licenses (Tier 3 citywide, Tier 4 Mission Beach) are capped at roughly 1% of housing stock citywide and allocated by lottery
Mission Beach has its own higher cap reflecting its historic vacation-rental character
Home-sharing tiers (host present) are not capped in number
One license per host; license number must appear on listings
Good-neighbor policies, local contact requirements, and trash/noise standards apply

Enforcement

The city enforces through the STRO licensing system, platform data sharing, and fines; unlicensed whole-home operators risk citations and losing lottery eligibility.

Taxes on short stays

City transient occupancy tax of 10.5% plus a tourism marketing district assessment on stays under 30 days. Platforms often collect and remit some or all lodging taxes automatically, but hosts remain responsible for registration and any amounts the platform does not handle. Stays of 30 days or longer are generally exempt from lodging taxes and from the short-term rental rules above. STR income is also ordinary taxable income at the federal and state level.

What this means for investors

Before underwriting a short-term rental in San Diego, confirm the parcel’s exact jurisdiction and zoning, whether a permit is available to a non-resident owner, and the all-in tax load — then stress-test the deal as a 30-plus-day furnished rental or a traditional lease in case the rules tighten. Model the numbers with the Airbnb calculator and compare against a long-term strategy using our rental income investing guide.

Official source

Verify current requirements on San Diego’s official short-term rental page: https://www.sandiego.gov/treasurer/short-term-residential-occupancy.

San Diego short-term rental FAQs

Is Airbnb legal in San Diego?: Short-term rentals in San Diego are legal only when the host complies with the city's rules. The current regime: Permitted with tiered licensing, whole-home STRs capped citywide by lottery. Permit or registration requirement: Short-Term Residential Occupancy (STRO) license required; four tiers from part-time home sharing to whole-home; annual fees vary by tier. Operating without the required registration can lead to fines and platform delisting, San Diego is among the markets where Airbnb and Vrbo are required or pressured to remove non-compliant listings. Check the city's official short-term rental page before listing, because ordinances in this space are amended frequently.
Do I have to live in the property to rent it short-term in San Diego?: Primary-residence requirement in San Diego: No for whole-home licenses (Tier 3/4), but those licenses are capped and allocated by lottery. Night caps: Tier 1 (whole home, part-time) limited to 20 days/year; other tiers uncapped but license-limited. This is the single biggest factor separating investor-friendly STR markets from restricted ones, where a primary-residence rule applies, a pure investment property generally cannot operate as a short-term rental at all, and investors instead look at 30-plus-day furnished rentals, which most STR ordinances (including San Diego's) do not cover.
What taxes do short-term rental hosts pay in San Diego?: Lodging taxes for short-term stays in San Diego: City transient occupancy tax of 10.5% plus a tourism marketing district assessment on stays under 30 days. On top of lodging taxes, STR income is ordinary taxable income at the federal and state level, and hosts averaging short stays with substantial services may owe self-employment tax. Airbnb and Vrbo collect and remit some lodging taxes automatically in many jurisdictions, but the host remains legally responsible for confirming full compliance, verify current rates with the city and state revenue departments, as they change often.

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This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws change — verify with the current statute or a local attorney before acting. Summary reflects widely documented rules as of July 2026; short-term rental ordinances are amended and litigated frequently.