Short-term rental (Airbnb) rules in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Only if Cambridge is your primary residence. You can rent rooms (up to 3 bedrooms) in the unit you live in, or a whole unit next to yours in a building of 4 or fewer units that you own entirely. You must register with Inspectional Services and pass an inspection before renting; the ordinance doesn't set the fee, and the only fee we found ($500, valid five years) is in a city guide dated November 2017, so confirm the current amount with ISD.
| What counts as a short-term rental | Less than 30 consecutive days [1] |
| Allowed types | Operator-occupied and owner-adjacent only [2] |
| Operator-occupied limit | 1 unit, up to 3 individual bedrooms [3] |
| Owner-adjacent building size | 4 or fewer dwelling units, all owned by the operator [4] |
| Registration | Required with Inspectional Services before renting; inspection first [5] |
| Renewal | Every five years or on change of operator/owner [6] |
| Minimum booking | No hourly rentals or stays under 10 consecutive hours [7] |
| Registration fee (2017 city guide) | $500 (or $100 a year over five years), per a guide dated 11/09/2017; confirm current fee with ISD [8] |
Who can rent
Cambridge defines a short-term rental as renting a dwelling unit or bedroom for less than 30 consecutive days [1]. Short-term rentals are an accessory residential use, and only two kinds are permitted [2]:
- Operator-occupied: the unit is your primary residence. You may offer one unit, including up to three individual bedrooms [3]. If you're away for more than seven consecutive days, the unit can only be rented whole to one party.
- Owner-adjacent: a whole unit that isn't your home, in a building of four or fewer units where you own every unit and live in one of them [4]. It can't be rented by the room.
Tenants can be operators with written permission from the owner (and condominium association, if any). Investor-owned units in larger buildings don't qualify.
Registration and inspection
Every unit must register with the city and get a certificate of registration, and you must prove the property is your primary residence, either through the residential tax exemption or an affidavit with ID and recent mail [5]. Inspectional Services inspects before issuing or renewing, and the certificate must be renewed every five years or when the operator or owner changes [6]. The ordinance leaves the fee to Inspectional Services. The city's Short-Term Rental Guide, dated November 9, 2017, put the fee at $500, payable up front or $100 a year over five years [8]; we found no newer official fee schedule, so confirm the current fee with ISD before applying.
Operating rules
No hourly rentals or stays under 10 consecutive hours, and no commercial meetings [7]. Units must meet building code occupancy rules, you must carry liability insurance, and you must post waste instructions, an emergency-exit diagram, a local contact and the certificate.
State rules
State registration with the Department of Revenue and state/local excise taxes also apply; see the state rules section.
See how Cambridge compares with 8+ other Massachusetts towns on short-term rentals (airbnb / vrbo) →
Next steps
- Check eligibility: the unit must be your primary residence, or adjacent to it in a 4-or-fewer-unit building you fully own; units in the Inclusionary Housing Program or otherwise income-restricted aren't eligible.
- Gather proof of primary residence, proof of liability insurance, a floor plan marking the rental bedrooms, and written owner/condo association approval if you rent.
- Apply online through the Inspectional Services Department (831 Massachusetts Ave, 617-349-6100) and pay the registration fee (confirm the current amount with ISD; the $500 figure is from a 2017 guide).
- Schedule and pass the ISD housing inspection, then post your Certificate of Registration in the unit before advertising.
- Register with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue for the state short-term rental registry and excise.
Common questions
- Are short-term rentals allowed in Cambridge, MA?
- Only if Cambridge is your primary residence. You can rent rooms (up to 3 bedrooms) in the unit you live in, or a whole unit next to yours in a building of 4 or fewer units that you own entirely.
- How do I register an Airbnb in Cambridge, Massachusetts?
- Register with Inspectional Services and pass an inspection before renting, with proof of primary residence and liability insurance. Registration is renewed every five years or when the operator or owner changes.
- How much is short-term rental registration in Cambridge, MA?
- The ordinance doesn't set the fee. The only fee found was $500 (or $100 a year over five years) in a city guide dated November 2017, so confirm the current amount with ISD.
- What counts as a short-term rental in Cambridge, Massachusetts?
- Renting a dwelling unit or bedroom for less than 30 consecutive days. Hourly rentals and stays under 10 consecutive hours aren't allowed.
Massachusetts' short-term rental law
Since July 1, 2019, M.G.L. c. 64G has taxed and regulated short-term rentals: stays of 31 days or less in a home, apartment, condo or room booked in advance.
State requirements:
- Register with the Department of Revenue (DOR) on MassTaxConnect and get a Certificate of Registration for each property. Post it in the unit.
- 14-day exemption: if you rent a property 14 days or fewer in a calendar year, no tax is due. You still have to register and file DOR's declaration by January 15 each year. Go over 14 days and you owe tax on every day, including the first 14.
- State room occupancy excise: 5.7% of rent (including cleaning and booking fees).
- Local taxes on top, if your town has adopted them: a local excise of up to 6% (6.5% in Boston), and a community impact fee of up to 3%. The fee applies to "professionally managed" units (an operator with 2 or more units in a town, other than units in the owner's own 1 to 3 family home) and, by separate vote, to units in an owner-occupied 2 or 3 family house. Barnstable County towns add 2.75% for a regional water fund.
- Insurance: at least $1 million liability coverage per unit, unless the booking platform provides equal coverage (c. 175, §4F).
Towns may go further (c. 64G, §14). They can require local licenses and inspections, cap the number of days or units, limit where rentals are allowed, or ban them entirely.
What the bylaw says
- Sec. 4.62(a), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
Short-term rental. Any rental of a residential dwelling unit, or of a bedroom within a dwelling unit, in exchange for payment, as residential accommodations for a duration of less than thirty (30) consecutive days.
- Sec. 4.64(1), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
Only operator-occupied short-term rentals and owner-adjacent short-term rentals are permitted.
- Sec. 4.64(5), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
A short-term rental operator may make available no more than one (1) dwelling unit for operator-occupied short-term rentals, which may include the separate short-term rental of no more than three (3) individual bedrooms, and one (1) dwelling unit for owner-adjacent short-term rentals.
- Sec. 4.62(e), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
Owner-adjacent short-term rental. The short-term rental of a dwelling unit that is not the primary residence of the operator, but is located within a residential building with a total of four or fewer dwelling units where all dwelling units in the building are owned by the operator, and one of the dwelling units in the building is the primary residence of the operator.
- Sec. 4.64(2), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
All short-term rental operators shall register with the Inspectional Services Department prior to short-term rental use and occupancy in conformance with Section 4.67 below.
- Sec. 4.67(2)(c), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
It is the responsibility of the short-term rental operator to renew its certificate of registration every five years or upon change of operator or owner.
- Sec. 4.64(11), Zoning Ordinance Article 4.000 Use Regulations (4.21 Accessory Uses incl. home occupations and accessory buildings; 4.22 Accessory Apartments; 4.30 use table; 4.60 Short-Term Rentals), p. 1
Renting for an hourly rate, or for rental durations of less than ten (10) consecutive hours, shall not be permitted.
- STR Guide, Application Fee, City of Cambridge Short-Term Rental Guide (ISD), p. 2
The fee to obtain a certificate of registration is $500. You may pay the $500 fee at the time the application is filed with ISD, or you may agree to a payment plan that allows you to pay $100 towards the fee on an annual basis over five years.