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Short-Term Rentals in Seattle, WA (2026)

9 verified short-term rentals rules for Seattle, Washington, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.

Verified from official government sources

Short-Term Rental Permits

Seattle makes it unlawful to run a short-term rental without a Director-issued operator license, and unlawful to operate a booking platform without its own platform license. Both licenses come from SDCI under SMC 6.600.040 and must be renewed annually.

Seattle Short-Term Rental Operator License Required

Significant Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.040.A-B

A.Platforms. It is unlawful for any person to operate as a platform within Seattle without a valid platform license issued pursuant to this Chapter 6.600. B.Operators. It is unlawful for any person to operate as a short-term rental operator within the City without a valid short-term rental operator license issued pursuant to this Chapter 6.600.
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Taxes & Fees

Seattle charges short-term rental operators $75 per dwelling unit annually and bed and breakfast operators $75 per unit, paid when the license application is submitted to the Department of Finance and Administrative Services under SMC 6.600.090. Operators must also remit all applicable local, state and federal taxes.

Seattle STR Operator License Fees

Some Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.090

B. Short-term rental operator license fees. The fee for an operator license issued pursuant to this Chapter 6.600 shall be $75 per dwelling unit annually, paid at the time the application is submitted to the City. C. Bed and breakfast operator license fees. The fee for a bed and breakfast operator license issued pursuant to this Chapter 6.600 shall be $75 per bed and breakfast, paid at the time...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Short-Term Rental Parking Rules

Seattle Municipal Code Chapter 6.600 does not impose a dedicated off-street parking requirement on short-term rentals, and SMC 23.42.060 (Land Use Code) does not require additional parking specifically for STR use beyond what applies to the underlying dwelling. STR guests parking on city streets must follow standard SDOT rules: posted time limits, street-cleaning postings, the 72-hour vehicle storage limit, and Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ) rules. In RPZ areas, only one guest hangtag is issued per household; short-term day permits are available in most zones (up to 5 per day, 50 per year per address).

Seattle STR Parking Rules

Few Restrictions

SDOT — Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ) Permits Program

Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ) Permits — RPZ Program: The Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ) Program helps to reduce all-day commuter parking near large commuting centers (like hospitals, universities, business districts, and light rail stations) in residential and mixed-use areas. RPZs use parking restrictions to limit the time that vehicles without RPZ permits can park. Residents in an RPZ can buy ...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Occupancy Limits

Seattle Municipal Code Chapter 6.600 limits a short-term rental operator to a maximum of two dwelling units citywide: the operator's primary residence (where they live more than six months a year) and one secondary unit within Seattle, with grandfathered exceptions for some Downtown Urban Core legacy listings. SMC 6.600 does not set a specific guest-per-bedroom cap, but the underlying dwelling is still subject to occupancy and life-safety standards in the Building, Fire, and Housing codes. STRs are prohibited in RVs, tents, garages, boats, floating residences, waterfront residences, live-work units, and commercial caretaker quarters.

Seattle STR Occupancy Limits

Some Restrictions

Seattle Short-Term Rentals (SMC 6.600) — Helpful information about Seattle's STR Ordinance

The City's short-term rental ordinance limits the number of units that any one short-term rental operator can operate. (An operator can be a single person, a marital unit, a group of people, or a corporate entity such as an LLC.) The licensing process requires you to include the addresses of specific units to your operator license. Most short-term rental operators may operate two units: the ope...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Insurance Requirements

Every licensed short-term rental operator in Seattle must carry liability insurance covering the rental use in an aggregate of at least $1,000,000, or book exclusively through a platform whose own policy meets or beats that amount. The requirement is set in SMC 6.600.070.A.10.

Seattle STR Hosts Need $1 Million Liability Coverage

Some Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.070.A.10

10.Maintain liability insurance appropriate to cover the short-term rental use in the aggregate of not less than $1,000,000 or conduct each short-term rental transaction through a platform that provides equal or greater insurance coverage.
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Primary-Residence-Only Rule

A Seattle short-term rental operator license covers just one dwelling unit unless one of the units is the operator's own primary residence, in which case the cap rises to two. The primary-residence requirement is defined and enforced by SDCI under SMC 6.600.040.B.

Seattle STR Unit Cap Tied to Primary Residence

Significant Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.040.B

A short-term rental operator license permits an operator to offer or provide a maximum of one dwelling unit, or portion thereof, for short term rental use, or a maximum of two dwelling units if one of the units is the operator's primary residence, except for the following:
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Extended Home Share

Seattle normally caps a short-term rental operator license at one unit, or two if one is the operator's primary residence. A grandfather clause in SMC 6.600.040.B.1 lets operators who were already renting short-term before September 30, 2017 keep licensing up to two units, then add a third after one year of renewal if it's their primary residence.

Seattle's Grandfathered Multi-Unit Home-Share Rule

Some Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.040.B.1

1.An operator who offered or provided a short-term rental outside of the locations described in subsections 6.600.040.B.2 or 6.600.040.B.3 prior to September 30, 2017, may obtain a short-term rental operator license allowing that operator to continue to operate up to two dwelling units for short-term rental use, subject to the requirements of subsection 6.600.040.B.4. Upon renewal of the licens...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Repeat Violator Strikes

Seattle doubles the civil penalty for repeat short-term rental violations: a first violation under SMC 6.600.120 draws a $500 citation (or a warning at the Director's discretion), while any second or later violation within five years jumps to $1,000 per violation, with each day of noncompliance a separate offense.

Seattle STR Repeat Violation Penalties

Significant Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.120.B.5

5. Citation penalties. a. First violation. The first time a person is found to have violated one of the provisions referenced in subsection 6.600.120.A the person shall be subject to a penalty of $500. The Director may, in an exercise of discretion, issue a warning to the person responsible for the violation if that person has not been previously warned or cited for violating this Chapter 6.600...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Host Platform Liability

Booking platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo are directly liable under Seattle's short-term rental ordinance for letting unlicensed listings run. SMC 6.600.110 lets SDCI's Director cite a platform $500 per day per listing for the first ten days of noncompliance, then $1,000 per day until it's fixed.

Seattle STR Platforms Face Escalating Civil Penalties

Significant Restrictions

Seattle Municipal Code § 6.600.110.B.4

4.Penalties a.In addition to any other sanction or remedial procedure that may be available, any person violating or failing to comply with any of the provisions of Chapter 6.600 applicable to platforms shall be subject to the following cumulative penalties per violation for each listing from the date the violation occurs until compliance is achieved:1)$500 per day for each violation for the fi...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Looking for King County county-wide rules?

County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Seattle city rules.

Short-Term Rentals in King County →