Cook County, IL Short-Term Rentals: Taxes & Fees (2026)
Key Facts
- Tax rate
- 1% of gross rental charge
- Applies to
- Vacation rentals, condos, houses, apartments
- Return due
- 20th of following month
- First-offense fine
- $1,000
- Exemption
- Renter's own permanent residence
Summary
Cook County charges a 1% tax on short-term rentals of houses, condos and apartments countywide, collected by the host or booking platform and remitted to the County.
Hotel accommodations means... a room or rooms in any building or structure kept, used or maintained as or advertised or held out to the public to be an inn, motel, hotel, apartment hotel, lodging house, bed-and-breakfast establishment, vacation rental of condominiums, apartments or houses, dormitory or similar place... Effective May 1, 2016, a tax is hereby imposed on the use of any hotel accommodations in Cook County at the rate of one percent of the gross rental or leasing charge.
Full Breakdown
The Cook County Hotel Accommodations Tax Ordinance defines taxable "hotel accommodations" to expressly include vacation rentals of condominiums, apartments and houses, not just hotels and motels, so an Airbnb or VRBO stay is covered. The tax is 1% of the gross rental charge, paid by the guest but collected and remitted by the owner, manager, or operator (including booking platforms that facilitate the rental). Operators must register with the County Department of Revenue and file a monthly return, even when no tax is due, by the 20th of the following month. A host renting out their own domicile as their permanent residence is exempt from the definition of hotel accommodations.
Violations & Fines
Failing to register, collect, or remit the 1% tax, or absorbing the tax instead of passing it to the guest, is a violation. Fines run $1,000 for a first offense and $2,000 for each subsequent offense, with each day of continued violation counted separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Cook County hotel tax apply to Airbnb rentals?
Who has to remit the Cook County short-term rental tax?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cook County
How Cook County compares: Cities with the Highest Short-Term Rental Taxes·Compare Cook County to another location·View the Illinois short-term rentals overview
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