Seattle
For Seattle, registration / licence required? is Operating an STR without a regulatory license could subject you to fines and other penalties; ordinance / administering office is Seattle Municipal Code, verified against its source on 2026-08-18.
- City
- Seattle our reading
- Registration / licence required?
- Operating an STR without a regulatory license could subject you to fines and other penalties. verified
- Ordinance / administering office
- Seattle Municipal Code verified
- Fee and licence term
- The fee for an STR operator regulatory license is $75 per unit and it must be renewed annually. per seattle.gov
- Residence and unit limits
- Most short-term rental operators may operate two units: the operator's primary residence and a secondary unit, one in which the operator does not live. per seattle.gov
- Dated rule change
- The City of Seattle began issuing STR regulatory licenses, which are valid for one year, on Jan. 2, 2019. per seattle.gov
Values marked our reading are our classification of what the source says — the source does not print them in those words. The quote below is the evidence for each one; judge it yourself.
What the source says
Operating an STR without a regulatory license could subject you to fines and other penalties. Avoid fines and penalties by completing the licensing process.
— seattle.gov, retrieved 2026-08-18
What seattle.gov says
The fee for an STR operator regulatory license is $75 per unit and it must be renewed annually.
— seattle.gov, retrieved 2026-08-18
What seattle.gov says
Most short-term rental operators may operate two units: the operator's primary residence and a secondary unit, one in which the operator does not live.
— seattle.gov, retrieved 2026-08-18
What seattle.gov says
Short-term Rental Operator licenses are valid for 12 months from the date they are issued (e.g., if you received your short-term operator's license on March 15, 2021, your license renewal is due on or before March 15, 2022).
— seattle.gov, retrieved 2026-08-18
What seattle.gov says
The City of Seattle began issuing STR regulatory licenses, which are valid for one year, on Jan. 2, 2019.
— seattle.gov, retrieved 2026-08-18
Sources disagree
More than one authority states this, and they do not state the same thing. Both are reproduced with the source each came from — deciding between them is yours, not ours.
Registration / licence required?
seattle.gov says registration / licence required? is Operating an STR without a regulatory license could subject you to fines and other penalties., as of 2026-08-18.
Operating an STR without a regulatory license could subject you to fines and other penalties. Avoid fines and penalties by completing the licensing process.
https://www.seattle.gov/business-regulations/short-term-rentals
seattle.gov says registration / licence required? is Short-term Rental Operator Licenses issued by the City must be posted on every listing advertising or offering the short-term rental unit, as of 2026-08-18.
Short-term Rental Operator Licenses issued by the City must be posted on every listing advertising or offering the short-term rental unit, including listings on platforms (e.g VRBO, Expedia, MrBnb, Airbnb etc.). The short-term rental license must be posted in this format: STR-OPLI-##-######. Example STR-OPLI-21-000123. Platforms may remove listings if the license number is not formatted correctly.
https://www.seattle.gov/business-regulations/short-term-rentals
Source
- seattle.govhttps://www.seattle.gov/business-regulations/short-term-rentals