Cost per occupied room: what it is and how to cut it.
What cost per occupied room means, what to include, a worked example, how it relates to GOPPAR and where small hotels usually save.
By the Tivuzo team · Updated
Cost per occupied room (CPOR) = total rooms department costs for a period ÷ rooms sold in that period. Rooms department costs usually include housekeeping and front office wages, guest amenities, cleaning supplies, linen and laundry, and often a share of utilities. CPOR tells you what it costs to service each night you sell; read it beside ADR and RevPAR to see what a room night really earns.
What to include
| Cost | Include? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Housekeeping wages | Yes | Attendants, supervisors, laundry staff. |
| Front office wages | Yes | Reception and night audit. |
| Guest amenities | Yes | Soap, shampoo, tea and coffee, water, toilet paper. |
| Cleaning chemicals | Yes | From housekeeping stores issues. |
| Linen and laundry | Yes | Outsourced laundry or in-house running costs, and linen replacement. |
| Commissions | Often | Agent and OTA commissions on room revenue: keep separate or include, but be consistent. |
| Utilities | Sometimes | Water, power and gas allocated to rooms; many hotels keep them undistributed. |
| Breakfast in B&B rates | No | That is food cost, not rooms cost. |
Worked example
| Cost for the month | KSh |
|---|---|
| Housekeeping and laundry wages | 420,000 |
| Front office wages | 310,000 |
| Amenities and cleaning supplies | 138,000 |
| Laundry and linen | 96,000 |
| Commissions | 186,000 |
| Rooms department costs | 1,150,000 |
| Rooms sold | 920 |
| CPOR | KSh 1,250 |
With an ADR of KSh 8,500, each sold room night leaves about KSh 7,250 after rooms department costs, before overheads, food and beverage and fixed charges.
GOPPAR: profit per available room
RevPAR tells you room revenue per room you have; it says nothing about cost. GOPPAR = gross operating profit ÷ rooms available. Two hotels with the same RevPAR can have very different GOPPAR if one spends far more to service its rooms or runs a loss-making restaurant. See occupancy, ADR and RevPAR.
Where small hotels usually save
- Amenities parSet a par per room and issue to it; count monthly. Over-stocking rooms is a quiet cost.
- LaundryCompare in-house and outsourced cost per kilo; offer a towel-reuse choice.
- RosteringMatch housekeeping hours to forecast departures and stay-overs, not a fixed roster.
- CommissionsKnow the cost of each channel; a direct booking at a small discount can still be cheaper.
- EnergyKey-card or occupancy controls, solar water heating, and switching off empty floors.
What you need to measure it
- Rooms sold per night from the PMS
- Housekeeping and front office costs in their own accounts or departments
- Amenities and cleaning supplies issued from stores, not just purchased
- Laundry and commission costs recorded each month
In Tivuzo
The night audit records rooms sold; housekeeping stores issues and purchases post costs; analytic accounts keep the rooms department apart; so CPOR and gross operating profit come from the same database as RevPAR. See hotel back office software and hotel accounting.
CPOR questions
What is a good cost per occupied room?
It depends on the property type, wages and standards. Track your own CPOR monthly and compare with the same month last year and with ADR.
Is CPOR calculated on rooms sold or occupied?
On rooms sold (occupied paying rooms). If complimentary rooms are serviced, decide whether to include them and keep the rule.
Should utilities be in CPOR?
Many hotels keep utilities as an undistributed cost; some allocate a share to rooms. Either is fine if you stay consistent.
What is the difference between CPOR and GOPPAR?
CPOR is a cost per sold room in the rooms department; GOPPAR is the whole property's gross operating profit per available room.
Last updated by the Tivuzo team.