If you’ve traveled anywhere in the past decade, you’ve likely discovered that there are more options than just a dull, cramped hotel. Who gets the second queen-sized bed? Who sleeps on the floor? Who sneaks in because there’s a semi-arbitrary “four person limit” on room occupancy? Airbnb and VRBO have been reliable alternatives, but their fees can make them quite expensive! We were struggling to find a suitable option, but then a friend introduced us to HomeExchange.com.
So how does it work?
Home Exchange is basically what the name says: exchanging your home with someone else. That may sound scary (and maybe even a bit “shady” as we thought before diving in), but it’s really not. The reason Home Exchange charges a fee is because they ensure the exchange experience is safe, reliable and easy to manage. Each account goes through a verification process which prevents fake accounts, and swaps depend on a pretty high level of mutual respect for each home. Once your account is verified, here’s what you’ll want to do next:
1. Select your preferred location(s)
One really fun question to answer once you sign up is: “Where do you want to go?” After taking some time to think about it, you’ll probably have four or five destination in mind. Or, if you’re an experienced travel, you’ll have more like 50! Either way, by entering your preferred destinations you’re opening up a world of travel experiences. People in those locations looking for a swap will match with your profile, allow you to do a “reciprocal exchange” where you both swap homes.
Adding your preferred destinations also helps with filtering results, letting you find the place you’d like to visit much more quickly.
2. Add your home details
After adding the places you would like to visit, now it’s time to show off where guests will be staying and talk about your home! You’ll complete a full home profile which includes photos, a title, and some descriptions such as “What will your guests love about your home” and “What will your guests love about your neighborhood?” which will help guests get to know your place. We recommend adding as much detail as you can.
IMPORTANT: Hire a photographer if you need to. Most modern phones take high-quality photos, but high-quality photos are what make a first-impression.
3. Complete your calendar
Similar to most other options such as AirBNB and VRBO, an availability calendar is set by the owner and informs when the home will be available for a guest points exchange or a reciprocal exchange (or both).
Completing the calendar is fairly easy to do and it’s easy to update later if you change your mind.
4. Search for other exchanges
Ok, you’ll probably want to do this first, because it’s really fun! Home Exchange has really well-implemented search and filtering options that let you narrow down different places you might want to stay. One of my favorite ways to search? The “Anywhere in the world” option.
Another great thing about searching on Home Exchange is date flexibility. When you’re exchanging homes, you don’t always have a specific time in mind so flexible dates are super helpful. Choose how long you’d like to travel, and when you would like to leave, and then let HomeExchange do the rest.
5. Submit a request
Ok, you found a place you like, the dates match, you’ve double-checked there are enough beds for your group… what happens next? You contact the owner to request an exchange.
This is slightly confusing at first because there isn’t a “book now” option where you complete the booking instantly. Instead, you’re reaching out to someone to propose your exchange plan. It’s called a proposal, but really it’s not that scary. All you need to do is select your arrival and departure dates, add the number of guests, choose an exchange type (remember: reciprocal means you’re exchanging homes, guest points means you are using your points), and then add your message.
I strongly encourage you to add a personalized message that introduces you and your group, describes why you want to visit their location, and really anything else that you feel would help the owner decide to say yes. You can also use this as a way to share a more open-ended timeline to see if they are flexible on dates as well.
That’s really all there is to it. HomeExchangers usually respond quickly because their profile (and yours too) will include their average response time (hours, days) and response rate (as a percentage of requests they respond to).
6. Respond to a request
Receiving a request is one of the most exciting parts of being a HomeExchanger because it feels a little like opening a gift – you don’t really know what’s in it, but you know it’ll probably be good.
When you get a request, you’ll get an email with all the details of the exchange. Their name, location, the type of exchange, and their exchange request message (remember that from the last step?). Just hit the “Reply to request” button and you can respond in the app. When you respond, just be kind and consider the time they spent reaching out to propose an exchange. How would you like someone to respond to your request?
The best alternative to AirBNB
Home Exchange is a true “alternative” to these more traditional lodging options for a few reasons:
1. It’s much more affordable
Access to the full Home Exchange platform requires an annual fee ($220 in April 2025), but this gives you access to over 200,000 homes in 155 countries! Signing up and paying this fee will give you 500 Guest Points (GP) to start with (and an extra 250 GP if you sign up using my referral link) and gives you access to the platform, reviews, private Facebook groups, customer support, and their generous exchange guarantee.
2. You get to live like a local
There are so many places on HomeExchange that you may never seek out on your own. For example, we had “New Zealand” on our list of destinations, but since we’ve never been there, we had no idea what city to put down. When we got the request for New Plymouth, we immediately researched the location and started getting excited about it. Would we have sought it out on our own? Probably not!
Living like a local goes beyond the location though, it’s also about the lifestyle. For many of our international exchanges, we’ve met neighbors and friends who knew we would be visiting. We’ve visited restaurants and cafe’s that were recommended by the owners themselves, and since we’re exchanging in someone’s home, you’ll get to experience all the quirks and features of their home and neighborhood.
3. You can swap cars too!
Yes, I know. This sounds a bit scary, but you’ve already read about exchanging homes and have made it this far down the page, so why not consider trading cars too? We’ve done this a few times already, and while this is technically a grey area with car insurance, it’s similar to letting a friend borrow your vehicle for a little while. Just be aware that you may need to know how to drive a manual (a “stick”) and drive on the wrong other side of the road than you’re used to.
4. It forces you to GSD
In the lead-up to every exchange we’ve done, we’ve always felt a little overwhelmed by the amount of sh*t that has to be done. Compared to a hotel where you only have to worry about you, HomeExchange forces you to think a bit more critically about the things you would want to see fixed or finished around your home. It forces you to Get Sh*t Done (GSD). We’ve always thought of it this way: “if we’re saving on lodging, we might as well invest that back into a great guest experience that we also get to enjoy when we come back.”
5. You’ll meet awesome people!
One of the best parts of home exchange though, is the people you meet along the way. We’ve met (FaceTime and in-person) so many great families and their kids (and pets) and have grown to love how this community thinks about travel. There’s a certain nervousness, excitement, joy, and comfort that comes from both parties as you work out the details of the exchange. You learn how they live and experience their home, their appliances, their supermarkets, their aesthetic and their interests.
We’ve actually kept in touch with a few families after exchanging and share advice about travel, or just check in to see what’s new in each other’s lives. It’s all really sweet and friendly, and such a good experience.
Questions we get about Home Exchange
1. What do you do with all of your stuff?
This is by far the most common question we’re asked. We like to think we’re pretty minimal, but with three kids and a small house we do have, well… “stuff.” The truth is, most of it stays out for guests to experience. Toys, LEGO, bikes, cars (if you agree to this), even snow pants and game consoles are great things to leave out for your guests to enjoy. Woudln’t you want them to do the same for you?
2. What do I need to fix or improve about my home?
The answer is probably less than you think, but here’s some basic guidance for you:
- Install a keypad – Install a numeric keypad on your front door to make it easy for guests to unlock and lock your front door. We’ve had lots of success with a version of this Kwikset deadbolt.
- Refresh your towels – It’s nice to have clean towels. We’ve stayed in a few homes where the towels weren’t new and it was totally fine, but having fresh, soft, new towels is one of the little things that will make an impact on your guest. Be sure to leave out some nice soaps and shampoo / conditional as well.
- De-clutter – We tend to be pretty minimal, but after prepping for our big adventure, we realized just how much stuff we had. There’s no right or wrong answer to “how much is too much?” but again, you have to think like a guest. Do you need 35 coffee cups? Probably not. What about a fridge with tons of magnets on it, or piles of paper? Each house is different, and our stuff is also what makes a house feel like a home, so use your judgement. Less is more.
- Address the egregious quirks – Ok, as a homeowner I know all the little quirks of our home, which means I also know all of the little things I have to do to live with the quirks. The washer that wanders a bit, the light that flickers, the faucet that’s hot or cold but not in-between. If you can address the quirks, go for it! You’ll make your life easier, but your guests will appreciate it too. If you aren’t able to address all of the quirks, just be sure to leave a not about them in your home guide.
- Catch up on maintenance – Get ahead of the common maintenance items so your guests don’t have to think about it. Change that HVAC filter, mow the grass, clean out the dishwasher filter, deep-clean everything, etc. etc.
Basically, think of anything that would annoy you or make your stay a little inconvenient if you were exchanging at your home.
Get started!
It’s easy to sign up for an account and get started. You can browse listings without paying for a subscription, and you’ll quickly find inspiration from the hundreds of thousands of properties in their database.