Cavmir Research · Permit data

Short-Term Rental Permits in Sonoma County, 2026

Sonoma County has issued vacation rental permits every year since 2011: 2,424 permit records in all. May is the busiest month by far: 16% of all permits were issued in a May.

Compiled by Cavmir from the County of Sonoma public permit register · Published October 23, 2026 · All city reports

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Key findings

What the numbers say

Vacation rental permits by year issued2026 runs through early October.
  • Transient Rentals - Vacation
  • Zoning or use permit
Show the numbers
YearTransient Rentals - VacationZoning or use permitTotal
20110170170
201208585
201307878
20140114114
20150281281
20160190190
20172482106
20181570157
20191210121
20201170117
20211630163
20221420142
20232070207
20241740174
20251980198
20261210121
Permits by month issued, 2011 to 2026
Show the numbers
Permits
Jan189
Feb244
Mar199
Apr202
May391
Jun183
Jul229
Aug196
Sep172
Oct141
Nov138
Dec140
Permits by how many permits the same name holdsNames are grouped exactly as the register spells them; they are not published here.
Show the numbers
PermitsShare
Name holds 11,74972.2%
Name holds 2 to 428011.6%
Name holds 5 to 9994.1%
Name holds 10 or more2168.9%
For hosts and owners

What it means if you rent in Sonoma County

Sonoma's permits arrive at a steady pace, so competition grows a little every year rather than all at once. In wine country the guests who book direct are often repeat visitors; a site and a guest list of your own keep them coming back to you.

Turn a permit into bookings you keep

A permit lets you rent. Guests still have to find you, and every booking that comes through Airbnb or Vrbo pays the platform's fee. Cavmir builds websites for short-term rentals, including in Sonoma County: a site in your own brand that ranks for the searches guests make, with live direct booking from your PMS or a button that sends guests to your listing.

Vacation rental website designA website for your Airbnb
Method

How this report was made

Source
Compiled by Cavmir from the public permit register:
Date range
Permits issued January 3, 2011 to October 5, 2026 (2,424 records), checked October 23, 2026.
What we counted
Each permit record counts once, by the date and permit type the register gives.
Limits
These are permit records, not a count of homes renting today: the layer keeps completed permits from past years. Unincorporated Sonoma County only; cities such as Healdsburg and Sonoma run their own programs.
Privacy
This report publishes totals only. No owner name, street address or map location from the register appears on this page or in the download.
Download and citation
Download the totals (CSV). Free to use under CC BY 4.0 with a link to this page: “Cavmir, Short-Term Rental Permits in Sonoma County, 2026, cavmir.com/research/sonoma-county/”.
Questions

Common questions

How many vacation rental permits has Sonoma County issued?

The county's public register lists 2,424 vacation rental permit records issued between January 2011 and October 2026 in its unincorporated areas.

When does Sonoma County issue the most vacation rental permits?

In May: 391 of the 2,424 records were issued in a May, about double the average month.

Is the number of Sonoma County vacation rental permits rising?

It holds steady rather than climbing. The county issued 207 in 2023, 174 in 2024 and 198 in 2025, after 281 in 2015.

Where does this data come from?

From Sonoma County's public Vacation Rentals map layer (Transient Vacation Rental zoning permits). Cavmir compiled it from the county's public permit register and publishes only totals.

More research

Other city permit reports

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All city permit reports · U.S. short-term rental permit data · California short-term rental permit data · Marketing a rental in Sonoma County