How to Find Hidden Cameras in an Airbnb
To find hidden cameras in an Airbnb, check the listing for any disclosed outdoor cameras before you book, then on arrival run a quick sweep of the rooms with a view of the bed and bathroom — darken each room, look for lens reflections, inspect smart-home devices and the usual objects, and pay particular attention to anything indoors that records, because Airbnb now bans indoor cameras outright. If you find one, the order of what you do next matters more than in a hotel: document it and contact the police before you contact Airbnb.
A short-term rental is a different situation from a hotel, and it changes both how you check and what you do about a find. The person who controls the space is a private host who owns the property and has had unlimited time and access to it — not a chain with staff and liability. That cuts two ways, and both are covered below.
What Airbnb's rules actually say
This is the part that makes an Airbnb simpler than a hotel in one respect: the rule is now absolute. Since April 2024, Airbnb prohibits all indoor security and recording cameras in listings worldwide — regardless of where they are, what they are for, or whether the host disclosed them. Hidden cameras were never allowed and remain strictly forbidden. So unlike some grey areas in other settings, any camera recording the inside of your rental is a policy violation, full stop.
A few devices are still permitted, and knowing which keeps you from raising a false alarm. Outdoor cameras are allowed only if the host disclosed them in the listing before you booked, and they may not be pointed to capture indoor spaces or private outdoor areas like an enclosed shower. Doorbell cameras are allowed on the same disclosed basis. Noise-decibel monitors are permitted in common areas to detect parties, but they may only measure sound level — not record or transmit audio — and must be disclosed. And smart-home assistants like Alexa or Google Home are allowed; a host is encouraged but not required to mention them.
The practical takeaway: read the listing before you book and note anything disclosed. Then anything you find indoors that records video — disclosed or not — is not supposed to be there.
How checking an Airbnb differs from a hotel
The core method is the same one in our complete detection guide and our hotel room walkthrough: darken each room, look for lens reflections around the bed and bathroom first, then inspect the objects with a line of sight to them. What is different about an Airbnb is worth adjusting for.
There is usually more space to cover — several rooms rather than one — so apply the same bed-and-bathroom priority in each, rather than trying to search everything evenly. There are often legitimate smart-home devices present — a video doorbell, a smart speaker, a smart TV — which both provide cover for a hidden device and mean not everything that lights up on a network scan is sinister. And the host has had ownership-level access, so a device can be more thoroughly integrated than the plug-in gadgets common in hotels: built into fixtures, wired into power, or blended with the legitimate smart-home kit.
That last point is why the physical-and-optical layers matter even more here than the network scan. A camera wired into a fixture or recording locally will not announce itself on Wi-Fi.
A practical Airbnb sweep on arrival
Work room by room, prioritising the bedrooms and bathrooms.
Darken the room and look for the small bright reflection of a lens, slowly, from a couple of angles — a lens finder makes this far more reliable, but a careful pass in the dark catches the obvious ones. In a dark room, use your phone's front camera to spot the infrared glow some night-vision cameras emit. Then look hard at the objects facing the bed and any bathroom fittings facing the shower or toilet: smoke and motion detectors, alarm clocks, chargers and plug adapters, vents, decorative items, and — specific to rentals — anything that looks like a smart-home device but sits with a deliberate view of a private area.
Treat the legitimate smart devices with calm scepticism rather than alarm. A smart speaker in the kitchen is ordinary; a "smart speaker" angled at the bed, or a second video doorbell facing inward, is not. The question is always the same: does this object have a private sightline it has no reason to have?
For a guided version that walks you through each room in order, the Room Sweep Companion covers short-term rentals step by step, free.
Room Sweep Companion
Run the free guided rental sweep at Room Sweep Companion. It walks you through each room in order, then gives you a clear coverage summary for review.
What to do if you find a hidden camera in an Airbnb — police first
Here the advice diverges sharply from a hotel, and the order is deliberate.
Do not remove or unplug the device, and do not confront the host through the app yet. Photograph the camera exactly where it is and what it can see, and note its location. If you think it may have a live microphone, do not discuss the find aloud in the room.
Then contact the local police before you contact Airbnb. The reason is concrete: Airbnb's enforcement relies on guests reporting, the company does not routinely involve law enforcement itself, and its own investigation may notify the host — which can give someone the chance to remove the device and the footage before anything is preserved. Covertly recording guests is a criminal offence in Switzerland and across the EU, so it is a matter for the police, and getting an independent record on file first protects you. After that, report it to Airbnb through the platform, with your photographs, and do so promptly — reporting within about 72 hours protects your refund eligibility. Then leave the property if you can, taking your belongings, rather than staying the night alongside the device.
If at any point you feel unsafe, prioritise getting out and reporting from elsewhere over documenting further.
Should you check even though Airbnb banned indoor cameras?
Yes — the ban changed the rules, not human behaviour. A policy prohibits a thing; it does not physically prevent it, and enforcement only happens when a guest finds and reports a violation. The hosts who would hide a camera were already breaking the rules before the ban and are not deterred by a new one. So the ban is genuinely good news — it makes any indoor camera unambiguously a violation and strengthens your position if you find one — but it does not replace a two-minute check on arrival. It just means that if you do find something, the rules are entirely on your side.
Settle in, then forget about it
The point of all this is not to spend your holiday suspicious of the smoke detector. It is to spend two or three minutes on arrival confirming the place is private, and then to relax for the rest of the stay. If you would like it guided, run the free rental sweep in the Room Sweep Companion; if you would rather carry the procedure as a reference, the travel field guide lays it out. And if you rent often, the compact lens finder and RF detector in the travel kit on our counter-surveillance page are what turn a quick look into a confident one — they fit a carry-on.
You booked a private space. A short check is all it takes to know it is one.
Frequently asked questions
Does Airbnb allow cameras inside the property? No. Since April 2024 Airbnb bans all indoor security and recording cameras in listings worldwide, regardless of location, purpose, or whether they were disclosed. Hidden cameras have always been prohibited. Outdoor cameras are allowed only if the host discloses them before booking and they do not view indoor or private areas.
How do I check an Airbnb for hidden cameras? Read the listing for disclosed outdoor cameras before booking, then on arrival check each bedroom and bathroom: darken the room, look for lens reflections, use your phone's front camera to spot infrared lights, and inspect objects and smart-home devices with a line of sight to the bed or shower.
What should I do if I find a hidden camera in an Airbnb? Do not touch it. Photograph it in place, then contact the local police before contacting Airbnb — Airbnb does not routinely involve law enforcement and its investigation may alert the host. Report to Airbnb with your evidence within about 72 hours to protect your refund, and leave the property if you can.
Are smart speakers and video doorbells allowed in Airbnbs? Yes, with limits. Smart-home assistants like Alexa or Google Home are permitted, and outdoor doorbell cameras are allowed if disclosed and not pointed indoors. A device only becomes a problem when it records an indoor or private space — for example a speaker or doorbell angled at a bed.