A shortlet is a furnished home you rent by the night, week or month for a set stay. A long let is a home you rent for a year or more, usually empty, with rent paid in advance.
If you need somewhere soon and for a limited time, a shortlet is usually the better choice. If you are settling in one area for a year or more, a long let usually costs less per month once you are in.
This guide compares the two from the renter’s side. If you are a landlord deciding how to let a property, read short let vs long-term rental for landlords instead.
The difference in one table
| Shortlet | Long let | |
|---|---|---|
| How long | A night to a few months | Usually a year or more, then renewed |
| How you pay | For the nights, weeks or months you stay | Rent in advance, often for a full year |
| Fees on top | Sometimes a cleaning fee, plus a refundable caution deposit | Usually agency and agreement fees, a caution deposit, and sometimes a service charge |
| Furniture | Fully furnished, with a kitchen and bedding | Usually empty; you furnish it |
| Bills | Often included, such as power, water and Wi-Fi; check each home | You pay them: electricity, diesel, water, internet and estate dues |
| Moving in | The day you arrive | Weeks of viewing, paperwork, paying and setting up |
| Paperwork | Booking terms and house rules | A tenancy agreement |
| Best for | Visits, moves, projects, house-hunting | Settling down in one place |
Up-front costs
This is where the two differ most. With a long let in Nigeria, you usually pay a lot before you get the keys:
- Rent in advance, often for a full year, and sometimes more.
- An agency fee for the agent who found the flat.
- An agreement or legal fee for the tenancy agreement.
- A caution deposit, returned when you leave if nothing is damaged.
- A service charge in some estates, for security, cleaning and shared power.
- Setting up: furniture, a fridge, a cooker, curtains, a generator or inverter, and connecting the prepaid meter.
Our guide to move-in costs when renting in Nigeria explains each of these fees.
With a shortlet, you pay for the dates you stay, plus any cleaning fee and a refundable caution deposit. There is no agency fee when you book directly, and nothing to buy. The price per night is higher than a long let’s rent per night, because you are paying for furniture, bills and flexibility.
The fair way to compare is the total cost for the time you actually need. Add up a long let’s rent, fees and setting-up costs, and divide by the months you will really stay.
Then compare it with the total for a shortlet over the same months. For a short stay, the shortlet often wins. For a long one, the long let usually does.
Flexibility
A shortlet gives you freedom. A long let gives you stability. Which matters more depends on your plans.
- Shortlet: stay exactly as long as you need, then leave. Try one area this month and another next month. If your job moves, you move.
- Shortlet trade-off: the home is not yours to keep. In busy seasons, like December, the dates you want may be taken, and you may need to move.
- Long let: a fixed home for a year or more, somewhere to receive post, and space to make it your own.
- Long let trade-off: you are committed. Leaving early can cost you rent you have already paid, depending on your tenancy agreement.
Before you sign a long let, read our guide to tenancy agreements in Nigeria, so you know what happens if you need to leave early.
Furniture and bills
A shortlet is ready to live in from the first night. Beds, a sofa, a kitchen, bedding and towels are all there. Power, water and Wi-Fi are often included in the price, but not always, so read the listing and ask about generator hours.
A long let usually starts empty. You pay for furniture and appliances, and then the running costs each month: electricity tokens, diesel, water, internet, cleaning and estate dues. Those costs are yours whether you are home or travelling.
Before you book a shortlet for a long stay, ask the host:
- How many hours of power a day, and who pays for extra diesel or electricity units?
- Is Wi-Fi included, and is it fast enough to work from home?
- How often is the home cleaned, and are bedding and towels changed?
- Is there water all day, and a backup if the supply stops?
If you already own furniture, a long let makes more sense. If you would have to buy everything, the cost of furnishing is a big part of the comparison.
The middle option: serviced apartments
A serviced apartment sits between the two. It is furnished like a shortlet, often with cleaning, security and backup power managed for you, and it suits stays of a few weeks to many months. Some are let by the night, others by the month or year.
If you need a stable base for a few months without buying furniture, compare a monthly shortlet with a serviced apartment. See serviced apartments in Lagos, serviced apartments in Abuja and our guide to what a serviced apartment is.
Five questions to ask yourself
- How long will I really stay? Be honest. Plans of “a few weeks” often become months.
- How much can I pay up front? A long let needs a big sum before you move in.
- Do I own furniture? If not, add the cost of furnishing to the long let.
- Do I know the area? If not, a shortlet lets you try it before you commit.
- How likely are my plans to change? A new job, a transfer or a move abroad all favour flexibility.
Which suits you
| Your situation | Usually best |
|---|---|
| A holiday, a wedding or a visit home for December | Shortlet |
| Just moved for a new job, still house-hunting | Shortlet for a few weeks, then a long let |
| A project or course lasting two to six months | A monthly shortlet or a serviced apartment |
| Your own home is being renovated | Shortlet |
| Not sure about the area yet | Shortlet first, to try it |
| A one-year posting or longer, in one place | Long let |
| Settling down with your own furniture | Long let |
In between? For stays of one to a few months, our guide to a monthly shortlet or renting a flat goes deeper.
Moving to a new city? Where to stay while you house-hunt shows how to use a shortlet as a base. And how long is a shortlet? explains stay lengths.
On Cabans, each host sets a minimum stay and a longest stay. The standard longest stay is 90 nights, and hosts can allow up to 731.
Some hosts also offer a longer-stay discount, such as “7+ nights, 10% off”, or free nights, and you get whichever saves you more. The booking box shows the full price for your dates, and you pay online through Paystack; Paystack’s processing fee is added when you pay, and you see it before you pay. That fee is not refunded. See how to check dates and the price for a stay and monthly shortlets in Lagos.
Find the right home
Find a shortlet you can book for your dates, or start with shortlets in Lagos, shortlets in Abuja or serviced apartments in Lagos. Ready to settle? Browse flats for rent in Lagos. Have a furnished home that sits empty? List your short let.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a short let and a long let?
A short let, or shortlet, is a furnished home you rent by the night, week or month for a set stay. A long let is a home you rent for a year or more under a tenancy agreement, usually unfurnished, with rent paid in advance.
Is a shortlet cheaper than renting?
Over a full year, a long let usually costs less per month once you are in. For a few weeks or months, a shortlet is often cheaper overall, because you avoid the big up-front payment, the fees and the cost of furnishing an empty flat.
Is 6 months a short let?
It can be. In Nigeria, “shortlet” describes how a home is let, furnished and paid for by the stay, more than a fixed length. Shortlets often suit stays of days or weeks, and some hosts welcome stays of several months. Check each home’s longest stay.
Do I pay agency fees for a shortlet?
Not usually when you book a shortlet directly online. You pay the price for your dates, which may include a cleaning fee and a refundable caution deposit. A long let usually adds agency and agreement fees on top of the rent.
Can I rent a shortlet monthly?
Yes. Some hosts welcome monthly stays, and some offer a discount for longer bookings. Compare the total for your dates with the full cost of renting and furnishing a flat for the same time.
Can I move from a shortlet to a long let in the same home?
Sometimes. Some owners let the same home by the night and by the year, so it is worth asking. If they agree, you move to a tenancy agreement, with its own price, fees and terms.
Which is better when relocating to Lagos?
Usually a shortlet first, then a long let. A few weeks in a shortlet lets you learn the traffic, try an area and inspect flats in person before you commit a year’s rent.
Related guides
Short let vs long-term rental (for landlords) · Monthly shortlet or rent a flat? · How long is a shortlet? · Move-in costs in Nigeria · Where to stay while you house-hunt
Take the next step
Keep your research practical: search for property in Lagos, compare live options for flat for rent in Lagos, or list your property on Cabans to reach active buyers and renters.
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