Boston per diem rates FY2027

Boston lodging cap by month

For Boston hotels: the cap against your ADR

Hotel tax, season and changes in Boston

Hotel tax for federal travellers in Boston

A Boston hotel room carries a room occupancy excise from both the city and the state. The City of Boston's budget office says that, on top of the city's own local excise, the state collects a 5.7% excise and a 2.75% fee that goes to the state's convention center fund, and puts the total tax on a Boston hotel room from all sources at 14.95%^[6]. GSA's per diem lodging cap does not include any of it^[3].

For federal travellers the room excise works differently from the sales tax. GSA's SmartPay page for Massachusetts says individually billed accounts may be exempt from the occupancy excise, and that no form is required for the exemption with either individually or centrally billed accounts^[7]. The same page explains what proof of official travel a traveller should be ready to show at the desk. The state revenue department's own pages on the exemption could not be opened when this section was checked, so check the current rule with the hotel or the Department of Revenue before relying on it. The separate state sales tax works the usual way: the same GSA page says individually billed accounts are not exempt from it and centrally billed accounts are^[7].

For a Boston hotel, the practical point is that a federal guest on an individual card is not automatically taxable, so the desk should ask for the proof GSA describes before adding the excise to the folio^[7].

When Boston's cap peaks

GSA's cap in Boston is highest in September and October. The City of Boston lists the times of year that are typically busy in the city: students moving back at the end of August and in early September, and a large rowing regatta on the Charles River in mid to late October^[8]. The official visitor bureau, Meet Boston, says nearly 12,000 rowers were set to compete in the 2026 edition, held from 16 to 18 October^[9]. The city's list also names May as college graduation season^[8].

What changed from FY2026

By hotels.tools' calculation from GSA rates, Boston's lodging cap rose in 12 months from FY2026 to FY2027, by between +$4 and +$16 a night. Averaged over Boston's 12 months, by hotels.tools' calculation from GSA rates, the cap went from $273.33 to $284.33 a night (+$11). GSA kept Boston's M&IE rate at $92 a day in both years. That moved Boston more than GSA's standard lodging rate, by hotels.tools' calculation from GSA rates.

Meals and incidentals in Boston

Where the Boston rate applies

GSA's Boston / Cambridge locality covers Suffolk, city of Cambridge, listed under MA.

IRS high-low status in Boston

Long stays in Boston: 13-week totals

Frequently asked questions