How to Create an Attractive Listing Profile When Renting Out a Room

You have a room to rent out. You post a listing. You wait for inquiries. You wait some more. The interest you expected never arrives.

The problem is rarely the room. It's the listing.

People spend a few seconds on a listing before they scroll on. If your main photo is dark, blurry, or shot from an awkward angle, your listing drops to the back of the pile, no matter how good the room actually is. This guide walks you through exactly what to do to build a listing profile that converts.

Why your profile is your most important marketing
The main photo: use the room, not yourself
The photo checklist for the room
Light and time of day
Composition: how to hold the phone
Staging the room before the photo shoot
Common areas to include
What NOT to do
The description that converts
How to price your room
The verification badge: why it matters
Checklist before publishing

1. Why your profile is your most important marketing

On ROO:ME, Facebook, or any other platform, people see your profile first as a small thumbnail. The main photo and title. If those catch attention, they click in. If not, they scroll past. You have only a few seconds to convert a thumbnail view into a click. UX research from Nielsen Norman Group shows that most users decide whether to keep reading or scroll away within the first 10 seconds of a page view (NN/g – How Long Do Users Stay on Web Pages?).

That means photography isn't a bonus. It's the difference between getting few inquiries and getting many.

2. The main photo: use the room, not yourself

The biggest mistake people make: they use a photo of themselves as the main image.

People aren't searching for you. They're searching for a home. Show them the home.

The right main photo is:

A wide-angle shot of the room itself
Taken from the doorway, at eye level or slightly below
In natural daylight (not artificial light alone)
Bed made, curtains open, lamps on for a "bright + cozy" look

Main photo example: wide-angle of bedroom shot from doorway in natural morning light, bed made, curtains open, a plant visible

Why it works? Because it gives the viewer the information they're looking for ("what does the room look like?") in 1 second. They don't need to click in to find out.

3. The photo checklist for the room

Use 6-10 photos. Fewer than 5 looks lazy; more than 10 dilutes the good ones.

Must-have:

Wide-angle from the doorway (the main photo)
Wide-angle from the opposite corner: shows the whole room from the other side
The window/light: shows how much natural light enters
A close-up of a nice detail: plants, lamp, art, bookshelf. Gives the room personality.
The closet or storage: people want to know where they'll put their clothes
The bed up close: shows quality and condition of mattress/bedding

Choose one of these two:

The ceiling or view from the bed: shows the room's height and light
A view from the door: shows how the room connects to the rest of the apartment

4. Light and time of day

Natural daylight is the only light source you should trust. Don't shoot in the evening with overhead lighting. It produces yellow, flat photos that make the room look smaller and tireder than it is.

Best times:

Morning (1 hour after sunrise) for warm, golden tones. It's what real-estate agents call "the golden hour", and it's free.
Midday with overcast skies gives a neutral, clean light that renders colors correctly.

Worst times:

Evening or night (even with all lamps on, it still looks yellow and sad)
Direct sun through the window (creates harsh shadows)

Practical tip: Shoot on two consecutive days. You don't need perfect weather. You just need to not force it.

Comparison: same room at night under yellow overhead light vs. midday in natural light

5. Composition: how to hold the phone

This is the single thing that makes the biggest difference, and that most people get wrong.

Three rules:

Hold the phone in landscape (horizontal). Portrait crops the room and makes it feel cramped. Landscape shows width and gives breathing room.
Hold the phone at chest height, not eye level. Lower camera height makes the room look bigger. Test it yourself. It's a free "magic trick."
Stand in a corner, not the middle. A photo from the corner shows two walls and gives depth. A photo from the middle shows one wall and a flat square.

Example: same room shot from the middle vs. from the corner, corner wins every time

Avoid: the ultra-wide lens on iPhone (0.5x). It distorts proportions and makes things look farther away. Use 1x.

6. Staging the room before the photo shoot

15 minutes of staging does more for the photos than a new camera ever will.

Do this before you shoot:

Make the bed: match the linens, add throw pillows on top
Clear the desk: everything off except one lamp and maybe a plant
Hide cables: tape them down or hide them behind furniture
Open the windows and let the light in
Bring in a plant if you don't have one. Even a small one elevates a room.
Take all dirty laundry away. That includes towels on the radiator.
Wipe the floor and vacuum. Dust specks get caught by the camera.

Staging example: same room before and after 15 minutes of staging

7. Common areas to include

People aren't just looking for a room. They're looking for a home. Include 2-3 photos of the common areas:

The kitchen (1 wide shot, cleared counter, no dirty dishes, no dried food residue)
The bathroom (1 wide shot from the doorway, if it's clean and well-lit, otherwise skip)
The living room (if there is one)

You don't have to show the whole apartment. Show what's nice.

Kitchen example: clean counter in natural light, no clutter visible

8. What NOT to do

These are the classic mistakes I see again and again:

❌ Selfies of yourself in the bathroom (not what people are looking for)
❌ Dark rooms: if it's dark in the photo, people assume it's always dark
❌ Clutter: unmade bed, visible laundry, dishes in the kitchen
❌ Blurry photos: looks amateurish
❌ Filters that change reality: people get disappointed when they see the room
❌ Other people in the photo: makes it confusing
❌ Visible personal info: mail, photo IDs, family photos on the walls

Example: three typical mistakes, bathroom selfie, dark cluttered room, blurry photos

9. The description that converts

The description is second most important, after the photos. Here's the structure that works:

First line: the room's strongest feature

Not "Cozy room in apartment." That's every listing. Write:

"20 m² room with two south-facing windows, built-in closet, and a view of the Lakes."

Second line: rent and what's included

"DKK 6,500/mo incl. heat, water, internet, and electricity (estimated usage)."

Third part: who lives there?

"The apartment is shared between me (Anna, 27, master's student at KU) and Mikkel (29, software developer, works from home)."

Fourth part: dealbreakers and expectations

"We're non-smokers indoors, have no pets, and generally have a quiet rhythm after 10 PM. Looking for an equally quiet roomie."

Fifth part: practical details

"Move-in August 1. Minimum lease 6 months. Deposit 3 months' rent. LLO standard contract."

10. How to price your room

People think they earn more by pricing high and negotiating down. The opposite is true.

Why a slightly lower price works:

You get more inquiries
You can choose the best roommate, not just the most desperate one
The lower price gets flagged by algorithms as "good deal" and ranks higher in search

Check our pricing guides for Copenhagen or Østerbro for current rent levels. Aim to sit 5-10% below the upper price range for your neighborhood.

11. The verification badge: why it matters

On ROO:ME, you can complete ID verification and get a visible verification badge on your profile. It signals:

You're a real person, not a scammer
You take the process seriously
You have nothing to hide

Verification tends to draw more serious inquiries and fewer time-wasters, because recipients can see you're a real person. It only takes a few minutes to complete.

Read more about verification on ROO:ME or about other key terms in our glossary.

12. Checklist before publishing

Before you hit "publish," run through this list:

Ready to find the right roommate?

ROO:ME is built specifically to make renting out a room easier: verified inquiries, smart matching by lifestyle and budget, and in-app chat. Less Facebook chaos, fewer bad matches, more peace of mind.

Also read our complete Roomie Guide 101 if you're both renting out a room and looking for a new roommate.

Join early access →

Sources

Frequently asked

Quick answers to what we get asked most.

What kind of photos should I use when renting out a room?

Use 6-10 photos: one wide-angle of the room shot from the doorway (your main photo), one from the opposite corner, a close-up of a nice detail (plant, lamp, art), one of the kitchen, and one of the bathroom (if it's clean and well-lit). All in natural daylight.

Should I show the bathroom in my listing?

Yes, but only if it's clean and well-lit. People actively look for bathroom info, and if you omit it, they assume the worst. A single wide-angle shot from the doorway in daylight is enough.

Do I need a professional camera for my photos?

No. A modern smartphone (iPhone 12 or newer, or comparable Android) takes great photos if you have good natural light and hold the camera steady. Don't use filters that change colors. Trust the light, not post-processing.