Not all GSA per diem rates are fixed for the year. In roughly 200 non-standard areas, the lodging cap changes by calendar month to track hotel seasonality — a peak month in Nantucket can cost $471 a night while the same room in the off-season is far cheaper. If you reimburse or claim based on a year-round number, you will over- or under-pay systematically.
Why Lodging Caps Vary by Month
GSA sets non-standard area (NSA) lodging rates from hotel market surveys. Destinations with strong seasonal demand — ski towns, beaches, conference cities — get a monthly schedule instead of a flat cap. M&IE, by contrast, is almost always flat for the entire fiscal year.
Example: San Francisco runs $259/night January through August, then jumps to $272 for October–December. Nantucket swings from $175 to $471 across the year — the widest range in CONUS.
How to Read a Monthly Lodging Table
Every DayFig city page shows the 12 monthly caps. The pattern to watch for:
- Flat all year — e.g., Los Angeles at $191, Chicago at $142–$234 with seasonal bumps.
- Peak-season spikes — beach and ski markets (e.g., Key West, Aspen).
- Conference-driven bumps — big convention cities shift caps for major events.
Examples: Biggest FY2026 Lodging Swings
| City | Low month | Peak month |
|---|---|---|
| Nantucket, MA | $175 | $471 |
| Boston/Cambridge, MA | $209 | $349 |
| New York City, NY | $179 | $342 |
| San Francisco, CA | $259 | $272 |
| Aspen, CO | $254 (flat) | |
Reimbursement Implications
- Use the travel-month cap, not the annual range. A July trip to Nantucket caps at $471; a February trip caps lower.
- The 75% rule still applies to M&IE. First/last travel days pay 75% of M&IE regardless of the lodging month.
- High-low employers are insulated. The IRS high-low method ignores seasonality — one rate for the year — which is why it is popular for payroll.
Automate It
The DayFig trip calculator picks the correct monthly lodging cap automatically from your travel dates, then applies the 75% rule — so a June trip to Nantucket and an October trip to Monterey both come out right.
Source: GSA per diem API, FY2026, retrieved 2026-08-19. Rates change annually with the October 1 bulletin.