Airbnb Q3 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• Airbnb delivered its fastest revenue growth in more than three years: Q3 revenue rose 19% to $4.9 billion, gross booking value increased 21% to $27.7 billion, and nights and seats booked grew 16% to 155 million.
• The company raised its 2026 outlook to high-teens revenue growth and an adjusted EBITDA margin of about 36%. It generated $1.4 billion in free cash flow, repurchased $700 million of stock, and authorized an additional $12 billion buyback.
• Airbnb is expanding beyond its core home-booking business: Hotel bookings are growing faster than the core business from a small base, and the company plans to begin rolling out an AI travel agent in the first half of 2027. AI customer support resolved about 40% of issues without a human agent in Q3.

Airbnb NASDAQ: ABNB reported its fastest revenue growth in more than three years in the third quarter of 2026, as bookings accelerated across its major regions and the company raised its full-year outlook.

Revenue rose 19% year over year to $4.9 billion, while gross booking value increased 21% to $27.7 billion. Nights and seats booked grew 16% to 155 million, CEO Brian Chesky said on the earnings call. He attributed the acceleration to years of technology and operating changes, as well as faster product development aided by artificial intelligence.

Net income was $1.9 billion, representing a 39% margin. The result benefited from a $135 million reduction in the provision for income taxes, Chief Financial Officer Ellie Mertz said. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, increased 22% to $2.5 billion, with the adjusted margin expanding to 52% from 50% a year earlier.

Mertz said the margin improvement reflected revenue growth, cost discipline and AI-driven customer support efficiencies, as well as the shift of some marketing expenses into the fourth quarter.

Booking Growth and Payment Changes

Booking growth accelerated from the second quarter in all four regions, Mertz said. North America posted low-double-digit growth, Europe, the Middle East and Africa grew in the mid-teens, and both Latin America and Asia Pacific grew more than 20%. Average daily rates rose 4% year over year, or 5% excluding foreign-exchange effects.

The expansion of Airbnb’s Reserve Now, Pay Later offering provided a 3% net lift to third-quarter nights. Excluding that effect, nights and seats booked grew approximately 13%, still an acceleration from the prior quarter, Mertz said.

More than 40% of gross booking value was eligible for the payment option in the third quarter after Airbnb expanded it to additional cancellation policies. Mertz said customers using the feature tend to book earlier and select more expensive listings.

Aggregate cancellation rates rose to about 19% from roughly 16% a year earlier, which Mertz described as healthy for the travel sector. She said the net benefit to nights booked from Reserve Now, Pay Later is expected to decline sequentially in the fourth quarter as cancellations come through.

Chesky also called pricing a major growth opportunity. He said adoption of the company’s dynamic pricing product was strong, though he did not provide figures. The tool can lower some prices while increasing host occupancy and earnings, he said.

Outlook and Share Repurchases

Airbnb forecast fourth-quarter revenue of $3.22 billion to $3.28 billion, up 16% to 18% year over year. The outlook includes an approximately two-percentage-point foreign-exchange tailwind after hedging. The company expects gross booking value growth in the mid-teens and at least low-double-digit growth in nights and seats booked.

For 2026, Airbnb raised its revenue growth expectation to the high teens from at least the mid-teens. It also increased its adjusted EBITDA margin forecast to approximately 36% from at least 35.5%.

Mertz said the fourth-quarter outlook does not assume a material persistent impact from unrest in Europe, specifically France, or the conflict in the Middle East, although the company is monitoring both regions.

Airbnb generated $1.4 billion in free cash flow during the quarter and repurchased $700 million of stock, leaving $2.7 billion under its existing authorization. The board approved a new $12 billion share repurchase program on top of that amount.

Hotels, Partnerships and AI

Chesky said hotel bookings accelerated in the third quarter and were growing markedly faster than the core business, though from a small base. Airbnb now has thousands of boutique and independent hotels across more than 60 destinations, he said. Approximately 35% of guests whose first booking is a hotel return to book a home within a year.

The CEO said he expects hotels to generate multiple billions of dollars in revenue in coming years, without providing a timeline or formal forecast. He also said Airbnb’s October partnership with American Express had produced thousands of bookings through Amex Travel, nearly a quarter of them from guests new to Airbnb.

On AI, Chesky said Airbnb plans to begin rolling out its own travel agent to guests in the first half of 2027. The product is intended to combine features such as maps, photos, comparisons and itineraries rather than relying only on a text-based chatbot. Airbnb expects it to integrate with outside providers while remaining focused on travel.

AI is already being used in customer support: Approximately 40% of support issues were resolved without a human agent in the third quarter, up from one-third in the second quarter, Chesky said. Customer support cost per booking declined more than 17% year over year, driven largely by improvements to the AI assistant.

Chesky added that Airbnb is exploring a loyalty program and developing sponsored listings, but said the company had no loyalty announcement and still needed to determine how advertising would work within its planned AI agent.

About Airbnb (NASDAQ:ABNB)

Airbnb, Inc operates a global online marketplace that connects guests seeking accommodations and travel activities with hosts and service providers. Its platform enables users to search for, book and review a broad range of stays, including private rooms, entire homes, apartments and other distinctive properties.

In addition to lodging, Airbnb offers experiences and activities hosted by local individuals and businesses. The company also provides tools and services that help hosts create listings, manage bookings, communicate with guests and receive payments.

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