Airbnb Q2 2026 Shareholder Letter - CEO update on AI-native growth

Sep 16, 2026

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Airbnb’s Q2 2026 shareholder letter highlights strong second-quarter momentum and year-over-year growth across key financial and operating metrics. Revenue rose 17% to $3.6B and net income reached $816M, with Adjusted EBITDA increasing to $1.3B and expanding margin. GBV grew 16% to $27.2B, supported by demand and modest ADR improvement, while nights and seats booked accelerated. The letter attributes performance to rebuilding Airbnb as an AI-native company and details guest and host product initiatives that improve search, onboarding, payments, pricing, and recommendations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages29

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

Q2 2026 Key Financial Measures

Revenue and profitability

Cash flow and margins

Q2 2026 Business Metrics

GBV growth

Nights and seats booked

AI-native execution and innovation pace

Product highlights

Making Airbnb better for guests and hosts

For guests

For hosts

Expanding what Airbnb offers

Q2 2026 | Key Financial Measures | Revenue | $3.6B | | --- | --- | --- | | | | 17% Y/Y | | | Net Income | 13% Y/Y (ex-FX) | | | | $816M | | | Adjusted EBITDA* | 23% Net income margin | | | | $1.3B | | | Free Cash Flow (“FCF”)* | 35% Adjusted EBITDA Margin | | | | $1.3B | | | Trailing Twelve Month (“TTM”) FCF* | 35% FCF Margin | | | | $4.8B
37% TTM FCF Margin | | Key Business Metrics | Gross Booking
Value (“GBV”) | $27.2B | | | | 16% Y/Y | | | Nights and Seats Booked | 15% Y/Y (ex-FX) | | | | 148.3M
10% Y/Y | *A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is provided at the end of this letter. Q2 2026 Shareholder Letter Over the first half of 2026, we’ve delivered some of our strongest results in years. In Q2, that momentum accelerated as we exceeded our outlook across every key metric. Revenue grew 17% year-over-year to $3.6 billion. GBV grew 16% year-over-year to $27.2 billion, driven by continued strong demand as well asa moderate increase in Average Daily Rate (“ADR”). Nights and Seats Booked grew 10% year-over-year, accelerating from Q1 2026. Net income was $816 million and Adjusted EBITDA increased 21% year-overyear to $1.3 billion, representing an expansion in Adjusted EBITDA Margin to 35% . One of the most encouraging trends in Q2 was that we saw year-over-year growth accelerate not just in our expansion markets, but in many of our largest core markets as well. In fact, net origin nights booked in the U.S., France, the UK, and Australia all accelerated in Q2, reinforcing our confidence that our product innovation is driving demand across our business. We’ve rebuilt Airbnb from the ground up to be an AI-native company, and it’s showing up in our results. AI, combined with an exceptional team and better execution, is why we’re building and iterating faster than ever before. On key initiatives, we’ve reduced the time from concept to delivery by as much as 60% . And compared to the same period last year, we’ve increased the number of features and improvements we’ve shipped this year by nearly 80%. This faster pace of innovation is reshaping nearly every part of Airbnb and we believe it’s one of the reasons we’re outperforming our largest peers. Here are some highlights from the quarter: Making Airbnb better for guests and hosts Over the past two quarters, we’ve talked about our blueprint for improving Airbnb through hundreds of small improvements that compound over time. Those improvements are making it easier to book, easier to host, and driving growth across the business. For guests Search and discovery-With millions of homes and a growing selection of services and experiences on Airbnb, we improved search and discovery to help guests quickly find the right options for every trip. ¦ A redesigned homepage: Guests now see more relevant recommendations for listings, experiences, services, and destinations. ¦ Smarter search rankings: Search results prioritize higher-quality homes that are a better fit for each trip. ¦ Detailed neighborhood maps: Guests can explore nearby restaurants, landmarks, and transportation to better understand the neighborhoods where they’re staying. Login and sign-up-Every additional step before booking can create friction. We redesigned login and sign-up to help more guests access Airbnb and start booking. ¦ Redesigned sign-up and login: Guests can now create an account and sign in more easily across iOS, Android, and web. ¦ Added flexibility: Guests have additional ways to access their account, helping reduce login failures and customer support contacts. Payments and checkout-The checkout experience can make the difference between browsing and booking. We expanded payment options and streamlined checkout to reduce friction and help more guests complete their booking. ¦ Reserve Now, Pay Later: Guests can now use Reserve Now, Pay Later on more listings in more countries, and they’ll see it more often

FAQs

What were Airbnb’s headline results for Q2 2026?

Revenue grew 17% year-over-year to $3.6 billion, and net income was $816 million. Adjusted EBITDA increased to $1.3 billion, reflecting an expanded Adjusted EBITDA margin to 35%.

How did GBV and booking volumes change in Q2 2026?

GBV grew 16% year-over-year to $27.2 billion. Nights and seats booked increased 10% year-over-year, accelerating from Q1 2026.

What product and technology efforts does the letter cite as drivers of results?

The letter emphasizes that Airbnb has been rebuilt as an AI-native company, enabling faster iteration and delivery. It also highlights improvements across search, onboarding, payments, pricing, and host recommendations to drive demand and booking growth.

Sep 16, 2026

Upload by Mimi