Airbnb Reaches Half a Billion Guest Arrivals

Since launching in 2008, Airbnb has checked in over half a billion different guests around the world. With three guests checking into an Airbnb listing every half-second, it’s not surprising that hosts have earned over $65 billion through the site. The home-sharing platform announced these milestones alongside a few other pertinent statistics that mark the growth of the San Franciscan company.

With over 900 cities that have over 1,000 listings, the concentration of Airbnb’s bookings has gradually spread out over time. While 86% of all Airbnb guest arrivals in 2009 were in their ten biggest markets, in 2018 only 13% of guest arrivals were in those ten biggest markets. The demographics of Airbnb hosts have grown to be equally diverse, with more than half the hosts worldwide being women alongside ever-growing numbers of older and senior hosts (over 1 million hosts over 50 years-old, and over 400,000 above the age of 60).

The famous Mushroom Dome in Aptos, California remains Airbnb’s most-visited listing, which is quite impressive considering the dome’s 100-square-foot floor plan. A restored room in a 600 year-old Irish castle in Galway claims the crown for most-booked private room. The Irish castle is among the 4,000 castles listed on the platform, alongside the just as quirky listing categories comprised of 14,000 tiny houses and 2,400 tree houses that are on offer.

One of Airbnb’s newest products, Experiences, has also shown rapid growth, reaching over 25,000 different experiences in over 1,000 cities. Airbnb Experiences are tailored activities organized and led by a city’s prominent hosts and locals, offering specialized city tours, artistic and educational classes, and liberating outdoor adventures. Airbnb has also been partnering with special locations to offer special one-time experiences like their current competition to spend a night at Paris’ Louvre museum. Reaching 1,000 cities with Airbnb experiences was part of the company’s targets outlined in 2018, and the home-sharing platform has continued to expand its various offerings with the new Airbnb Plus listing category.

As Airbnb’s listings, experiences, and offerings continue to grow, the home-sharing platform seems well on its way to reaching its eventual target of one billion guests by 2028.