Airbnb operating model
Airbnb from its filings: nights, GBV, take rate, unearned fees, customer funds, value. Build a marketplace from nights and the price of a night, derive a take rate the company never files for a year, tell bookings, revenue and cash apart in every row, keep customer funds out of company cash and value, and read what the forecast is worth without mistaking it for a view on the shares.
By Surojit Chakraverti, founder of L3VLUP and an investor running a long-short healthcare and technology equities strategy.
On this subject: airbnb operating model.Updated 25 October 2026
Who builds it, and for whatThe model an internet equity analyst, a growth investor or a marketplace finance team builds from a platform’s filings: bookings first, then the share of them the platform keeps, then the costs, then the cash, with the money it holds for other people kept off its own balance. Airbnb is the subject because its three headline numbers (bookings, revenue and cash) move together and mean different things, its operating metrics are filed but not tagged, and its results carry two one-off tax items and a change in how guests pay.
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| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reported | |||||||||||
| 2 | $m unless stated, as filed. Blue cells are typed from the documents named on the Sources sheet; nothing here is adjusted, and nothing here is a forecast. | |||||||||||
| 4 | $m | Unit | FY2023A | FY2024A | FY2025A | FY2026E | FY2027E | FY2028E | FY2029E | FY2030E | Notes | |
| 5 | Bookings: the key business metrics (Form 10-K, Item 7; not XBRL-tagged) | |||||||||||
| 6 | Nights and Seats Booked | m nights | 448.0 | 492.0 | 533.0 | Named "Nights and Experiences Booked" in the FY2023 and FY2024 10-Ks; renamed from the Q3 2025 10-Q when services joined experiences. The series is continuous (FY2024 is 492 in both). Net of cancellations in the period of booking. FY2025 10-K Item 7, Key Business Metrics, p.36; FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K p.36. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 7 | Gross Booking Value (GBV) | $m | 73,252.0 | 81,784.0 | 91,273.0 | Bookings in the period, inclusive of host earnings, service fees, cleaning fees and taxes, net of cancellations. Recorded at booking, not at the stay. FY2025 10-K Item 7, Key Business Metrics, p.36; FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 9 | Geographic mix, by location of the listing (Form 10-K, Item 7, Geographic Mix) | |||||||||||
| 10 | Nights and Seats Booked, North America | m nights | 146.0 | 154.0 | 158.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only: the 10-Qs do not give regional nights. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 11 | Nights and Seats Booked, Europe, the Middle East and Africa | m nights | 187.0 | 201.0 | 215.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only: the 10-Qs do not give regional nights. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 12 | Nights and Seats Booked, Latin America | m nights | 64.0 | 76.0 | 90.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only: the 10-Qs do not give regional nights. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 13 | Nights and Seats Booked, Asia Pacific | m nights | 51.0 | 61.0 | 70.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only: the 10-Qs do not give regional nights. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 14 | GBV, North America | $m | 34,941.0 | 37,816.0 | 40,295.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 15 | GBV, Europe, the Middle East and Africa | $m | 26,241.0 | 29,750.0 | 34,162.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 16 | GBV, Latin America | $m | 6,054.0 | 7,092.0 | 8,542.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 17 | GBV, Asia Pacific | $m | 6,016.0 | 7,126.0 | 8,274.0 | Item 7, Geographic Mix table. Annual only. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 18 | Revenue, North America | $m | 4,638.0 | 5,006.0 | 5,196.0 | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax on the region member; Item 7, Geographic Mix, and the segment note. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. | ||||||
| 19 | Revenue, Europe, the Middle East and Africa | $m | 3,615.0 | 4,135.0 | 4,729.0 | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax on the region member; Item 7, Geographic Mix, and the segment note. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. | ||||||
| 20 | Revenue, Latin America | $m | 824.0 | 969.0 | 1,160.0 | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax on the region member; Item 7, Geographic Mix, and the segment note. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. | ||||||
| 21 | Revenue, Asia Pacific | $m | 840.0 | 992.0 | 1,156.0 | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax on the region member; Item 7, Geographic Mix, and the segment note. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. | ||||||
| 23 | Statement of operations (Form 10-K for 2025, Item 8, p.50) | |||||||||||
| 24 | Revenue | $m | 9,917.0 | 11,102.0 | 12,241.0 | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax. Service fees net of incentives and refunds, recognised at check-in; presented net, as an agent. | ||||||
| 25 | Cost of revenue | $m | 1,703.0 | 1,878.0 | 2,086.0 | us-gaap:CostOfRevenue. Payment processing, hosting and platform costs. | ||||||
| 26 | Operations and support | $m | 1,186.0 | 1,282.0 | 1,327.0 | abnb:OperationsAndSupportExpense (custom tag, read from the inline XBRL; the companyfacts API serves no abnb: facts). Customer support, trust and safety. | ||||||
| 27 | Product development | $m | 1,722.0 | 2,056.0 | 2,354.0 | us-gaap:ResearchAndDevelopmentExpense. | ||||||
| 28 | Sales and marketing | $m | 1,763.0 | 2,148.0 | 2,588.0 | us-gaap:SellingAndMarketingExpense. | ||||||
| 29 | General and administrative | $m | 2,025.0 | 1,185.0 | 1,342.0 | us-gaap:GeneralAndAdministrativeExpense. FY2023 includes the Italy withholding-tax settlement of about $621m (FY2023 10-K, Note 13). | ||||||
| 30 | Total costs and expenses | $m | 8,399.0 | 8,549.0 | 9,697.0 | us-gaap:CostsAndExpenses. | ||||||
| 31 | Income from operations | $m | 1,518.0 | 2,553.0 | 2,544.0 | us-gaap:OperatingIncomeLoss. | ||||||
| 32 | Interest income | $m | 721.0 | 818.0 | 705.0 | us-gaap:InvestmentIncomeNonoperating. Earned on the company’s cash and investments AND on amounts held on behalf of customers; the 10-K does not split the two. | ||||||
| 33 | Other income (expense), net | $m | (137.0) | (40.0) | (112.0) | us-gaap:OtherNonoperatingIncomeExpense. Includes interest expense in all three years as presented in the FY2025 10-K. From the Q2 2026 10-Q interest expense is a line of its own. | ||||||
| 34 | Of which interest expense, where shown separately | $m | 83.0 | 43.0 | FY2023: the FY2023 10-K (Item 8) showed interest expense of 83 beside other of (54). FY2024: not shown separately in any filing. FY2025: 5 + 6 + 6 + 26, the four 2025 quarters of the Q2 2026 letter’s adjusted EBITDA reconciliation, which tie to the 10-K’s 112 with other expense of 69. Not XBRL-tagged. | |||||||
| 35 | Income before income taxes | $m | 2,102.0 | 3,331.0 | 3,137.0 | us-gaap:IncomeLossFromContinuingOperationsBeforeIncomeTaxes. | ||||||
| 36 | Provision for (benefit from) income taxes | $m | (2,690.0) | 683.0 | 626.0 | us-gaap:IncomeTaxExpenseBenefit. FY2023 is a benefit, from the valuation allowance release below. | ||||||
| 37 | Net income | $m | 4,792.0 | 2,648.0 | 2,511.0 | us-gaap:NetIncomeLoss. | ||||||
| 38 | Net income per share, basic | $ per share | 7.52 | 4.19 | 4.10 | us-gaap:IncomeLossFromContinuingOperationsPerBasicShare (there are no discontinued operations). | ||||||
| 39 | Net income per share, diluted | $ per share | 7.24 | 4.11 | 4.03 | us-gaap:IncomeLossFromContinuingOperationsPerDilutedShare. | ||||||
| 40 | Weighted-average shares, basic | m shares | 637.0 | 632.0 | 613.0 | us-gaap:WeightedAverageNumberOfSharesOutstandingBasic. Class H shares (9.2m, held by Airbnb’s own Host Endowment Fund) are not outstanding and are excluded. | ||||||
| 41 | Weighted-average shares, diluted | m shares | 662.0 | 645.0 | 623.0 | us-gaap:WeightedAverageNumberOfDilutedSharesOutstanding. | ||||||
| 43 | Tax items, as memo lines (Form 10-K, Note 14 and Schedule II) | |||||||||||
| 44 | Valuation allowance released on US deferred tax assets (one-time benefit) | $m | 2,897.0 | - | - | FY2023: Schedule II, credited to expenses 2,897 (the allowance fell from 3,166 to 364); the FY2023 10-K calls it about $2.9bn. Non-cash and non-recurring. Not XBRL-tagged as a single figure. | ||||||
| 45 | Valuation allowance recorded against the CAMT credit deferred tax asset (one-time charge) | $m | - | - | 213.0 | FY2025: Note 14 and Item 7, after the July 2025 change to US tax law. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 46 | Reduction in uncertain tax positions for prior years, as the 10-K states it | $m | 105.0 | FY2025 10-K, Note 14 (gross decreases for prior-year positions). The Q4 2025 letter describes the offset as a $60m release instead; the documents do not reconcile the two, so neither is adjusted for. | ||||||||
| 47 | The same offset as the Q4 2025 shareholder letter states it | $m | 60.0 | Q4 2025 shareholder letter (Exhibit 99.1, Form 8-K of 12 February 2026): "partially offset by a one-time release of a $60 million uncertain tax position". Memo only. | ||||||||
| 48 | Effective tax rate, as filed | % | -128.0% | 20.5% | 20.0% | Note 14, Income Taxes, p.76: (128.0)%, 20.5%, 20.0%. | ||||||
| 50 | Stock-based compensation by line (Form 10-K, Item 7, Results of Operations, footnote 1) | |||||||||||
| 51 | Stock-based compensation in operations and support | $m | 68.0 | 90.0 | 90.0 | Item 7 footnote table; FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged by line. None sits in cost of revenue. | ||||||
| 52 | Stock-based compensation in product development | $m | 694.0 | 886.0 | 1,017.0 | Item 7 footnote table. Not XBRL-tagged by line. | ||||||
| 53 | Stock-based compensation in sales and marketing | $m | 130.0 | 170.0 | 212.0 | Item 7 footnote table. Not XBRL-tagged by line. | ||||||
| 54 | Stock-based compensation in general and administrative | $m | 228.0 | 261.0 | 273.0 | Item 7 footnote table. Not XBRL-tagged by line. | ||||||
| 55 | Stock-based compensation expense, total | $m | 1,120.0 | 1,407.0 | 1,592.0 | us-gaap:ShareBasedCompensation (cash flow statement add-back). The equity statement credits 1,146 / 1,424 / 1,600 to paid-in capital, higher by the part capitalised. | ||||||
| 57 | Adjusted EBITDA reconciliation, the company’s own lines (Form 10-K, Item 7, Non-GAAP Financial Measures) | |||||||||||
| 58 | Depreciation and amortisation | $m | 44.0 | 65.0 | 91.0 | From the reconciliation. The FY2025 10-K folds D&A into "other, net" on the cash flow statement; the FY2023 and FY2024 10-Ks showed it as a line. Not XBRL-tagged in the FY2025 10-K. | ||||||
| 59 | Acquisition-related impacts | $m | (3.0) | (7.0) | 1.0 | Changes in the fair value of contingent consideration. Reconciliation line; not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 60 | Lodging, host withholding and transactional tax settlements and reserves | $m | 974.0 | 23.0 | 74.0 | FY2023 is driven by the Italy settlement. The definition widened in FY2025 to "other non-income taxes where significant uncertainty exists". Reconciliation line; not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 61 | Stock-settlement obligations (employer taxes from the IPO) | $m | - | - | (5.0) | A line added to the definition in FY2025. Reconciliation line; not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 62 | Adjusted EBITDA, as reported | $m | 3,653.0 | 4,041.0 | 4,297.0 | Non-GAAP. FY2025 10-K Item 7, reconciliation p.38; FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K p.37. Margins as filed: 37%, 36%, 35%. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 64 | Payments to customers (Form 10-K, Note 3, Supplemental Financial Statement Information) | |||||||||||
| 65 | Incentives and refunds recorded as a reduction of revenue | $m | 360.0 | 455.0 | 484.0 | abnb:AmountsRefundedToCustomers on the revenue member, read from the inline XBRL. Revenue is already net of these; GBV is not. | ||||||
| 66 | Total payments made to customers | $m | 517.0 | 627.0 | 662.0 | abnb:AmountsRefundedToCustomers. The rest of the total went through operations and support and sales and marketing. | ||||||
| 68 | Cash flow (consolidated statements of cash flows, p.53; free cash flow reconciliation, Item 7) | |||||||||||
| 69 | Net cash provided by operating activities | $m | 3,884.0 | 4,518.0 | 4,646.0 | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities. Excludes the movement in funds payable to customers, which is a financing flow. | ||||||
| 70 | Change in unearned fees (operating cash flow) | $m | 242.0 | 200.0 | 122.0 | us-gaap:IncreaseDecreaseInDeferredRevenue. Fees collected before check-in, less those recognised. | ||||||
| 71 | Deferred income taxes (operating cash flow) | $m | (2,875.0) | 433.0 | 376.0 | us-gaap:DeferredIncomeTaxExpenseBenefit. FY2023 carries the non-cash release. | ||||||
| 72 | Cash paid for income taxes, net of refunds | $m | 132.0 | 350.0 | 232.0 | FY2025 10-K, Note 3, Supplemental cash flow information: 232 for 2025 on the ASU 2023-09 basis; 132 and 350 for 2023 and 2024 on the prior basis, from the sentence beneath the table. Against book tax of (2,690), 683 and 626. | ||||||
| 73 | Operating lease cost (inside operating costs) | $m | 58.0 | 53.0 | 47.0 | FY2025 10-K, Note 9, Leases: classified within operations and support, product development, sales and marketing and G&A. Already in operating income and operating cash flow. | ||||||
| 74 | Cash paid for operating leases (inside operating cash flow) | $m | 84.0 | 89.0 | 87.0 | FY2025 10-K, Note 3, Supplemental cash flow information. | ||||||
| 75 | Purchases of property and equipment | $m | 47.0 | 34.0 | 33.0 | Shown as positive: an outflow. Not on the face of the cash flow statement (inside "other investing activities, net"); from the free cash flow reconciliation, Item 7, p.38. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 76 | Free cash flow, as reported | $m | 3,837.0 | 4,484.0 | 4,613.0 | Non-GAAP: operating cash flow less purchases of property and equipment, nothing else. FY2023 from the FY2024 10-K. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||
| 77 | Net cash used in investing activities | $m | (1,042.0) | (616.0) | (748.0) | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInInvestingActivities. | ||||||
| 78 | Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities | $m | (2,430.0) | (3,572.0) | (3,827.0) | us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInFinancingActivities. Carries buybacks, taxes on equity awards and the change in funds payable to customers. | ||||||
| 79 | Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash | $m | 152.0 | (237.0) | 655.0 | us-gaap:EffectOfExchangeRateOnCashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents. Mostly on cash held for customers, matched by the liability. | ||||||
| 80 | Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash (cash flow statement, year end) | $m | 12,667.0 | 12,760.0 | 13,486.0 | us-gaap:CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents. INCLUDES cash held on behalf of customers: not the company’s liquidity. | ||||||
| 81 | Change in funds payable and amounts payable to customers (financing) | $m | 936.0 | 320.0 | 401.0 | abnb:ChangeInFundsPayableAndAmountsPayableToCustomers, read from the inline XBRL. | ||||||
| 82 | Repurchases of common stock | $m | 2,252.0 | 3,430.0 | 3,789.0 | us-gaap:PaymentsForRepurchaseOfCommonStock, shown as positive: an outflow. The equity statement shows 3,448 for FY2024 and 3,788 for FY2025 (accrual and excise-tax timing). | ||||||
| 83 | Class A shares repurchased and retired | m shares | 17.9 | 24.5 | 29.7 | us-gaap:StockRepurchasedAndRetiredDuringPeriodShares; Note 11, Share Repurchases, to one decimal (FY2023 from the FY2023 10-K). | ||||||
| 84 | Taxes paid related to net share settlement of equity awards | $m | 1,224.0 | 630.0 | 561.0 | us-gaap:PaymentsRelatedToTaxWithholdingForShareBasedCompensation, shown as positive: a financing outflow. Not deducted in Airbnb’s free cash flow. | ||||||
| 86 | Balance sheet at 31 December (consolidated balance sheets, p.49, and notes) | |||||||||||
| 87 | Cash and cash equivalents | $m | 6,874.0 | 6,864.0 | 6,560.0 | us-gaap:CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue. The company’s own. 31 December 2023 from the FY2024 10-K. | ||||||
| 88 | Short-term investments | $m | 3,197.0 | 3,747.0 | 4,454.0 | us-gaap:ShortTermInvestments. The 10-K’s Liquidity section counts cash plus these ($11.0bn at 31 December 2025) as the principal sources of liquidity. | ||||||
| 89 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers | $m | 5,869.0 | 5,931.0 | 6,959.0 | Tagged us-gaap:FundsHeldForClients. Guests’ payments held until check-in for remittance to hosts. Not the company’s money. | ||||||
| 90 | Funds payable and amounts payable to customers | $m | 5,869.0 | 5,931.0 | 6,959.0 | Tagged us-gaap:ContractWithCustomerLiability (a tagging quirk: the same value carries either tag). The liability that matches the asset above, always equal to it. | ||||||
| 91 | Of the funds receivable, cash and cash equivalents | $m | 5,769.0 | 5,871.0 | 6,891.0 | abnb:CashAndCashEquivalentsIncludedInFundsReceivableAndAmountsHeldOnBehalfOfCustomers; Note 3. The rest is receivable from payment processors. | ||||||
| 92 | Restricted cash (in prepaids and other current assets) | $m | 24.0 | 25.0 | 35.0 | us-gaap:RestrictedCashAndCashEquivalents; Note 3. | ||||||
| 93 | Unearned fees | $m | 1,427.0 | 1,616.0 | 1,743.0 | Tagged us-gaap:DeferredRevenueCurrent. Service fees collected before check-in; refundable on cancellation, so not contract balances (Note 2). | ||||||
| 94 | 0% convertible senior notes due March 2026, carrying amount | $m | 1,991.0 | 1,995.0 | 1,999.0 | us-gaap:LongTermDebtNoncurrent at 2023 and 2024, us-gaap:LongTermDebtCurrent at 2025 (Note 10). Principal $2.0bn; conversion price about $288.64; repaid in cash at maturity on 16 March 2026. | ||||||
| 95 | 0% convertible senior notes due March 2026, principal | $m | 2,000.0 | us-gaap:DebtInstrumentFaceAmount on the 2026 notes member; FY2025 10-K, Note 10, Debt. | ||||||||
| 96 | Operating lease liabilities, current and noncurrent | $m | 313.0 | 299.0 | 272.0 | Current 61 / 63 / 68 (us-gaap:OperatingLeaseLiabilityCurrent) plus noncurrent 252 / 236 / 204 (us-gaap:OperatingLeaseLiabilityNoncurrent); FY2025 total us-gaap:OperatingLeaseLiability, 272. | ||||||
| 97 | Common shares outstanding at year end, Class A and Class B | m shares | 638.0 | 623.0 | 602.0 | us-gaap:CommonStockSharesOutstanding; equity statement. Excludes the 9.2m Class H shares the cover page lists, which are held by a subsidiary and are not outstanding. | ||||||
| 98 | Deferred income tax assets | $m | 2,881.0 | 2,439.0 | 2,102.0 | us-gaap:DeferredIncomeTaxAssetsNet. What lets cash tax run below book tax while it is used. | ||||||
| 99 | Total stockholders’ equity | $m | 8,165.0 | 8,412.0 | 8,199.0 | us-gaap:StockholdersEquity. | ||||||
| 101 | The take rate as Airbnb states it (shareholder letters), with the quarters behind it | |||||||||||
| 102 | Implied take rate, Q1 2025, as stated | % | 9.3% | Q1 2026 shareholder letter, Monetization and Take Rate: 9.2% "against 9.3%". Airbnb’s definition: revenue divided by GBV. | ||||||||
| 103 | Revenue, Q1 2025 | $m | 2,272.0 | Form 10-Q for Q1 2026, statement of operations; us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax. | ||||||||
| 104 | GBV, Q1 2025 | $m | 24,515.0 | Form 10-Q for Q1 2026, Item 2, Key Business Metrics, p.23. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 105 | Implied take rate, Q4 2025, as stated | % | 13.6% | Q4 2025 shareholder letter: 13.6% against 14.1% in Q4 2024, "primarily due to FX and the timing of when guests booked their travel and when guests stayed". | ||||||||
| 106 | Revenue, Q4 2025 | $m | 2,778.0 | Q2 2026 shareholder letter, Quarterly Summary, p.22 (and the Q4 2025 letter). FY2025 revenue less the first nine months. | ||||||||
| 107 | GBV, nine months to 30 September 2025 | $m | 70,855.0 | Form 10-Q for Q3 2025, Item 2, Key Business Metrics. With the 10-K’s full year it gives Q4 2025, which no filing states. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 108 | Revenue, Q3 2025 | $m | 4,095.0 | Form 10-Q for Q3 2025, statement of operations; us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax. | ||||||||
| 109 | GBV, Q3 2025 | $m | 22,892.0 | Form 10-Q for Q3 2025, Item 2, Key Business Metrics. Not XBRL-tagged. The stay-heavy quarter: revenue high against bookings. | ||||||||
| 110 | Implied take rate, Q1 2026, as stated | % | 9.2% | Q1 2026 shareholder letter, Monetization and Take Rate. | ||||||||
| 111 | Revenue, Q1 2026 | $m | 2,678.0 | Form 10-Q for Q1 2026, statement of operations. | ||||||||
| 112 | GBV, Q1 2026 | $m | 29,187.0 | Form 10-Q for Q1 2026, Item 2, Key Business Metrics, p.23. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 113 | Implied take rate, Q2 2026, as stated | % | 13.2% | Q2 2026 shareholder letter: 13.2%, in line with Q2 2025, reflecting FX and the growth of Reserve Now, Pay Later, "which has resulted in guests booking further in advance". | ||||||||
| 114 | Revenue, Q2 2026 | $m | 3,608.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, statement of operations. | ||||||||
| 115 | GBV, Q2 2026 | $m | 27,247.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, Item 2, Key Business Metrics, p.24. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 117 | The latest filed period: the first half of 2026 (Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 June 2026) | |||||||||||
| 118 | Nights and Seats Booked, first half of 2025 | m nights | 277.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, Item 2, p.24. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 119 | Nights and Seats Booked, first half of 2026 | m nights | 305.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, Item 2, p.24. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 120 | GBV, first half of 2025 | $m | 47,962.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, Item 2, p.24. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 121 | GBV, first half of 2026 | $m | 56,434.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, Item 2, p.24. Not XBRL-tagged. | ||||||||
| 122 | Revenue, first half of 2025 | $m | 5,368.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, statement of operations (six months). | ||||||||
| 123 | Revenue, first half of 2026 | $m | 6,286.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, statement of operations (six months). | ||||||||
| 125 | The first half of 2026: bookings, fees and cash (Form 10-Q for Q2 2026) | |||||||||||
| 126 | Unearned fees at 30 June 2025 | $m | 2,857.0 | Q2 2026 shareholder letter, Quarterly Summary, p.22 (balance sheet at 30 June 2025). | ||||||||
| 127 | Unearned fees at 30 June 2026 | $m | 2,831.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, balance sheet, p.3; us-gaap:DeferredRevenueCurrent. | ||||||||
| 128 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers at 30 June 2026 | $m | 12,224.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, balance sheet, p.3. The seasonal peak after the booking season; 6,959 at 31 December 2025. | ||||||||
| 129 | Net cash provided by operating activities, first half of 2025 | $m | 2,764.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, statement of cash flows (six months). | ||||||||
| 130 | Net cash provided by operating activities, first half of 2026 | $m | 2,978.0 | Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, statement of cash flows (six months). | ||||||||
| 132 | Company money and customer money through 2025, quarter by quarter (Q2 2026 shareholder letter, Quarterly Summary, p.22) | |||||||||||
| 133 | Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at 31 December 2024 | $m | 10,636.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary, which excludes customer funds. Not XBRL-tagged as presented. | ||||||||
| 134 | Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at 31 March 2025 | $m | 11,532.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary, which excludes customer funds. Not XBRL-tagged as presented. | ||||||||
| 135 | Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at 30 June 2025 | $m | 11,400.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary, which excludes customer funds. Not XBRL-tagged as presented. | ||||||||
| 136 | Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at 30 September 2025 | $m | 11,719.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary, which excludes customer funds. Not XBRL-tagged as presented. | ||||||||
| 137 | Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at 31 December 2025 | $m | 11,049.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary, which excludes customer funds. Not XBRL-tagged as presented. | ||||||||
| 138 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers at 31 December 2024 | $m | 5,931.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary. The balance peaks after the booking season and troughs at the year end. | ||||||||
| 139 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers at 31 March 2025 | $m | 9,175.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary. The balance peaks after the booking season and troughs at the year end. | ||||||||
| 140 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers at 30 June 2025 | $m | 11,067.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary. The balance peaks after the booking season and troughs at the year end. | ||||||||
| 141 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers at 30 September 2025 | $m | 7,209.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary. The balance peaks after the booking season and troughs at the year end. | ||||||||
| 142 | Funds receivable and amounts held on behalf of customers at 31 December 2025 | $m | 6,959.0 | The letter’s balance-sheet summary. The balance peaks after the booking season and troughs at the year end. | ||||||||
| 144 | After the valuation date: the March 2026 refinancing (Form 8-K filed 16 March 2026) | |||||||||||
| 145 | Senior notes due 2029, principal | $m | 850.0 | Form 8-K of 16 March 2026, Item 1.01; Form 10-Q for Q2 2026, Note 7. Not XBRL-tagged in the record read. | ||||||||
| 146 | Senior notes due 2029, coupon | % | 4.4% | 4.400%. About $1.7bn of the three tranches is swapped to floating; the swaps are not modelled. | ||||||||
| 147 | Senior notes due 2031, principal | $m | 850.0 | Form 8-K of 16 March 2026, Item 1.01. | ||||||||
| 148 | Senior notes due 2031, coupon | % | 4.7% | 4.650%. Form 8-K of 16 March 2026, Item 1.01. | ||||||||
| 149 | Senior notes due 2036, principal | $m | 800.0 | Form 8-K of 16 March 2026, Item 1.01. | ||||||||
| 150 | Senior notes due 2036, coupon | % | 5.3% | 5.250%. $2.0bn of the proceeds repaid the convertible notes at maturity. | ||||||||
Select a cell to see its row, its schedule and the type of cell. Font colours: blue for inputs, black for formulas, green for links to other sheets. Scroll sideways to see every period.
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Airbnb operating model: the workbook
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- The worked model
- 9 sheets and 942 live formulas, all 9 schedules built and linked, every check reading zero. Change an input in Excel and the whole model moves.
- The starter
- The same inputs and layout with the take rate left blank for you to build, each blank cell marked. The worked model is its answer.
What the base case says
- FY2025A GBV
- $91,273.0m
- FY2025A take rate (revenue / GBV)
- 13.4%
- FY2025A free cash flow less SBC
- $3,021.0m
- FY2030E revenue, selected case
- $20,470.9m
- FY2030E adjusted EBITDA margin
- 38.7%
- Value per share the forecast implies
- 121.11
Read from the workbook as served, every input at its default. Periods: FY2023A, FY2024A, FY2025A, FY2026E, FY2027E, FY2028E, FY2029E, FY2030E. Built from Airbnb, Inc.’s Forms 10-K and 10-Q, its shareholder letters and its March 2026 Form 8-K, cited on the Sources sheet; the forecast, the discount rate and the terminal assumptions are editorial judgements, labelled on the Forecast sheet, and move with whatever you type in. Company guidance is not used.
What this model is
An operating model of Airbnb, Inc., the accommodation marketplace, built from its filed results for 2023 to 2025 and the first half of 2026, and carried five years forward in three editorial cases.
It keeps three numbers apart that move together. Gross Booking Value is the value of the bookings guests make, counted when they book. Revenue is Airbnb’s service fees, recognised when the guest checks in. Cash is the company’s own; the money guests pay for hosts is held until check-in, owed straight back, and is never the company’s.
The Reported sheet holds only what the company filed, each row with its document and XBRL tag (or the statement that it is untagged, as nights, GBV and the non-GAAP measures are). The Derived sheet does arithmetic on them: ADR and the take rate, which Airbnb does not file for a year; the fees collected ahead of revenue; the rebuild of adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow; net income without two one-off tax items. The Forecast sheet is where judgement enters, and says so on every row.
Seats: Equity research and hedge funds, Product and technology, Venture capital, Investment banking.
Careers that do this work: growth equity, venture capital, equity research, corp dev / m&a, bizops / strategy & ops.
How the schedules connect
Every row in the workbook is tagged with the schedule it belongs to; the inspector above shows the tag when you click a row. These are the schedules this model is made of and where each one lives.
Revenue build
Where the top line comes from
Reported, rows 6–7 · Reported, rows 10–21 · Reported, rows 118–123 · Derived, rows 6–20 · Forecast, rows 11–22 · Forecast, rows 25–32 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 6–10 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 73–78
Take rate
From GMV to net revenue
Reported, rows 65–66 · Reported, rows 102–115 · Derived, rows 23–42 · Forecast, rows 35–38 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 13–15
Working capital schedule
Receivables, inventory and payables in days
Reported, rows 126–130 · Derived, rows 45–52 · Forecast, rows 41–46 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 48–51
Contribution margin
What an order leaves after the costs it brings
Derived, rows 55–59 · Forecast, rows 49–56 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 18–21
Operating costs and margins
Cost of sales, opex, EBITDA
Reported, rows 24–41 · Reported, rows 44–48 · Reported, rows 51–55 · Reported, rows 58–62 · Derived, rows 62–69 · Derived, rows 72–84 · Derived, rows 104–108 · Forecast, rows 59–74 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 24–33
Cash flow statement
Indirect method, closing on balance-sheet cash
Reported, rows 69–84 · Derived, rows 87–101 · Derived, rows 126–136 · Forecast, rows 77–87 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 36–45 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 54–60 · P&L & Cash Flow, rows 63–70
Enterprise value to equity value
Debt off, cash on, per share
Reported, rows 87–99 · Reported, rows 133–142 · Reported, rows 145–150 · Derived, rows 111–122 · Derived, rows 139–140 · Valuation, rows 28–40
Discounting and terminal value
Discount factors, two terminal methods, reconciled
Forecast, rows 90–92 · Valuation, rows 6–11 · Valuation, rows 15–25 · Valuation, rows 43–45 · Valuation, rows 48–49
Sensitivity tables
Two assumptions at once, without a data table
Sensitivity, rows 5–7 · Sensitivity, rows 10–15 · Sensitivity, rows 18–26
What you should be able to explain
- Why Gross Booking Value is not revenue: it includes host earnings, cleaning fees and taxes, is counted at booking, and only Airbnb’s fee becomes revenue, at check-in.
- How the take rate is derived as revenue over GBV, why a quarter’s take rate swings with the seasons while a year’s barely moves, and how to check a derived rate against the one a shareholder letter states.
- What unearned fees are, why their growth is cash ahead of revenue, and why Reserve Now, Pay Later weakens the link between bookings, revenue and cash.
- Why funds held on behalf of customers are never the company’s cash, and where the trap sits on the cash flow statement.
- How adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow are rebuilt from GAAP lines, what the add-backs are worth, and why a valuation allowance release lifts net income without lifting earning power.
What a reviewer looks for
- Calling GBV revenue, or applying a margin to GBV as if Airbnb kept it.
- Adding the $7.0bn of funds held for hosts and guests to company cash, or taking the cash flow statement’s cash, which includes it, as the company’s.
- Treating FY2023 net income of $4.8bn as earnings when $2.9bn of it is a one-time tax benefit.
- Valuing the interest on customer funds as if it were the company’s, or leaving it out of free cash flow and calling the result Airbnb’s definition.
- Deducting operating lease liabilities from enterprise value when the lease cost is already in the cash flows.
- Adding back stock-based compensation in the valuation and presenting the result as the value, rather than as a memo beside it.
- Deducting the March 2026 senior notes at a valuation date of 31 December 2025, as well as the convertible notes they replaced.
Conventions this workbook uses
Stated on the cover sheet too. A model is only as trustworthy as the decisions it tells you it made.
- Three kinds of number, on three sheets: Reported (filed, blue, cited), Derived (arithmetic on Reported, no assumption), Forecast (editorial, blue, labelled). Every other sheet is formulas over them.
- GBV is nights booked times GBV per night (ADR); revenue is GBV times the take rate. In filed years the take rate is derived as revenue over GBV; FY2026E is the filed first half plus an editorial second half, which sets that year’s take rate; from FY2027E revenue is defined by the take rate, so the identity is a memo, not a check.
- The cost ratios fade linearly from the FY2025A figure to the case’s FY2030E target over the years set on the Forecast sheet; the take rate and unearned fees fade from FY2026E’s anchored figure. Stock-based compensation sits inside the cost lines and is shown separately.
- Unearned fees are the company’s fees collected before the stay: their change is operating cash ahead of revenue. Customer funds (funds receivable and the equal amount payable to hosts and guests) are a memo: never in company liquidity, free cash flow or value. The filings do not split interest income between the two; the forecast earns interest on both, the float’s share an editorial input, so free cash flow stays like for like with Airbnb’s.
- Free cash flow is Airbnb’s definition: operating cash flow less purchases of property and equipment. It includes interest earned on customer funds, as Airbnb’s does. Net income carries a book tax rate and cash flow a lower cash rate that fades to it. Taxes paid on equity awards and repurchases come out of company liquidity below it; the share count falls at an editorial net rate, with no price per share assumed.
- The valuation discounts free cash flow after stock-based compensation and before all interest (on company cash, on customer funds and on the notes) at 31 December 2025, normalises the terminal year’s change in unearned fees to terminal growth, adds company liquidity and deducts the convertible notes at principal. Operating lease liabilities are not deducted: under US GAAP their cost is already in the cash flows. The senior notes of March 2026 are after the date and not deducted. The interest on customer funds is valued separately as a memo. The value per share is what the inputs imply and nothing more.
- FY2023 net income includes a $2.9bn one-time benefit from the valuation allowance release; FY2025 includes a $213m charge for an allowance on the CAMT credit. The Derived sheet shows net income without both.
Build it yourself
The starter workbook
The take rate has been cleared: the derived take rates on the Derived sheet, the selected take rate on the Forecast sheet, and the take rate and revenue on the P&L & Cash Flow sheet. Rebuild them so revenue is GBV times the take rate, the filed years still tie to Reported, and the quarters still round to the rates Airbnb states in its letters.
Blanks: Take rate. Download it beside the worked model.
The path around this model
Understand it, drill it, read the build, then apply it to a real company.
Build · Lab · ~12 min
Marketplace Economics
Turn GMV into net revenue and contribution per order, read a cohort’s GMV retention from retention and frequency, and find the payback year on a buyer.
Build · Lab · ~12 min
EV to Equity Bridge
Walk from enterprise value to a price per share without dropping a claim: net debt, pensions, minorities, leases and options.
Build · Lab · ~15 min
DCF Builder
Build a DCF by hand from revenue to a share price, know how much of it sits in the terminal value, and name the one assumption the answer hinges on.
Read · Guide · 16 min
How to Build a DCF Model: From Operating Assumptions to a Defensible Valuation
Read · Guide · 7 min
Enterprise Value vs. Equity Value, Once and For All
Read · Guide · 11 min
Working Capital and Quality of Earnings: Where Deal Value Actually Moves
Apply · Skill
Model Audit
Find the errors in a financial model before someone senior does.
Apply · Skill
Company Profile
Build a banker-grade one-pager on any company, fast.
Vocabulary: Gross Merchandise Value (GMV), Take Rate, Two-Sided Marketplace, Deferred Revenue, Free Cash Flow (FCF), Stock-Based Compensation (SBC), GAAP vs. Non-GAAP, Convertible Note, Enterprise Value (EV), Terminal Value.
Questions about this model
What is the difference between GBV and revenue in this model?
Gross Booking Value is the value of the bookings guests made in the year, including what the host earns, cleaning fees and taxes, counted when the guest books. Revenue is only Airbnb’s service fee, net of incentives and refunds, recognised when the guest checks in. In 2025 GBV was $91,273m and revenue $12,241m, so Airbnb kept 13.41% of what passed through it; the model derives that take rate, because no 10-K states one, and checks its quarterly version against the rates the shareholder letters give.
Why are customer funds left out of the company’s cash and the valuation?
Because the money is owed to someone else. When a guest pays, Airbnb holds the host’s share until check-in and records an equal liability to pay it out: $6,959m on each side at 31 December 2025. The company’s own liquidity is its cash and short-term investments, $11,014m, which is what the 10-K calls its principal sources of liquidity. The cash flow statement’s cash ($13,486m) includes the customers’ cash, which is why the model never uses it as the company’s. The interest the float earns is inside interest income and not separated. The forecast earns it at an editorial share, so free cash flow is like for like with Airbnb’s, and the valuation strips it and shows its value per share as a separate memo, so a reader sees what leaving it out costs.
Which figures in this model are the company’s and which are the page’s?
Every figure on the Reported sheet is the company’s, from its 10-Ks, 10-Qs, shareholder letters and the March 2026 Form 8-K, each with its document and XBRL tag, or the statement that it is untagged, as nights, GBV and the non-GAAP measures are. Every figure on the Derived sheet is arithmetic on those, including the take rate and ADR. Every figure on the Forecast sheet is a judgement of this page. Airbnb publishes guidance; none of it is used.
What is the value per share on the Valuation sheet?
What the selected forecast is worth at 31 December 2025 at the discount rate and terminal growth on the Forecast sheet: free cash flow after stock-based compensation and before interest, discounted, plus company liquidity, less the convertible notes, over the diluted shares. Lease liabilities are not deducted, because their cost is already in the cash flows. It moves with every input, and the Sensitivity sheet shows how far. It is not a target, a fair value or a recommendation, and the page does not compare it with the share price.
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