Online accommodations platform Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB) beat Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q3 2026, with revenue up 18.9% year on year to $4.87 billion. Its GAAP profit of $3.16 per share was 11% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
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Airbnb (ABNB) Q3 2026 highlights:
- Revenue $4.87 billion vs S&P analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.75 billion (18.9% year-on-year growth, 2.6% beat)
- EPS (GAAP) $3.16 vs analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 (11% beat)
- Adjusted EBITDA $2.51 billion vs analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 billion (51.5% margin, 6.1% beat)
- Full year revenue growth and EBITDA margin guidance both raised
- Operating margin 41.5%, up from 39.7% in the same quarter last year
- Free cash flow margin 29.3%, down from 34.7% in the previous quarter
- Nights and experiences booked 155 million, up 21 million year on year
- Market capitalization $104 billion
Revenue growth
A company’s long-term revenue performance can indicate its overall quality. Any business can experience short-term success, but top-performing ones sustain growth for years. Airbnb’s revenue grew at a decent 13.2% compounded annual growth rate over the last three years. Its growth was slightly above the average consumer internet company and shows its offerings resonate with customers.
This quarter, Airbnb reported year-on-year revenue growth of 18.9%, and its $4.87 billion of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s consensus estimates by 2.6%.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 10.7% over the next 12 months, according to S&P, a slight deceleration versus the last three years. Its growth trajectory remains satisfactory given its scale and suggests the market is pricing in success for its products and services.
Nights and experiences booked
Booking growth
As an online travel company, Airbnb generates revenue growth by increasing both the number of stays (or experiences) booked and the commission charged on those bookings.
Over the last two years, Airbnb’s nights and experiences booked, a key performance metric for the company, increased by 10.2% annually to 155 million in the latest quarter. This growth rate is solid for a consumer internet business and indicates healthy demand for its offerings.
In Q3, Airbnb added 21 million nights and experiences booked, leading to 15.7% year-on-year growth. The quarterly print was higher than its two-year result, suggesting its new initiatives are accelerating booking growth.
Revenue per booking
Average revenue per booking, or ARPB, is a critical metric to track because it not only measures how much users book on its platform but also the commission that Airbnb can charge.
Airbnb’s ARPB growth has been subpar over the last two years, averaging 2.7%. Still, the increase in nights and experiences booked is more relevant for assessing long-term business potential. If Airbnb tries boosting ARPB by taking a more aggressive approach to monetization, it’s unclear whether bookings can continue growing at the current pace.
This quarter, Airbnb’s ARPB was $31.41. It grew by 2.8% year on year, slower than its booking growth.
Key takeaways from Airbnb’s Q3 results
We were impressed by Airbnb’s optimistic revenue growth and EBITDA margin guidance for the full year, both of which were raised from the prior guidance. We were also glad its EBITDA outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. Zooming out, we think this was a solid print. The stock traded up 12% to $188.78 immediately following the results.
Airbnb may have had a good quarter, but that alone doesn’t determine whether the stock is worth buying. What happened in the latest quarter matters, but not as much as longer-term business quality and valuation when deciding whether to invest in this stock. Read our full research report here (it’s free).
