Airbnb has posted its fastest revenue growth in three years, beating the highest analyst estimate for the third quarter and prompting chief executive Brian Chesky to declare the company is back in growth mode.
Revenue climbed 19% to $4.87 billion in the three months to September, ahead of every forecast compiled by Bloomberg. The company’s closely watched bookings metric, nights and experiences booked, grew 16%, and adjusted earnings per share also topped expectations.
What’s driving the reacceleration
Executives pointed to resilient travel demand and a series of product changes rolled out over the past year, including deferred payment options that let guests reserve stays before paying in full, and more flexible cancellation policies that have lowered the friction of booking further in advance.
The quarter builds on an accelerating trend. In the second quarter, revenue grew 17% to $3.61 billion with gross booking value up 16%, and momentum in bookings has now quickened for a second straight period.
Guidance lifted again
Alongside the results, Airbnb raised its revenue outlook for the third time this year, steering investors toward high-teens growth for 2026 as a whole, an upgrade from the mid-teens pace it previously forecast.
The raised guidance suggests management sees the current momentum as durable rather than a post-summer spike, and it gives the company a stronger base heading into what is traditionally its seasonally softer fourth quarter.
Bigger ambitions
The numbers arrive as Chesky pushes a broader expansion of the platform beyond its original home-rental model, including boutique hotels, artificial intelligence-driven trip planning, and new services layered onto stays. Investors have rewarded the strategy, with the shares up sharply from their lows as the market warms to the story of a maturing marketplace finding new levers for growth.
For a company that spent much of the past two years convincing Wall Street it could grow responsibly, the message of this quarter was simpler: growth is back, and it is paying for itself.
