Airbnb 1Q'26: Growth Acceleration Despite War Headwind

Airbnb reported +15% (FXN) revenue growth in 1Q’26 which was its highest topline growth over the last eight quarters. It is particularly impressive given the the backdrop of Iran war. Airbnb mentioned growth accelerated from January to February but then experienced a “slight deceleration” in March due to cancellation across EMEA and APAC region once the war started. Airbnb estimates Nights growth would have been 10% (vs reported 9%) in the absence of the war.

The reported revenue growth by region appears much more impressive in regions outside North America, but FX had a substantial impact on such regions, I would focus on Nights & Experiences (N&E) growth and Average Daily Rate (ADR) on FX neutral basis to assess the underlying growth.

Geographically, North America’s nights growth finally moved upwards from LSD-MSD range to HSD in 1Q’26. APAC region nights growth also accelerated from mid-teens in the last four quarters to high teens in 1Q’26. First time booker accelerated to 10% growth (which was highest since early 2022) primarily due to growth in expansion markets such as Brazil, India, and Japan.

For the second consecutive quarters, origin nights booked from India grew 50% YoY and in Brazil, it maintained over 20% growth for three consecutive quarters. First-time bookers in India increased 75% YoY. Airbnb’s success in Brazil is particularly encouraging and as I will explain later, I think such success has offered Airbnb bit of a playbook that they now need to replicate and execute in other expansionary markets.

Moreover, demand from Airbnb app is growing much faster than the overall business. In 1Q’26, nights booked on the app accelerated to +22% YoY (vs +17% in 1Q’25 and +20% in 4Q’25). Airbnb app accounted for 63% of total nights booked in 1Q’26 (vs 58% in 1Q’25).

Airbnb’s quarter looks particularly more impressive when we benchmark it against Booking which I will discuss behind the paywall.

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