Airbnb lifts its 2026 outlook and adds a $12 billion buyback

What happened

Airbnb reported on Thursday 5 November that third-quarter revenue was $4.9 billion, up 19 percent, and raised its full-year revenue and profit-margin outlook while adding a new $12 billion share repurchase authorization. ^{[1, 2]}

Net income was $1.9 billion, a 39 percent margin, against $1.4 billion a year earlier, when a $213 million tax charge was booked. Gross booking value, the dollar value of what guests booked, was $27.7 billion, up 21 percent. Nights and seats booked, a count that includes stays and service bookings, reached 155.0 million, up 16 percent. ^{[1, 4]}

Free cash flow, a measure the company defines and reconciles itself, was $1.4 billion. Airbnb repurchased $0.7 billion of its Class A stock in the quarter, $712 million in the quarterly report, and $2.7 billion remained under the old authorization before the new one. ^{[1, 3]}

Why it matters

Skift set Airbnb's 19 percent beside Expedia Group, whose revenue grew 12 percent, and Booking Holdings, whose revenue fell 1 percent after a $1 billion charge tied to a possible FTC settlement. Skift noted that Airbnb's 16 percent growth in nights and seats compares with 7 percent room-night growth at each rival, though the measures are not directly comparable. Reuters wrote that Hilton, Marriott, Expedia and Booking had been cautious about fourth-quarter forecasts because of elevated airfares linked to the Iran war and unrest in parts of Europe. ^{[4, 5]}

What drove the quarter

Airbnb attributed the growth to demand in all regions and to its product work, including search, pricing tools, flexible payments and sign-up. Bookings grew at a low-double-digit rate in North America, a mid-teens rate in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and above 20 percent in Latin America and Asia Pacific. ^[1]

Reserve Now, Pay Later lets guests book further ahead and pay later. The company said it raised booking value before revenue was recognized, and that this pulled the take rate, revenue divided by booking value, to 17.6 percent, down from a year earlier. ^[1]

What the company says next

For the fourth quarter, Airbnb said it expects revenue of $3.22 billion to $3.28 billion, up 16 to 18 percent, including about two points from currency. It expects booking value growth in the mid-teens and an Adjusted EBITDA margin down slightly, partly because of the timing of marketing spend. ^[1]

For 2026, the company now expects revenue growth in the high teens and an Adjusted EBITDA margin of about 36 percent, and it said it is monitoring developments in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Chief Financial Officer Ellie Mertz said Airbnb does not expect a material impact this quarter from unrest in France or the Middle East, Reuters reported. ^{[1, 4]}

Also in the filings

Airbnb said it plans to start rolling out its own AI agent for planning and booking trips in the first half of 2027. In November a private AI lab founded by Chief Executive Brian Chesky acquired certain Airbnb intellectual property and reimbursed some expenses for $7.1 million in cash. The quarterly report says a special committee of independent directors approved the arrangement. ^{[1, 3, 4]}

What settles it next

The fourth-quarter shareholder letter will show how revenue and booking value compare with the outlook above; the letter does not give its date. Airbnb also said it plans to expand its Neighborhood pages to 1,500 neighborhoods by the end of the year. ^[1]

Who it reaches

Airbnb (ABNB) is the company that filed. Booking Holdings (BKNG) and Expedia Group (EXPE) are adjacent through Skift's comparison of reported growth. Airbnb also sources its car rentals from Expedia's CarTrawler, Skift reported. ^[5]