Online accommodations platform Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB) beat Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q1 CY2026, with sales up 17.9% year on year to $2.68 billion. On top of that, next quarter’s revenue guidance ($3.57 billion at the midpoint) was surprisingly good and 3.1% above what analysts were expecting. Its GAAP profit of $0.26 per share was 14.1% below analysts’ consensus estimates.
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Airbnb (ABNB) Q1 CY2026 Highlights:
- Revenue: $2.68 billion vs analyst estimates of $2.62 billion (17.9% year-on-year growth, 2.2% beat)
- EPS (GAAP): $0.26 vs analyst expectations of $0.30 (14.1% miss)
- Adjusted EBITDA: $519 million vs analyst estimates of $484 million (19.4% margin, 7.2% beat)
- Revenue Guidance for Q2 CY2026 is $3.57 billion at the midpoint, above analyst estimates of $3.46 billion
- "In Q2 2026, we expect Nights and Seats booked growth to slightly decelerate, relative to Q1 2026, assuming an estimated roughly 100bps headwind related to the conflict in the Middle East"
- Raised full-year revenue growth guidance to "low to mid teens" from "at least low double digits" previously; roughly maintained full-year EBITDA margin guidance of 35+%
- Operating Margin: 3.2%, up from 1.7% in the same quarter last year
- Free Cash Flow Margin: 63.5%, up from 18.8% in the previous quarter
- Nights and Experiences Booked: 156.2 million, up 13.1 million year on year
- Market Capitalization: $83.16 billion
Company Overview
Founded by Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia in their San Francisco apartment, Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB) is the world’s largest online marketplace for lodging, primarily homestays.
Revenue Growth
A company’s long-term sales performance is one signal of its overall quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. Over the last three years, Airbnb grew its sales at a decent 13.2% compounded annual growth rate. 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 17.9%, and its $2.68 billion of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s estimates by 2.2%. Company management is currently guiding for a 15.3% year-on-year increase in sales next quarter.
Looking further ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 10.5% over the next 12 months, a slight deceleration versus the last three years. We still think its growth trajectory is satisfactory given its scale and suggests the market is baking in success for its products and services.
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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 9.1% annually to 156.2 million in the latest quarter. This growth rate is solid for a consumer internet business and indicates people are excited about its offerings. 
In Q1, Airbnb added 13.1 million nights and experiences booked, leading to 9.2% year-on-year growth. The quarterly print isn’t too different from its two-year result, suggesting its new initiatives aren’t accelerating booking growth just yet.
Revenue Per Booking
Average revenue per booking (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 2.1%. This isn’t great, but the increase in nights and experiences booked is more relevant for assessing long-term business potential. We’ll monitor the situation closely; 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 clocked in at $17.14. It grew by 8% year on year, slower than its booking growth.
Key Takeaways from Airbnb’s Q1 Results
We enjoyed seeing Airbnb beat analysts’ gross booking value, revenue, and EBITDA expectations this quarter. Looking ahead, Q2 revenue guidance was ahead but the company expressed cautiousness due to the conflict in Iran. For the full year, revenue growth guidance was raised. Zooming out, we think this quarter featured some important positives. The stock remained flat at $141.30 immediately following the results.
Airbnb had an encouraging quarter, but one earnings result doesn’t necessarily make the stock a buy. Let’s see if this is a good investment. The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
