Airbnb Loyalty Program Could Massively Accelerate Growth

SAN FRANCISCO — After years of holding out, Airbnb is finally getting serious about loyalty. And if you've been refreshing your inbox hoping for some kind of frequent traveler perk from the platform, well, there's movement. CEO Brian Chesky confirmed during last week's earnings call that the company is actively testing various loyalty benefits; not just one concept, but multiple approaches. It's the clearest signal yet that Airbnb is ready to play ball in an arena where nearly every other major travel player already has a seat at the table.

What Chesky Actually Said About Airbnb's Loyalty Tests

"And we are actually testing a lot of different tracks," Chesky said, according to Skift. "So we're testing different benefits that could be in the loyalty program. And based on the results of those tests, we'll eventually package them and release the loyalty program." The word "eventually" is doing some heavy lifting there, but it's worth noting this isn't vaporware anymore. The company has moved from internal discussions to real-world experiments, which means travelers should start seeing some version of this sooner rather than later. Chesky also described the effort as something that "could be a massive accelerant," according to Skift. That's not throwaway language from a CEO on an earnings call. It signals Airbnb sees loyalty as a genuine growth lever, not just a box to check because competitors are doing it.

Why Airbnb Waited This Long

For years, Airbnb executives talked about loyalty programs without actually launching one. The hesitation made some sense; the platform built its identity on being different from hotels, and traditional points programs can feel transactional and overly complex. Why saddle yourself with the baggage of tier systems and blackout dates when your whole brand is about authenticity and local connection? But the competitive landscape has shifted. Booking Holdings has been pushing its Genius loyalty program hard, and traditional hotel chains continue to dominate repeat bookings through their massive loyalty ecosystems. Even within Airbnb's own expanding portfolio, there's been early movement: the company's HotelTonight platform started offering 10 percent Airbnb credit on hotel bookings back in spring 2025, a clear signal that some form of loyalty testing was already underway. Meanwhile, Marriott Bonvoy started offering up to 10,000 bonus points on vacation rentals through July 31, 2026. Hotels are coming for Airbnb's turf with loyalty perks in hand. Airbnb, it seems, decided it couldn't afford to sit this one out forever.

Testing Multiple Tracks Makes Sense

The fact that Airbnb is running several experiments simultaneously is smart. Loyalty programs are notoriously hard to get right; they need to feel valuable without training customers to only book when there's a deal. They need to be simple enough to understand but differentiated enough to matter. What benefits might Airbnb be testing? Based on what's already happening on the platform, discounts for highly rated guests seem plausible. Some hosts have reportedly been invited to offer 20 percent discounts to guests with ratings of 4.8 or higher in exchange for improved search ranking. That's a loyalty mechanic, even if it's not framed as one yet. There's also the potential for cross-platform benefits. Airbnb has been expanding beyond traditional short-term rentals into hotels, experiences, and local services. A loyalty program that rewards you for booking a cottage in Vermont and then an experience in Barcelona starts to look less like a hotel program and more like something closer to Amazon Prime for travel. And that's interesting, because Chesky has floated the idea of a paid membership model in the past; something more akin to Prime than to Hilton Honors. Whether that concept is part of the current testing remains unclear, but it would certainly be distinctive.

What This Means for Travelers

If you're a frequent Airbnb user, this is mostly good news. Loyalty programs, when done well, reward the behavior you're already engaged in. If Airbnb can offer meaningful perks without making the booking process more complicated or pushing prices higher to fund those perks, that's a win. The risk, of course, is that hosts end up shouldering the cost through reduced payouts or pressure to discount. Airbnb will need to strike a balance that keeps both sides of the marketplace happy. A loyalty program that alienates hosts won't be sustainable, no matter how much guests like it. There's also the question of timing. Chesky said the company will "eventually package" the benefits and release a program, but he didn't offer a timeline. Given that testing is already happening, a 2026 rollout seems plausible, but don't expect anything official until Airbnb is confident they've got the formula right.

The Bottom Line

Airbnb is no longer a loyalty holdout. The company is testing benefits, watching the data, and preparing to launch something that could fundamentally change how repeat travelers engage with the platform. Whether it becomes a "massive accelerant" as Chesky hopes will depend on execution, but the fact that it's happening at all marks a meaningful shift. For now, keep an eye out. If you're a highly rated guest or a frequent booker, you might already be part of the test without realizing it. And if Airbnb gets this right, your next stay could come with a few more perks than just a well-stocked kitchen and a nice view.