Airbnb's Second-quarter Revenue Exceeds 2019 by 10%

Airbnb revenue climbed 300% year over year for the second quarter of 2021 and surpassed Q2 2019 figures by 10%.

In the first quarter, revenue was up 5% from two years earlier. The company attributes the sequential improvement to continued strength in North America, improvement in Europe and higher average daily rates.

The home-share giant posted revenue of $1.3 billion for the second quarter, significantly exceeding Q2 2020 revenue of $335 million and higher than the $1.21 compiled in Q2 2019.

On an adjusted EBITDA basis, Airbnb was profitable: Adjusted EBITDA in Q2 2021 was $217 million compared to a loss of $397 million in Q2 2020 and a loss of $43 million in Q2 2019. Net loss for the quarter was $68 million.

"Our business dramatically improved with the rollout of vaccines and the easing of some travel restrictions. While conditions aren't yet normal, they are improving. People's desire to travel, combined with our tightly managed expenses, drove a return to a positive top-line growth with materially improved adjusted EBITDA," Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky said in a call with analysts.

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"But here's the most important fact: Our business improved without the recovery of two of our strongest historical segments, urban travel and cross-border travel. We expect the return of urban and cross-border travel to be significant tailwinds over the coming quarters."

Nights and Experiences booked for the quarter were 83.1 million, nearly reaching the total in Q2 2019.Gross booking value -- defined as nights booked prior to cancellations and alterations -- was more than $13 billion, up 37% from Q2 2019.

Airbnb says its number of active listings on the platform grew in Q2, with the strongest supply increases in areas with the greatest guest demand. Active listings in non-urban destinations in Europe and North America increased by 8% from Q1 2021 to Q2 2021.

The company attributes the growth to its platform refresh in May that simplified the sign-up process for hosts, as well as a marketing campaign touting the benefits of hosting.

Airbnb says long-term stays, defined as stays of 28 days or more, remained its fastest-growing category by trip length. Overall, nearly 50% of gross nights booked were from stays of at least seven nights in Q2 2021. Short-term stays for the quarter increased almost 40% compared to Q1 2021.

Chesky noted that Airbnb's flexible date feature, which was introduced alongside more than 100 other platform updates, has had more than 90 million flexible date searches since February. He said guests using the feature converted at a higher rate than those who did not.