Your top questions about Airbnb Search

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

One of the most popular discussion topics here in the Community Center is on how Airbnb Search works. We brought your most-asked questions to the Airbnb Search team and have gathered the answers for you.

I really hope you find the responses helpful. To read the responses to each question, please click on the 'Read more' buttons! 🙂

Lizzie

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 Answers to your top Search questions

You’ve created and published a fabulous listing and now your friends and family want to check it out. How do they find it? And among all the listings out there, how does the Airbnb algorithm decide which ones to show a traveler searching in your area? As we hear questions from hosts, two basic categories of questions emerge: What affects a listing’s ranking, and how can I find my listing online? So we took your most asked questions to the Airbnb Search team and have gathered the answers for you. Let’s dive in.

1. On search ranking, and how to improve yours:

What factors affect my listing’s placement in search results?

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That’s a great question. We have an algorithm that looks at over 100 signals to decide how to order listings in search results.  Most of those signals have to do with things that guests care about, like positive reviews and great photos. If you think guests might care about it, it probably factors into your ranking! The reason is this: you’re most likely to get a booking request (or be instantly booked) if a traveler finds the type of place they’re looking for right away. We get a lot of information from the traveler about what they want for then show them listings that match their needs most closely.

Not every signal is weighed equally, and you don’t need to have a perfect listing or an unbeatable location for your listing to rank well. But there are some really influential signals that make a difference. Some of those include: how often guests click on your listing in search results, how often guests attempt to contact you from your listing page, how many booking requests you accept, if you use Instant Book, and how competitive your listing price is.

Why are listings with Instant Book prioritised ahead of other listings in the search results?

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The main goal of the search algorithm is to facilitate bookings. And if a guest has an excellent experience booking and traveling on Airbnb they’re highly likely to use Airbnb again in the future. This helps travelers and hosts alike. We’ve seen for many years that—all other things being equal—travelers prefer to use Instant Book because they can book quickly, skip the wait time for hosts to respond, and avoid possibly being rejected. Because of the high booking success for hosts and guests, Instant Book gives your listing a boost in searches.

That said, many of you have amazing listings and use a Request to Book approach to hosting. It’s important that you know Instant Book is only one of more than a hundred factors in your listing search ranking. You can absolutely rank really well in searches without being an Instant Book host.

If I’m a Superhost, will my listing get a boost in search results?

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Although we don't give an explicit boost to Superhosts in search, the factors required to become a Superhost do help your listing rank higher. Moreover, we give guests the option to filter their search results to only display Superhosts and occasionally showcase Superhosts on the results page.

How can I improve my listing ranking in search results? Are there any settings I can adopt to help my ranking?

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The best way to immediately improve performance in Search is to enable Instant Book. Our research shows that guests prefer the booking experience that Instant Book provides. Even when they don’t filter for Instant Book listings, they often choose them over others because booking a place to stay quickly means they can get on with planning the rest of their trip. Other ways to quickly boost your ranking:

• Make a fabulous first impression. Make sure that your first photo is a bright, attractive, high quality, horizontal image of your listing. The more clicks you get from curious travelers, the higher you’ll rank in search results over time. An enticing and realistic photo is the very best way to show off your space in an instant.
• Price your listing competitively. Travelers are frequently looking for a great value for their trip, and by using tools like Smart Pricing, or setting your own competitive price, you can get the benefit of well informed pricing recommendations.

Is it true that if guests add my listing to their wishlists, my listing will get a little boost in the search results?

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Yes! When travelers add your listing to their wishlist, it does indeed help your search ranking! One individual wishlist may not make a visible difference but over several months, if many guests love your listing and choose to wishlist it, it will rank higher. We also use listings that guests wishlist to better personalize their search experience, so they’ll be likely to see your listing again in future searches.

Is it true that editing and tweaking my listing every day will help boost my listing in Search?

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Repeatedly changing or tweaking your listing will neither help nor hurt your Search Ranking. If you’re happy with your photos, price, and description, feel free to leave it as is and wait for booking requests to arrive!

Can I pay to advertise my listing so it appears on more search results?

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Airbnb does not offer pay-for-placement in Search. This allows us to generate impartial search results for the best matches between hosts and guests. But you can advertise, if you like. We’ve made it easy for you to find, copy, and paste the information needed to embed your listing on social media and your personal blog or website: On your listing page, you’ll see “Share” on the right hand side of the screen. Underneath that, you’ll see the embed icon. It looks like this: </>. If you click that icon, you’ll see the information you need to easily copy and paste your listings code on your personal blog or website.

Why am I on the last page on search? This way no one will ever book my listing?

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It’s important to know that some searches, for example city-level with no dates, are not highly representative of how a traveler looking to book uses the website. Some of those searches can capture many tens of thousands of listings. Travelers that book tend to use specific dates, zoom in on the map, or look for certain amenities using filters. So there will be far fewer listings in the search results than with a general search with no preferences or filters.

If I have to decline a booking because a guest doesn’t meet my House Rules, does this impact my search ranking?

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Because being rejected for a booking is one of the worst experiences for our guests, we do factor this into Search Ranking. However, we understand that sometimes you legitimately need to decline a traveler, and we take that into account. We’re most interested in how you compare to other hosts, rather than just counting your rejections.

A single rejection will not significantly hurt your ranking, but over time, rejecting more guests than other hosts in your market will lower your ranking. We find that a large majority of our hosts are able to accept most booking requests, and our best Request-to-Book hosts accept almost all of them. You can help travelers know if they should try to book your space by writing clear, detailed House Rules and keeping your calendar up to date. Make sure your settings and amenities lists also set accurate expectations.

2. On finding your listing online

I just created my listing and it appears as published on my profile, but when I search for it I can't find it. If other people search for it, they can't find it either. Why is that?

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There is usually a delay of around 6 hours between the time you publish a listing and when it shows up in search results. This gives you time to make final changes to your listing settings before receiving your first booking request. It also gives Airbnb time to ensure every new listing is suitable for the marketplace. If you don’t see your listing within 24 hours, you can contact customer support to find out why.

I haven't received a new booking in awhile, so I searched for my listing and asked a friend to search for it too. Neither of us could find it, and it’s not showing up even when I add specific details and filters. What can I do?

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If your listing is in a popular market with numerous listings, it may be necessary to apply several filters to show your listing. Don’t worry, this is how travelers search and they’ll be able to find your listing too! We recommend using dates on your search, and checking that they match your calendar availability and minimum nights settings.

A common reason Instant Book hosts (or their friends) may not see their listing is that they’ve chosen to require a guest have positive reviews in order to make a book their space. If you’ve chosen this requirement, it means your listing will show up as a Request to Book, not an Instant Book, listing for logged out users or new guests if the Instant Book filter is applied. This is because a logged out or new traveler will not be eligible to instantly book your place.

I can’t find my listing. Does it make a difference if I’m logged in or logged out?

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Most listings on Airbnb should show up in searches regardless of whether you’re logged in or not, although the ranking may appear different. This is because Airbnb search is personalized, and when a traveler logs in we have more information to better match them with listings. One exception to this is for hosts who allow Instant Book but have chosen to require that guests have positive reviews. In this case, if the Instant Book filter is applied, your listing would not show up to travelers who are logged out. This is because we can’t tell if a logged out visitor to the site has reviews.

I can see the listing appearing on the map in the Airbnb app, but when I go to view the same listing (with the same filters) in the desktop version, it isn't appearing. Why is this?

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Airbnb Search is personalized to help travelers find the best listings for their trip. Part of that involves looking at the device and location they’re searching from. This means that you may experience a different ranking of listings on different devices.

I have Instant Book activated, but my listing doesn't come up in the results. Isn't Instant Book supposed to boost my listing on search results?

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Instant Book does give you a boost, but it sounds like there may be another reason you’re not seeing your listing in the results. Make sure that your search criteria match the settings and requirements you’ve established. Anything from minimum nights requirement to date range, number of guests or not having reviews can hinder you from seeing your listing in a search. And of course, if you require guests have previous ratings, then it may be that you haven’t traveled on Airbnb yourself or that you’re not logged in as a guest.

I can’t find my listing when I search for its title. Why doesn’t Airbnb have keyword search? Will it be implemented in the future?

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Keyword search, and especially free-text search, is extremely technically challenging, but an exciting product to build! Rest assured that we have an excellent team that is always investigating how to improve the search experience, and we hope that changes like these will make it into the product in coming years.

The most important thing is this: you’re a unique host who offers a one-of-a-kind experience, because you’re you and your space isn’t like any other. We hope these tips and answers help you understand the sometimes complicated nature of matching unique travelers with hosts. Focus on what you do best, play up your strengths, and don’t worry about showing up first in search.

[Anne668]

Polly I couldn't agree more. I too am a Superhost: all of us in the family and our cleaner work our fingers to the bone for our guests. Nothing is too much trouble and we always go the extra mile. We have an extremely personal listing, of our unique and fabulous home which is completely amazing, but it is totally unsuitable for some groups (because we live on the premesis – and you'd be shocked how many people don't read the listing, and therefore don't realise this). Instant Book would be absolutely disastrous: for us, for the guests, and for Airbnb as they would end up being inundated with complaints if we didn't communcate carefully with guests before they book.

[William284]

Polly and Anne:  Yes, exactly.  I have written the offer of a "diligent consumer" discount in the description of my listing.  (Guests who read through my listing discover that they can request this "diligent consumer" discount when they book.)  I did this solely for the purpose of determing which guests actually read the listing.  It is shocking how few prospective guests request the "diligent consumer" discount -- not insubstantial at US $20.  As for myself, I couldn't imagine booking an Airbnb home without thoroughly perusing the host's listing.  But, apparently, many guests don't.  Among many other reasons, that is enough to keep me away from Instant Booking.  Airbnb is moving to a different business model by pushing us into the Instant Booking scheme.  I wonder when Wimdu or other home sharing networks will start reaping the benefit.  Airbnb can play the bully as long as they are the only major player.  When viable competitors come along, however, it may be different.  Competition always changes the marketplace.  Airbnb may not be king forever if they don't genuinely serve their member hosts.  I hope that they are listening.  I am sick of the nagging auto-messages about Instant Booking.  I am even sicker of the injustice of prioritizing IB hosts over others.

[Pam112]

Hi! How do you become a " Superhost" ? Thanks! Pam

[Maria130]

For me The Most Important factor for most people is PRICE. And guest should be able to list their search findings in ascending / descending order of price. This is BASIC and I am surprised that airbnb does not have this facility. A real Shame.

[Price1]

I do not use Instant Book. I like the vetting process. It is good for the host & guest to get to know eachother a bit.

no way will I allow Instant Book.

Price

[Davis8]

This is my first time posting to the forum. I typically do not contribute because I’m busy with guests and management of my operation.
In this instance, I felt compelled to post a response.

Instant Book is unequivocally the WORST part of Homesharing. I have hosted over 700 stays and out of those 700, I have had approximately 10 total bad guests experiences. Out of those 10 bad experiences, 7 of them were Instant Book related. That’s a 70% chance that I’m going to have a major issue. I am talking $2000 worth of damage ... or guests smoking marijuana inside of the house and then giving me a 1 Star rating that won’t go away, because wouldn’t allow them to continue smoking weed kn the house ... or ... the convicted felon from out of state who stole a bike and got hit by a van, dislocated his shoulder and had a {severe} concussion and then refused medical attention ... or the two guys that wandered downstairs in the middle of the into a private area where two females were booked for the evening. My absolute favorite is the guest that is {still} messaging me with threats of robbery and death upon my mother and children. They like to remind me that they have my address and know when the kids are home.

There were also quite a few “false starts” as I call them. That means that someone IB’ed into my listing and then a couple days later, actually read through the listing and determined that it was a bad choice. So now that’s too days less that I have to relist, after dropping my price because I’m in a very highly competitive city. These issues are minor in the grand scheme of things but, why should I take a 20% hit in revenue each time someone books my listing without doing due diligence?

I forgot one. So Prostitutes looooooooove IB. Listen, I could give a care less if someone wants to use my house to get some but the problem is, I most certainly (there is a 100% historical stat for me on this) will have to wash several **bleep** stains out of the bedding.
I would classify this as a minor issue; certainly lower in scale than the death threats or felons in my house. But still it’s super annoying.

With allll if that being said, Homesharing and specifically ABNB, is the best thing to happen to me and ABNB does have IMO the worlds best customer service in ANY industry.

I just wish that I wasn’t penalized in the rankings so severely for mitigating my risk and decreasing the chances that I’m going to have, at best a bad guest experience or at worse (and typically) some serious felonious/criminal weirdness.

[Elizabeth99]

We have noticed a decline in interest/bookings since the push of Instant Book arrived.  I also noticed there are a lot more listings in our area on Airbnb making my listing harder to find, so that also could be a cause.  I don't like the idea of being penalized for NOT using the Instant Book.  We list our vacation home, which we also use between renters.  We are not in the immediate area.  So setting the unit up for guests is typically done the weekend before (if I know it is rented, otherwise it is left with "our" stuff in place).  I know I can set the Instant Book settings to have a 7 day window, but at that point, is it really "instant" book?  Not to mention, if I understand this correctly, those looking won't even see my place if they are within that 7 day window.  And yes, I can get a co-host in the area, but that severly reduces my net earnings on the rental.  I originally shied away from Instant Book when I saw the effect of the unit next door to ours using it - the quality of her renters declined noticeably.  She always had good/great guests for the longest time.  And then she went to instant book.  Sure, she was rented every weekend, but the issues she had to deal with after were not worth it, in my opinion.  As someone else indicated, it IS appealing to some guests and some hosts.  But not to all.  And I think for those of us that choose not to use it, we should not be penalized in the listings.

[Valerie38]

Thanks for the info. I have a puzzle. I have 2 listings. My single room comes up when I add filters for a time when I know it's free. However my double room is only visible if I put in filters for the dates, private room and 1 person. As soon as I add the price filter it disappears and isn't shown on the listings. Why is this when the price is within the range and presumably based on one night?

[Gayle-and-Bill0]

We have used Instant Book for two years and have not had a single guest who might be called an undesirable. I suspect one reason is that we require a minimum stay of two days. That tends to filter out locals looking for a boozy night on the town and filter in travelers looking to explore and experience our city.

[Michelle526]

Jann is absolutely right: I've tried it both ways, and found that the added cleaning & damage costs of Instant Book guests are simply not worth having in our home.

Twice we saw inappropriate treatment of children within Instant Book families.  And I'm certain I'm not alone.Twice my husband & I have had to stay home from work at the last minute because an Instant Book guest made us so uncomfortable that we didn't want to leave our house unwatched. We even smelled drugs on one occasion.

for Airbnb to push us so hard to change back to Instant Book is awful.I will lose guest bookings due to shutting it back off, and if my bookings go down too much, Airbnb will lose us as a host.

[Gretchen0]

I seriously do not understand why only hosts that allow instant book get to see the potential guests star rating. This is blatant discrimination. 

[John1041]

I discontinued Instant Booking after people booked with pets, large groups & plans to arrive early or stay late - all which I need to review first.  

[Walter-A0]

Hello Lizzie: Great Forum!

While it seems all thrives for perfection and easyness on a "fast track reservation" the Host is left with an approve or decline

option. The Host is practically reduced to stamp an approval or decline on something where The Host  has little to no possiblity to find out what he is approving.... and if one declines, beware, down the lines some penalties could be waiting to come your way... The other option which gets lost is to try and negotiate with the potential guest on some changes in his travel plans if the dates you need to accept leaves you with 2-3 nights open, space which you may not be able to rent.

Now to a down side of what you say here, namely what if a listing is on a wrong location and the system inspite of several requests has not managed to correct it? In my case I am approving guests based on a possible confusion as to the exact location of the property. 

Example my listing for some reason got pushed 3 miles away from its exact location. I have had two to three intents with the Help

Center to correct this but it was not possible. Supposedly I need to re-list my property to get the location right.... while this sounds an easy reply, its rather a difficult task when you have multiple bookings/reservations. Can anyone help to solve this in another way?

[Priscilla46]

How ridiculous to use "competitive pricing" as a criteria to elevate your listing on their search algoritm.  Airbnb has absolutely no clue how my price compares to other hosts.  There are no competitors in my area that offer what I do - yet they send me suggestions to lower my price per night by $40 to "get more bookings."  Nor do they notice that a lower listing price is often accompanied by a huge cleaning fee and extra charges per person over one or two - or for children. Totally unfair to hosts.  Prospective guests are PERfectly able to compare and contrast listings without airbnb's inaccurate help.  This should not be a factor in the algorithm! 

[Cecily11]

I LIVE with my guests, in a 3 bedroom, 2 bath condo,  my room, and my smaller room share a bathroom. It is vital I have the opportunity to choose who I'm sharing my home with! I do not think instant book "should" be a search factor at all. I've been a superiors for at more than eight quarters straight, that should make a difference! My condo complex changed our guidelines for vacation rental to a min. of 30 days. I changed that in my settings,  however I still had guests contacting me asking if they could stay for a smaller length of time. By sending me a message I STILL had to hit the decline button which is absolutely not fair, since they were not "booking". After having to decline several times, Airbnb notified me they were going to drop me because I declined so many people! In that case the only reason I declined these people was because of the duration of their stay. Airbnb forced me to put in my introduction first paragraph that I have a 30-day minimal and that way they allowed me to keep my listing!!! That was after being a super host with them for over 2 years straight! That's the only negative experience I've had, but it was ridiculous and very unfair.  people should be able to send a note to us without us having to hit decline or accept when they have not even put in a date!