Airbnb reported Tuesday that it made $117 million in the first quarter, as more people rented and spent money on its platform during a travel recovery and a trend of remote work.
It was the first time that the short-term rental giant made a profit in the first three months of the year, a slow season for travel.
The San Francisco-based company’s profit compared with a loss of $19 million a year earlier and amounted to 18 cents per share.
Airbnb Revenue
Revenue rose 20% to $1.82 billion, beating analysts’ estimate of $1.79 billion, according to a FactSet survey.
Nights and experiences booked, a key metric for Airbnb, grew 19% to 121 million, and the company valued the bookings made in the quarter at $20.4 billion, a 19% increase.
Airbnb earnings call
In a letter to shareholders, Airbnb said its revenue and gross value of bookings are both double what they were before the pandemic.
Airbnb is benefiting from people who are traveling while they have the flexibility to work remotely and stay away from the office. More of those people are booking international stays. The company said cross-border bookings increased 36% over last year’s first quarter, helped by travel to and within the Asia-Pacific region and bookings into North America.
The average nightly rate paid by Airbnb customers was $168, unchanged from a year earlier, the company said. Price increases in some places were offset by a slight shift toward in-city rentals, which tend to be cheaper than whole-house rentals in beach and mountain destinations.