Sizing Airbnb's US Revenue Bottom-Up from Listings, Booked Nights and Fees

You are interviewing for a product manager role and are asked to estimate, with no access to data, how much revenue Airbnb earns in a year from its business in the United States. Talk through how you would build the number, state each assumption as you introduce it, and land on a single figure or a narrow range. ```hint Who keeps what Airbnb does not own the homes on its platform. Before sizing anything, decide which part of the money a guest hands over actually counts as Airbnb's revenue. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Does "revenue" mean the fees Airbnb keeps, or the total value of the bookings guests pay, including the host's share? - Does "in the US" mean stays at US properties, bookings made by US-based guests wherever they travel, or both? - Should Experiences and other non-lodging services count, or only stays? - Is a rough figure for a recent typical year good enough, or does the interviewer have a specific year in mind? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A precise definition of revenue that separates gross booking value from the take rate Airbnb earns on it. - An equation that breaks the number into drivers such as active listings, booked nights per listing, average nightly price and take rate. - Every input labeled as an assumption, with a round number and a one-line justification. - Correct arithmetic and an independent cross-check, for example a demand-side estimate built from traveler nights. - Awareness of which assumption the result is most sensitive to. ### Follow-up Questions - Which single input moves your estimate the most, and what data would you want in order to tighten it? - How would the number change if the interviewer meant bookings made by US residents, including their trips abroad? - How would a downturn in leisure travel flow through each driver, and which driver would move first?