New Airbnb Data Reveals 2.2 Million Guests Used Site to Visit UK in Past Year

New Report: Airbnb Supports a Movement of 'Everyday Innovators' Across the UK

Airbnb helps grow and diversify tourism in the UK and provides an economic boost to countless families, communities and local businesses.

UK, December 3, 2015 - Airbnb, the world's leading community driven hospitality platform, today released new data highlighting the overwhelmingly positive impacts of the Airbnb community in the UK. It shows that Airbnb is empowering a generation of everyday innovators to make a little extra money from their homes. Hosts are growing and diversifying tourism in the UK and are attracting visitors from across the world to communities beyond the tourist hotspots, which provides an economic boost to countless families and local businesses.

This is the first data to be released on the Airbnb community in the UK since new home sharing legislation for London came into force in May this year. It also follows the launch of the Airbnb Community Compact last month, where Airbnb pledged to be good partners to governments and to provide them with the information they need to understand the Airbnb community. It also highlighted that the estimated annual economic impact of Airbnb in London is more than £1.3 billion (almost $2 billion).

Patrick Robinson, Head of Public Policy at Airbnb, said:

“The UK government has set itself as a global leader for the sharing economy and progressive business models. We are pleased to support their aim of being the world leader for the sharing economy, and to work with them to support a nation of innovators who show the best of the UK by sharing their homes and their communities.”

Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Business, said:

“The government wants the UK to be one of the best places in the world to run new, innovative businesses. We can see from these figures that companies like Airbnb are revolutionising whole swathes of our economy by giving everyday entrepreneurs and ordinary working families the chance to boost their income. The sharing economy also provides more competition and choice, so is great news for consumers."

Airbnb hosts in the UK have been welcoming guests into their homes since 2008. Today's reports captures the Airbnb community in London and the UK in the one year-period between November 2014 and November 2015.

Here are some highlights from the reports:

- Airbnb increases consumer choice and helps grow and diversify tourism across the UK.
- 2.2 million guests used Airbnb to visit the UK in the past year, and 3.1 million UK residents used Airbnb for their travels.
- The average host rating by guests is 4.5 out of 5.
- Airbnb empowers long-term residents to use their homes as economic assets.
- In the UK, 52,500 hosts shared their homes in the past year. The typical host earned £2,000 by sharing their homes for 46 nights a year.
- Hosts have lived in their hometowns for an average of 19 years.
- Airbnb provides an economic boost to families, communities and local businesses across the UK
- 85% of Airbnb guests choose Airbnb to 'live like a local' in communities beyond the tourist hotspots. This spread economic benefits beyond city centres and tourist hotspots.
- More than a third of UK hosts earn below the median household income, and almost half rely on the income they make by sharing their homes to make ends meet.

Earlier this year, the UK government introduced clear and simple rules for people who share their homes in London, and the Chancellor unveiled a series of measures to ensure Britain is the global capital for the sharing economy, including increasing the amount of tax free income hosts can earn by sharing space in their home.

You can view the reports for the UK and London here.

About Airbnb:

Founded in August of 2008 and based in San Francisco, California, Airbnb is a trusted community marketplace for people to list, discover, and book unique accommodations around the world – online or from a mobile phone. Whether an apartment for a night, a castle for a week, or a villa for a month, Airbnb connects people to unique travel experiences, at any price point, in more than 34,000 cities and 190 countries. And with world-class customer service and a growing community of users, Airbnb is the easiest way for people to monetize their extra space and showcase it to an audience of millions.