How to Invest in Airbnb (ABNB) & What to Know Before You Buy

How to buy Airbnb stock

Airbnb is publicly traded, so the process of buying it is pretty much the same for any U.S.-listed stock:

1. Open a brokerage account: Open an account with one of our favorite low-cost brokers to get started. If you already have one, you'll simply need to log in.
2. Fund your account: Transfer money so you’re ready to invest.
3. Search for Airbnb: Enter the ticker symbol "ABNB" into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
4. Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
5. Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
6. Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
7. Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.

What does Airbnb do?

Airbnb runs a global home-sharing platform that connects two groups: hosts who make their homes or properties available, and guests looking for places to stay. This two-sided marketplace model is at the core of Airbnb’s business and creates strong network effects, meaning the platform becomes more valuable as more people use it.

Airbnb makes money by charging service fees on bookings rather than owning properties itself. Because it doesn’t operate hotels or maintain physical real estate, the business is considered asset-light, which allows it to scale quickly as long as hosts continue joining the platform.

Over time, Airbnb has become a major competitor to traditional hotels and vacation rentals, gaining market share as travelers seek more flexible, localized, or unique lodging experiences. While the company faces regulatory challenges in some regions, it continues to expand globally and benefits from strong brand recognition, a growing user base, and high profit margins.

Should you invest in Airbnb stock?

Whether Airbnb is a good fit depends on your investing style. Airbnb is a growth stock and doesn’t pay a dividend, so it may not appeal to investors looking for value stocks or income. But for growth-focused investors, Airbnb could be worth considering.

Reasons investors may like Airbnb

• The company has significant room to grow, since it can expand globally wherever hosts join the platform.
• Airbnb continues to take market share from traditional hotels by offering unique and flexible lodging options.
• Its two-sided marketplace creates network effects, making it harder for competitors to catch up.
• Airbnb currently has the majority market share among home-sharing platforms, ahead of competitors like Expedia's (EXPE +3.37%) VRBO.
• Its asset-light model helps generate strong financial results. Airbnb posted a 36% adjusted EBITDA margin in 2024, and revenue reached $3.1 billion in Q2 2025, up 13% year over year.

Reasons to be cautious

• Growth stocks can be volatile, especially if market conditions shift.
• Airbnb faces regulatory challenges. For example, New York City has effectively banned short-term rentals, Barcelona has seen anti-tourism protests, and Victoria in Australia recently introduced new rental taxes.
• The company does not pay a dividend, making it less appealing for investors seeking income.

Is Airbnb profitable?

Airbnb is profitable. For most of its history, the company operated at a loss, but CEO Brian Chesky was forced to overhaul the business when the pandemic struck and the travel industry essentially shut down.

Airbnb ended up laying off about a quarter of its staff and committed to running a much leaner operation. The company has been profitable since, and its margins have been expanding. In 2024, it reported $4 billion in adjusted EBITDA on $11.1 billion in revenue.

Airbnb benefits from an asset-light business model, and its hosts do the hard work of receiving and accommodating guests. Its model allows the business to collect commissions as long as it keeps the site running and provides customer service as needed for its hosts and guests.

Does Airbnb pay a dividend?

Airbnb does not pay a dividend and has not announced any plans to do so. Although the company could afford to pay a dividend, it is unlikely to pay one since it's still investing in its growth.

Notably, its closest rivals, like Booking Holdings (BKNG +2.94%) and Expedia, do pay a dividend.

How to invest in Airbnb through ETFs

If you want exposure to Airbnb without buying individual shares, you can invest through an exchange-traded fund (ETF). ETFs hold many stocks at once, which can make your investment more diversified and less dependent on the performance of a single company.

There are many ETFs with exposure to Airbnb. The stock was added to the S&P 500 in 2023, so any ETF that tracks the S&P 500 will include Airbnb. Some of the bigger ones include:

• SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY -0.13%)
• Vanguard 500 Fund (VOO -0.14%)
• iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV -0.15%).

Airbnb is also part of the Nasdaq-100, so it appears in ETFs that follow that index, such as:

• Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ -0.50%)

Beyond broad-market funds, Airbnb also shows up in sector-focused ETFs, including those tied to travel, leisure, or discretionary spending trends.

According to Tipranks, the stock is held by 705 ETFs in late 2025, so there are many options here.

Will Airbnb's stock split?

Airbnb went public in December 2020, and the company has never split its stock.

A stock split for Airbnb seems unlikely soon since shares have traded around $130 per share, comparable to other tech stocks. It's possible that the company will split its stock at some point in the future, but that seems unlikely to happen for at least several years.

The bottom line on Airbnb

Airbnb stock has a lot of attractive qualities. It's the leader in home-sharing. It benefits from a number of competitive advantages, including network effects, switching costs, and a well-known brand. And its business model is capable of generating wide profit margins, showing the company has pricing power.

The stock also trades at a reasonable valuation and is delivering solid growth in an industry that will almost certainly expand over the years.

Although Airbnb may not belong in every portfolio, there's a good argument for many investors to own the stock since the company looks set to continue to disrupt the travel industry and may expand into new products and services.

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