How Airbnb thinks about listing value (and why it's trickier than regular LTV)
Original: How Airbnb Measures Listing Lifetime Value
Carlos Sanchez Martinez
May 29, 2025
10 min read
Case Study
Advanced
Summary
A deep dive on how Airbnb measures and uses listing lifetime value to identify the most valuable accommodation listings for their guests. The article covers the framework and methodology Airbnb uses to calculate LTV, including retention curves, discount rates, and segment-level LTV comparisons.
Who This Is For
Business Analysts
Product Managers
Data Scientists
Key Takeaways
- Learn Airbnb's three-part LTV framework: baseline, incremental, and marketing-induced incremental value
- Understand how to account for cannibalization in multi-sided marketplaces where one listing's success affects others
- Apply machine learning and discount rates to project future booking value over 365-day periods
- Use LTV segmentation to identify high-potential listings and guide supply expansion strategy
- Measure the impact of internal marketing campaigns on listing performance
Tools & Technologies
Machine learning models Financial modeling frameworks LTV calculation methodologies Airbnb platform data
Topics Covered
customer-lifetime-value unit-economics customer-retention data-analysis business-metrics
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