Having a high Airbnb response rate is similar to having a high featured image — it counts more than you think. And there’s no doubt that it has a direct impact on the overall performance of your listing.
Let’s start with the fundamentals…
What exactly is a ‘Response Rate’?
A response rate is defined by Airbnb as “the proportion of new enquiries and reservation requests you responded to (by accepting/pre-approving or refusing) within 24 hours in the last 30 days.”
Responding to a query after the initial 24-hour period will be considered a late response, and your Airbnb response rate will suffer as a result. “Your response rate isn’t affected by follow-up messages between hosts and guests,” Airbnb continues. To keep your response rate up, you don’t have to submit the final message in a conversation.”
What is Airbnb’s approach to response rates?
Response rates are used by Airbnb to assess ranking, status, and dependability. At the end of the day, Airbnb is a user-centered platform that wants to promote the best hosts possible.
If you have a low response rate, Airbnb will move you down in their search results. And the ramifications are evident. To succeed on Airbnb, you must play their game and make yourself as guest-friendly as possible. Appearing higher in search results implies you’re more likely to get a reservation.
Response rates also influence who is considered for Superhost rank by Airbnb. “Average Daily Rate (ADR) for Superhosts is around 11 percent lower than the average, but they make up for it with an 81 percent higher Occupancy Rate,” according to BNBSpecialist.
What Can I Do to Increase My Airbnb Response Rate?
To increase your total response rate, you must accomplish three things. To begin, you must accept or deny any reservation requests. Second, you must pre-approve or reject trip requests. Finally, you must respond to all new guest enquiries.
The message is straightforward: respond to every communication you receive within 24 hours. Set a reminder on your phone to check your inbox every day, and be sure to respond to every message, even if you are unable to accept the appointment.
The greater your level of activity, the better. If you can reduce your response time to one hour, Airbnb will give you a higher rating in their search results. Some Airbnb advice websites even encourage responding to a possible visitor within 10 minutes. The major reason for this is that once a potential visitor contacts you, they are eager to book, and the faster you help them through the booking process, the higher your Airbnb score will be.
There Are Exceptions
“If you’ve received less than 10 new message threads in the last 30 days, your response rate and response time will be based on the 10 most recent message threads from the prior 90 days,” Airbnb clearly stated. This helps hosts in more remote regions who may not receive a large number of bookings on a monthly basis.
Remember that Airbnb doesn’t just look at your response rate throughout the summer. If you do not want to honor any bookings during the winter/off-season, remove your listing off-market and relaunch it during peak season, making sure to price competitively and respond quickly!
How Can DPGO Assist?
DPGO exists solely to make our users’ lives easier. We optimize your listing from the ground up by connecting your Airbnb account to our clever, dynamic pricing algorithm.