How to become an Airbnb Superhost

Anyone can be a host on Airbnb - that’s what’s made it so successful. But becoming a Superhost is quite a lot more difficult. The Superhost programme recognises the very best of the best of Airbnb’s hosts, and becoming a Superhost is a great way to get the most out of Airbnb.

What’s so great about being a Superhost?

Quite a lot actually! You’re a lot more visible in Airbnb’s search ranking - there’s a feature on the search listings where you can filter by Superhost status. You’ll also have a special badge on your profile and listing labelling you as a Superhost. The combination of more people finding your listing and the trust in you that they’ll have because of your Superhost status mean you’ll get a lot more bookings - and you’ll be able to charge a higher price at the same time.

Airbnb also offer some specific financial rewards to Superhosts, including a yearly Airbnb travel coupon.

What are the criteria?

This is the hard bit! There are four criteria that you’ll need to have met for the last 12 months - and Airbnb checks to see if you’re still meeting them every three months. They are:

A rating of 4.8 or higher
Based on your reviews over the past 12 months, you’ll need to have an overall rating of 4.8 or more. This is calculated from the date guests leave their reviews, not on the final day of their stay.

A 1% or lower cancellation rate
Once your guests have made their bookings, you’ll need to guarantee that you’ll see the booking through - and that means a very low cancellation rate. There are extenuating circumstances under which cancellations are allowed - including unforeseen property damage, jury duty, and serious illness. If you meet any of the extenuating circumstances, you can contact Airbnb directly and explain what happened.

A 90% response rate
Your response rate is the percentage of messages you responded to within 24 hours over the past year. This includes guests asking questions as well as reservation requests.

Hosted 10+ times in the last year
You’ll need to have hosted guests at least 10 times over the past 12 months, or, if you’re hosting longer-term guests, you’ll need to have hosted three trips totalling over 100 days.

How do I get at least 10 bookings?

Even if you’re responding to and accepting all of the booking requests you get, it can still be hard to get the required 10 bookings a year. Make sure the description is clear and the title is catchy. Include as many good photos as you can - they don’t need to be professional, but they should be well lit and taken with a good quality camera. Have as many amenities as you can, as guests will check your list when checking your listing. Try lowering your pricing too - check the prices of similar homes near to yours as a point of comparison.

How do I ensure a rating of 4.8 or higher?

Keeping your rating above 4.8 isn’t easy - apart from simply not having hosted enough, low ratings are the biggest cause of hosts failing to gain Superhost status. Guests can give ratings on their overall experience, cleanliness, accuracy, value, communications, check-in, location and amenities. To get the very best ratings, you might want to try going the extra mile for your guests and checking out our guide to things that guests love.

How do I track my progress?

You can track your progress towards becoming a Superhost by heading to the opportunities section on the performance tab of your Airbnb dashboard. This will give you a breakdown of each target. Being a Superhost isn’t something you need to activate or apply for - if you meet the criteria, you’ll become a Superhost automatically.

Want to ensure your guests have a great check-in experience? KeyNest is the best way to welcome your guests remotely, letting them check in at their own convenience and letting you take back some of your spare time.