Airbnb started with two designers trying to solve a problem: how to pay their rent.

The year was 2007. Brian and Joe — two of our founders and friends from design school — were looking for a way to cover the cost of their San Francisco apartment. That week, they saw an opportunity. An international design conference was coming to town, and every hotel was sold out. They quickly created a website, AirBedandBreakfast.com, with the hope of renting airbeds in their apartment to attendees of the conference. Three designers, Michael, Kat, and Amol, took them up on their offer and became the first guests of Brian and Joe, our first hosts.

13 Years Later

Today, the idea does not seem so crazy after all. Our more than 4 million hosts now offer everything from a private room in their home to luxury villas, from one night to several months at a time. Hosting has expanded from homes to now include experiences that can be taken in cities all over the world, or even online. In more than 220 countries and regions around the world, our hosts have welcomed over 825 million guest arrivals and have cumulatively earned over $110 billion. “Airbnb” has become synonymous with one-of-a-kind travel on a global scale.