Airbnb dominates urban short-term rentals with 7+ million listings and stronger booking infrastructure, while Vrbo specializes in vacation homes with average stays of 5+ nights and appeals to families seeking multi-bedroom properties. Airbnb has 4x more listings globally but Vrbo offers better long-term rental options and lower service fees for property managers.
Vrbo vs Airbnb — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Choose Airbnb if you want maximum variety, the most listings in urban areas, lower guest fees, and superior mobile booking experience—ideal for spontaneous weekend getaways and city exploration. Choose Vrbo if you're seeking entire vacation homes, prefer longer stays (5+ nights), need family-friendly multi-bedroom properties, and want to avoid high host commissions (10-12% vs Airbnb's 0%).
Compare Airbnb vs Vrbo (Vacation Rentals by Owner)
Community-driven marketplace for unique stays, homes, and experiences hosted by individuals worldwide.
Vacation home rental platform specializing in multi-bedroom properties with 2.1M+ listings.
Vrbo (Vacation Rentals by Owner) — Wikipedia
Structured comparison data for Vrbo vs Airbnb with 117 attributes.
Required Price Premium to Match Profitability
Hosts Earning More From Multi-Platform Strategy
Premier/SuperHost Cancellation Requirement
Premier/SuperHost Acceptance Rate Requirement
Cost per Person (4-person group, 7 nights)
Estimated Daily Meal Savings with Kitchen
Vrbo vs Airbnb — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Vrbo vs Airbnb.
Which platform is cheaper for guests overall?
Neither consistently—it depends on trip length. For 1-3 night stays, Airbnb averages 12-18% cheaper due to lower guest fees. For 7+ night stays, Vrbo becomes 15-22% cheaper because it offers longer-stay discounts (up to 40% off) and property managers prefer bulk bookings. Example: A 2-night Paris apartment costs ~$320 on Airbnb vs $385 on Vrbo; a 10-day Tuscany villa costs ~$1,200 on Airbnb vs $840 on Vrbo.
Which platform has better host earnings?
Vrbo offers higher earnings per booking for long-term rentals (30+ days), where hosts retain 88-90% of booking revenue. Airbnb is better for frequent turnover properties (weekend stays) because 0% host fees offset higher cleaning costs. A host renting a 2-bedroom home nets ~$2,800/month on Vrbo (30-night stays) versus ~$2,450/month on Airbnb (weekend bookings), a 14% difference.
What's the biggest quality/safety difference between platforms?
Airbnb enforces stricter verification (real identity verification required since 2023) and has 24/7 global support, but experiences 14% of disputes related to unauthorized parties. Vrbo requires less stringent verification but attracts longer-term guests (5-7 nights average) who are inherently more cautious, resulting in 8% dispute rates. Airbnb's professional hosting program (Airbnb Plus) offers vetted homes; Vrbo lacks equivalent certification tier.
Vrbo is objectively better for families: 72% of its inventory is entire vacation homes with 2-4+ bedrooms, compared to Airbnb's 28%. Vrbo also accommodates longer minimum stays (5-7 nights average), reducing packing frequency. Families booking a week-long beach house will find 4x more suitable options on Vrbo and save 15-20% through weekly discounts.
Airbnb offers standardized cancellation tiers (Flexible = full refund until 24h before; Moderate = refund until 5 days prior; Strict = non-refundable). Vrbo allows individual hosts to set custom policies, creating inconsistency—some offer full refunds 60 days out, others are non-refundable. Airbnb's standardization is clearer for guests; Vrbo's flexibility appeals to risk-averse hosts. Both offer force majeure protection for COVID-like events.