Holiday homes come in all layouts and sizes. But if you’re planning to book one, chances are you’ll do so through Airbnb or HomeAway.
The two platforms are among the most popular options for travelers looking for accommodation. Madeline List, a senior research analyst at Phocuswright who has studied the short-term rental industry, said there is “a lot of cross-listing” so users can find the same rental on multiple platforms.
“So there is definitely some overlap between the two platforms,” she told USA TODAY. But while they have similarities, there are some differences that can help potential guests decide which is the right choice for their trip.
What sets Airbnb apart?
For starters, it has more entries.
“Airbnb is huge in this space and is certainly dominant,” said Madeline List, senior research analyst at Phocuswright. The company said it had more than 7.7 million listings in the Spring 2024 update, compared to more than 2 million on HomeAway.
The platform also has greater brand awareness. Phocuswright’s 2021 US Short-Term Rental Report – the most recent to measure this metric – found that 78% of short-term rental users surveyed were aware of Airbnb as offering that type of accommodation, while 50% mentioned Vrbo . (Phocuswright surveyed U.S. adult consumers with Internet access who had traveled overnight and stayed in a paid short-term leisure rental in the past two years, and received 983 qualified responses).
List noted, however, that the numbers may have shifted since then and that HomeAway has “driven increased brand recognition.”
She added that Airbnb has “also done a lot of work to promote properties that feel very unique and that feel like very differentiated experiences.”
The company recently launched the Icons category — which includes the clock chamber at the Musée d’Orsay and a replica of Carl Fredricksen’s house from Disney and Pixar’s “Up” — and has more offerings ranging from houseboats to yurts.
“We believe Airbnb offers more unique places to stay and unforgettable experiences than any other travel platform,” Dave Stephenson, Airbnb’s chief business officer, said in an email. “Whatever your travel budget or ideal vacation, whether you’re traveling alone or with a group, there are Airbnb listings with great amenities that can give you a magical time almost anywhere in the world.”
What sets HomeAway apart?
HomeAway may have fewer listings, but it has been around since before Airbnb existed. Expedia Group acquired the platform – then known as VRBO – in 2015 as part of HomeAway. VRBO was rebranded as Vrbo in 2019, before shutting down HomeAway in the US the following year.
“Vrbo pioneered the vacation rental category nearly 30 years ago and has remained committed to providing travelers with consistent and reliable vacation rentals,” Melanie Fish, VP of Global PR at Expedia Group Brands, said in an email. “It’s not about spaceships or a celebrity’s garage – it’s about real, fully functioning homes that are meant to be lived in and enjoyed with family and friends.”
While Airbnb customers can rent a room in someone else’s home, HomeAway only offers private rentals. That way, Fish says, “guests always get the entire space to themselves and never share the space with a host.”
HomeAway guests can also participate in Expedia Group’s One Key rewards program, which allows them to earn OneKeyCash to use on the site or on Expedia and Hotels.com. The platform also shows the total prices including surcharges by default (hidden costs are a source of frustration for many travelers). Airbnb users must use a toggle to enable the display of the total price.
Vrbo has also received 2,934 Better Business Bureau complaints over the past three years, while Airbnb has received 7,580.
Do Airbnb or Vrbo cost more?
Hosts set the listing prices, List said, and they may vary.
“It can vary slightly from site to site for all kinds of technical reasons, such as the types of commissions and fees they pay to the different booking sites, or the types of dynamic pricing tools or fee structures they can set up on them. end,” she noted.
If one platform allows a certain fee to be added and another platform does not have this option, the host can adjust prices to compensate.
“The best way to save money on booking fees is to book directly with (a rental) provider, but for various reasons that may not be an option in certain destinations – not everyone has a direct booking site – or it may not be something people feel comfortable with because there is certainly more purchase security when you book through these centralized sites like Airbnb and HomeAway,” List said.
Despite their differences, they also have a lot in common (for example, both offer 24/7 customer support). “The (user experience) certainly has a lot of similarities,” List said.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Airbnb or Vrbo: What differentiates each of the vacation rental platforms
