4-star place to work at - Software Engineer Airbnb Employee Review

4.0
14 Jun 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Still experiencing good growth in terms of everything. Extremely liberal culture. Much faster getting things done comparing to some big corporations. IPO prospect looks good.

Cons

Growth not as great as a few years back. Bureaucracy is starting to build up. A- people hiring B people and B people hiring B- people. IPO is always "2 years down the road".

Explore other reviews about Airbnb

5.0
4 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Airbnb's mission of creating a world where anyone can belong anywhere strongly resonates with me. I'm excited by the opportunity to build products that operate at global scale and directly impact millions of users. My background in full-stack engineering, distributed systems, cloud infrastructure, and AI-powered applications aligns well with Airbnb's focus on innovation, reliability, and exceptional user experiences. I am particularly attracted to Airbnb's engineering culture, emphasis on ownership, and commitment to solving complex technical challenges while delivering meaningful value to hosts, guests, and communities worldwide.

Cons

One challenge of working at Airbnb is the complexity that comes with operating a global platform at scale. Engineering teams must balance reliability, performance, compliance, and user experience across many markets and stakeholders. While this can make development and decision-making more complex, it is also one of the aspects that makes the work technically interesting and professionally rewarding.

1.0
10 Apr 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Friendly and inviting environment - Inclusive - Autonomy

Cons

- Poor training (gaps exist in workflows, workflows are tailored to senior agents only and not new joiners) - Metrics (discussed briefly, but never something emphasized until it's too late) - Low pay (you're criminally being underpaid for this role and it's responsibilities despite the company being massive) - False expectations (be okay with metrics that were closed to meeting, but suddenly, cutting you loose without any advance notice)

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