Airbnb vs. Booking.com: which one has better UX? | by Ben | Jan, 2024

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For a long time, Booking.com has been criticized for employing numerous deceptive patterns, while Airbnb has consistently been praised for its excellent UX. Is this still the case? Let’s explore this in this article.

Comparative image showing the logos of Airbnb and Booking.com side by side, with a question asking readers to choose their favorite platform
Airbnb vs. Booking.com, who’s the UX winner?

In 2009, Sequoia Capital, a leading venture capital firm, invested $585,000 in a small startup for 58 million shares. Today, these shares are valued at $6.5 billion, marking one of the best investments of the past decade — The startup they invested in is called Airbnb.

A few years before that, in 2005, Priceline, an American online travel agency listed on the Nasdaq, acquired a small Dutch startup for $135 million. Today, that startup is worth $120 billion. In 2015, Priceline even rebranded their whole company into the name of that startup — The name of that startup is Booking.com.

Airbnb and Booking.com have always been of interest for designers to compare. Not just only are both companies the absolute leaders in their category of online travel (Airbnb in short-term apartment booking and Booking.com in hotel booking), but they have also chosen different design strategies to encourage travelers to book accommodations on their websites.

Booking.com has been known for aggressive sales techniques in the travelers’ booking experience. If you recall going to Booking.com a few years ago, you probably remember seeing a bunch of red warning texts like “2 rooms left,” “20 other people are looking at this room now,” and many deceptive patterns that urge people to book accommodations.

Screenshot of Booking.com’s homepage from 2017, showcasing their user interface.
Booking.com’s design in 2017 (Source)

Airbnb, on the other hand, is highly valued for its user-centered design and is often recognized as one of the industry’s best user-experience products. This distinction might be attributed to the fact that their co-founder and CEO, Brian Chesky, comes from a design background and has placed significant emphasis on design since the inception of the company.

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