The Hands-Down Best Way to Respond to Airbnb Reviews (2024)

As an Airbnb host, I hope you’ve felt the total joy of getting glowing Airbnb reviews.

Finding out that you made a huge difference in your guest’s vacation (and that they can’t wait to stay with you again!) makes all the hard work of Airbnb hosting worthwhile.

But, if you’re not careful, you might not be reaping all the benefits of your positive reviews.

Read on to learn how to maximize all the benefits of Airbnb reviews, how to get MORE positive reviews, and the hands-down best way to respond to reviews.

If you’re not familiar with how Airbnb reviews work, be sure to check out my (quick) guide to Airbnb’s review system.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I’m not affiliated with Airbnb in any way (other than being an Airbnb host, of course). Read my full disclosure policy here.

Note: All information referenced in this post is up to date as of 3/6/2022. For the most up-to-date information, please refer directly to the Airbnb website and specific web pages linked throughout this post.

Why Airbnb Reviews Matter

I won’t spend too much time here because, as a customer, you’ve likely left reviews, read reviews, and made purchase decisions based on reviews. So, you know why they matter!

Reviews provide social proof from an unbiased third party. Reading Airbnb reviews is a potential guest’s opportunity to determine whether or not your listing is truly as great as you say it is.

Furthermore, responding to ALL reviews (both positive and negative) shows that you’re communicative, thoughtful, and care about your guests’ experience.

(This is one reason why negative reviews aren’t necessarily a bad thing!)

In this post, we’ll talk all about how to respond to positive reviews left by your guests. To maximize the benefit of ALL Airbnb reviews, make sure to check out How to Make Negative Airbnb Reviews Work in Your Favor.

Pro tip: One of the best things you can do to increase your profitability is optimize your listing.

How to Respond to Positive Reviews

Responding to positive reviews gives you an opportunity toreinforce all of the great thingsyour past guests have said about you.

It also builds credibilityifwhenyou get the occasional negative review.

After your guest’s review is public, you’ll have30 daysfrom the date of posting to reply.

When you respond to positive reviews, consider including the following:

• The guest’s name (so that your reply feels personal)
• Gratitude (either that they stayed with you, that they left a thoughtful review, or something specific they did during their stay)
• Reiterate the great things they stated in their review (so that potential guests see those great thingstwice)
• Invite them to stay with you again (you want to encourage repeat customers every chance you get!)

And, keep it short and sweet!

This is generally how I respond to positive reviews on my Airbnb listing:

Pro Tip:As tempting as it is, trynotto copy and paste the same response over and over to different guests. I believe this counteracts all of the positive things about leaving public responses.

How to Get MORE Positive Reviews

Increasing the number of positive reviews you have is crucial for new listings. It’s also the absolute best way to offset the impact of any negative reviews.

Here are five proven tactics to get more positive reviews:

(This isespeciallyimportant for new hosts who need to build credibility)

1. Send a mid-stay message
   • During a guest’s visit, ask if there’s anything you can do to improve their stay. This helps you address any issues right away, so that they don’t end up in a review
   • Save time by stealing the exactmid-stay message I send my Airbnb guests
2. Do proactive property maintence
   • Proactive maintenanceis crucial because it helps you get ahead of any issues at your property before they turn into a disaster
3. Treat your cleaners well
   • Cleanliness is incredibly important to guests. Over half of my Airbnb reviews mention that my guests appreciate how clean my property is
   • This is just one of10 common mistakes successful Airbnb hosts avoid

4. Ecourage guests to leave a review in your checkout message
   • Something as simple as “P.S. We really value your private feedback as well as your review. Thank you!” is all you need (DO NOT incentivize or compensate guests for leaving you a review, which would violate Airbnb’s Review Policy)
5. Review your guest first (this is by farmy #1 tipfor getting MORE reviews)
   • Most guests won’t immediately leave a review after checking out. But, most guestswillleave a reviewafter you leave one for them

Note: Leaving a review first isn’t always the best move. If a guest had a negative experience, you might not want toencouragethem to leave a review.

Takeaway

Getting glowing Airbnb reviews is one of the absolute best parts of hosting.

Now that you know how to successfully respond to positive Airbnb reviews (and get MORE positive reviews!), you’re ready to start making them work in your favor more than ever before!

Pro tip: One of the best things you can do to increase your profitability is optimize your listing.

Happy hosting!

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Do you respond to positive reviews? Drop a ‘heck yes!’ in the comments 🙂