Company culture

What Benefits Keep Airbnb's Employment Offers Competitive?

Airbnb's benefits are top notch. Here's why.

Airbnb has indisputably been one of the largest, most successful disruptors to the lodging and hospitality industry. Its success speaks for itself, as Airbnb boasts 150 million users, and has hosted 400 million guests since its launch in 2008. 53% of travelers use Airbnb because of prices, and 49% of users in 2016 said they utilized the service instead of staying at a traditional hotel.

Clearly consumers love it, but what makes Airbnb such an attractive company to work for? Part of the appeal stems from the employee benefits packages, enabled by the company's widespread success.

So, if you’ve ever considered sending your resume to an Airbnb recruiter, here are some key benefits you should consider when weighing a potential offer against others.

Healthy Company Culture and WLB

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Airbnb's mission is to "create a world where anyone can belong anywhere," which has inspired the diverse and inclusive work environment the company strives to foster for its employees.

Despite the growing pains associated with a newly public company, Airbnb employees rave about the healthy culture and work-life balance, which can be hard to come by at large companies with great benefits (it's often a trade-off).

A senior manager at Airbnb described on Glassdoor how the leadership has positively contributed to the culture:

“Executive leadership is deeply screened, well experienced, ethical, and caring. This has kept the culture healthy from a top down perspective. Company culture is and always has been amazing. This has set the bar for leadership.”

Airbnb understands the importance of having a life outside of work, so the company promotes a healthy work-life balance — not only through its benefits but also through its culture. A software engineer from San Francisco highlighted their positive experience with the company in a Glassdoor review:

“Company really stresses and lives by its core values. Upper management is open about what's happening. Work/life balance is amazing. Company really tries to take care of its employees."

Excellent Healthcare Options

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According to many former and current employees, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, and disability benefits are all major pros to working at the company.

All the aforementioned insurances are covered 100% for the employee and up to 70% for dependents. So, all you have to pay as an individual is the tax when purchasing the plan. There are 3 different healthcare plans and deductible options you can choose from depending on your family situation.

Airbnb also offers its employees an HSA, or health savings account, which allows you to withdraw money tax-free to cover any out-of-pocket expenses.

Basic Financial Benefits

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In the tech world, 401k matching policies can be a huge priority, with most employees agreeing that long-term financial security is a key concern when weighing benefits packages.

s Airbnb offers a 3% match on 401k contributions. While some companies don't offer a match at all, 3% is still a fairly low number which could make it more difficult to save for retirement.

“Whatever AIRBNB contributes, it becomes 100% vested after a 2-year period after which the employees can keep even if they leave AIRBNB.”

Airbnb employees can also utilize the ESPP where they can purchase stock at a 15% discount. This is a very standard benefit throughout the industry.

Top-Notch PTO Policy

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Generous PTO options

Another important consideration is the amount of paid-time-off (PTO) offered to employees during a calendar year. Airbnb offers:

  • 3-4 weeks of PTO
  • 12 recognized national holidays
  • Winter shutdown for 2 weeks in December
  • Recharge time of either 6 weeks or 8 weeks every 5 years (6 weeks fully paid or 8 weeks 50% pay)

When ranked by employees, Airbnb’s PTO and holiday policies are ranked as the third most important part of the benefits package, with 28% of employees ranking it as the most important benefit.

However, it is important to note that this package is reported to vary dependent on the time spent within the company. Comparably reports that

“43% of employees with a tenure of less than 1 year say that their PTO policy consists of 15-20 days of paid vacation and sick time. Whereas, 67% of employees with 2 to 5 years say they receive 20-30 days of paid vacation and sick time as part of their PTO.”

Comprehensive leave policy

Airbnb offers generous leave policies for employees that are new parents or those that need to care for family members. Here are the specifics:

  • 10 weeks of parental leave
  • 12 weeks of leave for birth parents
  • 12 weeks to phase back into work from parental leave: new parents can work 80% of the week and receive 100% pay
  • 6 weeks PTO to take care of a family member

The National Partnership for Women & Families recognized Airbnb as a "leave innovator" in that the company is "taking steps to provide unique forms of leave to their employees." Though plenty of companies in the industry provide more parental leave than Airbnb, the phased return to work is certainly a unique policy.

PTO that benefits the community

Airbnb also offers PTO for volunteering, for up to 4 hours per month. They donate $20 per hour of your volunteer time to the organization you volunteer at.

So, Airbnb encourages its employees to invest in local communities, both culturally and financially.

Perks in the Office and Across the Globe

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Innovative office spaces

Airbnb offers some of the most innovative offices in tech, with a variety of perks available. The office eco-system created by Airbnb is unbeatable:

  • Top-notch food, beverages, and snacks prepared daily by an in-house chef
  • Office therapy dogs are common
  • Apple technology is available

Photo credit: Office Snapshots

With offices in cities like New York, San Francisco, Miami, and Portland, there are opportunities to relocate to a city you’re interested in. For those who wish to expand their career abroad, Airbnb has offices in countries like Brazil, Ireland, China, and Japan, to name a few.

Airbnb also offers relocation assistance packages to new employees. However, the cash evaluation of these offers varies greatly and is highly dependent on negotiation.

Travel benefits, locally and worldwide

Imagine if your job encouraged you to travel in the best way possible: by paying you to do it. According to Insider, Airbnb offers its employees $500 quarterly ($2,000 annually) to stay in Airbnb listings anywhere in the world. With listings in 191 countries, the options are truly endless.

Outside of personal travel, there may be travel expenses associated with your work. Uber and Lyft credits are common when traveling on business, and commuter benefits are offered to those who have a demonstrated cost when traveling daily to the office. Deals with public transportation for those without vehicles are another commuter benefit offered by Airbnb.

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Third-party data has been obtained from sources we believe to be reliable; however, its accuracy, completeness, or reliability cannot be guaranteed. Candor does not receive compensation to promote or discuss any particular Company; however, Candor, its employees and affiliates, and/or its clients may hold positions in securities of the Companies discussed.