To become a Superhost on Airbnb, you need four numbers you can track, and the badge can bring a boost in Airbnb search. Own the listing on an account in good standing. Over the 12 months before a quarterly assessment, host 10 reservations (or 3 totaling at least 100 nights), answer 90% of new messages within 24 hours, keep cancellations under 1% and hold a 4.8 overall rating. There is no application. Airbnb assesses status in 7-day periods beginning January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1.
Maybe you've had a string of great stays, then one guest left 3 stars and you're asking yourself, "Did that just cost me the badge?" You may not know which of the four numbers is holding you back, or that, by simple-average arithmetic, one 3-star review takes nine 5-star reviews to offset at 4.8. This guide covers each requirement, the rating and cancellation math, the co-host rule, reviews and removals, and a quarterly routine for earning and keeping the badge.
The Four Airbnb Superhost Requirements at a Glance
Airbnb grades Superhost status on four measurable criteria, all counted over the prior 12 months. You don't have to host for the full year, but whatever you hosted in that window is what gets measured. According to Airbnb's Superhost requirements page, the criteria are:
Metric | Target | Notes |
|---|
Stays | 10, or 3 for 100+ nights | Owned listings |
Replies | 90% in 24 hrs | New messages |
Cancels | Under 1% | Some excepted |
Rating | 4.8 or higher | Overall stars |
Two conditions sit above the four numbers. You must be the listing owner of a home listing, and your account must be in good standing. Airbnb's Superhost Terms and Conditions add that the standards are measured by an automated system and can change at Airbnb's discretion, so check the requirements page before each quarter instead of relying on an old screenshot.
Airbnb also reserves the right to suspend or withhold Superhost status for hosts with high review removal rates or high host-initiated cancellation rates. That line matters later, when we get to disputing reviews.
How the Quarterly Assessment Works
Airbnb decides Superhost status four times a year, on fixed dates. Every 3 months, Airbnb evaluates your performance over the past 12 months across all listings on your account. Each assessment is a 7-day period that begins on one of four dates.
Starts | Review week | Badge shows |
|---|
Jan 1 | Jan 1 to 7 | Up to 1 wk later |
Apr 1 | Apr 1 to 7 | Up to 1 wk later |
Jul 1 | Jul 1 to 7 | Up to 1 wk later |
Oct 1 | Oct 1 to 7 | Up to 1 wk later |
If you meet the requirements in the middle of a quarter, nothing happens yet. Airbnb's help page says status is granted at the next assessment date as long as you are still eligible then. You'll be notified at the end of the assessment period, and the badge can take up to a week to appear on your listing. Airbnb's status tracking article says you'll get an email whether you gained, kept or lost the badge.
Reviews that land near a deadline have their own rule. A review counts toward Superhost status once both you and the guest have submitted reviews, or once the 14-day review window closes, whichever comes first. If a guest's stay happens during an assessment but their review publishes after that assessment ends, the rating counts toward the next period instead.
Who Can Earn the Badge: The Co-Host Rule
Only listing owners are evaluated for Superhost status, and co-hosted listings don't count toward a co-host's eligibility. If you manage homes for owners, this rule decides whose badge your work builds.
Even if a co-host manages a home listing as the primary host, Airbnb's requirements page says the co-host can't be considered for Superhost status based on that role. If the same person also owns a different home listing, they can be evaluated on the listing they own, and the co-hosted listings still won't contribute. Airbnb's reviews for homes article adds that for co-hosts, guest ratings and reviews won't appear on their public profile, won't be included in their host rating and won't affect their Superhost status. Experience and service hosts are excluded the same way.
If you co-host for owners, the practical result is that the owner's account is the one evaluated, and your work is what moves the owner's numbers. Put that in your management agreement and your owner reports, so neither side assumes the badge belongs to you. Our guide to what an Airbnb co-host does covers the role itself, and the co-host agreement breakdown covers how to put the terms in writing.
There is one more limit for anyone building a management business. The Superhost terms say you can't display the badge outside your listing on Airbnb, which rules out putting it on your own website or marketing materials.
If you'd like a second set of eyes on which of the four numbers is holding your listings back, and what to fix first, a complimentary one-on-one diagnostic call can help you sort it out.
The Rating Math: How Far One Review Moves You
A 4.8 average leaves room for very few imperfect reviews when your review count is small. Airbnb's reviews article says a host's rating is the average of the overall rating scores from all reviews of that host's listings, and reviews Airbnb has removed are excluded. If you treat it as a simple average (our arithmetic, not a formula Airbnb publishes), this is how many 5-star reviews it takes to hold one lower rating at exactly 4.8.
Review | Add 5s | Total |
|---|
4 stars | 4 | 5 |
3 stars | 9 | 10 |
2 stars | 14 | 15 |
1 star | 19 | 20 |
The arithmetic behind the table is short. With n five-star reviews and one review of k stars, the average holds at 4.8 when n is at least 4.8 minus k, divided by 0.2. On that arithmetic, a single 3-star review among ten total reviews in the window leaves you exactly at the line, and the next 4-star drops you below it.
Early on, every review carries outsized weight, which is why the first ten reviews deserve their own plan. And because the rating is measured on a rolling 12-month window, an old 3-star review eventually ages out of the Superhost calculation, while a recent one can sit in your numbers for up to four quarterly assessments.
Superhost uses overall stars, but guests also score check-in, cleanliness, accuracy, communication, location and value. Each guest's individual category scores and private notes are visible only to you and Airbnb, so read them as your repair list. A dip in one category points to a specific fix while the overall average still looks fine.
Cancellations and Response Rate: The Quiet Disqualifiers
Cancellations and slow replies can cost the badge even when your reviews are excellent. Both rules are stricter than they look on paper.
Cancellation rate under 1%
Airbnb's requirements page doesn't publish the exact formula, but if you treat the rate as cancellations divided by reservations, the arithmetic is unforgiving. With 10 reservations in the window, one cancellation is 10%. Staying under 1% with a single cancellation would take more than 100 reservations.
The exceptions are specific. Airbnb excludes cancellations for other valid reasons and for large-scale events covered by its major events policy (Help Center article 1320). That policy covers events that prevent or legally prohibit a reservation. Examples include government travel restrictions like evacuation orders, declared public health emergencies, unforeseeable natural disasters and prolonged utility outages affecting the vast majority of homes in an area. It does not cover things like injury or illness or non-binding travel advisories.
A host cancellation also carries a cost apart from status. Airbnb's Host Cancellation Policy sets fees of 10%, 25% or 50% of the reservation amount depending on how close to check-in you cancel (stays of 28 nights or longer use a different base), with a $50 minimum, and the policy says hosts who cancel without a valid reason may lose their Superhost status. The cleanest protection is a schedule you trust: synced calendars, blocked maintenance dates and no double bookings.
Response rate of 90% within 24 hours
For Superhost purposes, Airbnb's response rate article says the rate is based on your first reply to each new host and guest message thread over the past 12 months, assessed quarterly. That differs from the 30-day response rate shown on your listing.
Three details decide whether you clear 90%:
Declining is a response. Declining a reservation request counts as responding and doesn't affect Superhost status.
Expiring is a miss. Letting a request expire without a reply counts as a non-response.
Follow-ups don't count against you. Only the first reply to a new thread is measured, so you don't have to send the last message in a conversation.
Quick replies, notifications on your phone and a co-host or assistant covering your off hours help keep that first reply inside 24 hours. Our guest communication templates give you the message set to load in advance.
Reviews, Responses and Removal Requests
Airbnb review removal is limited to reviews that break its Reviews Policy, and a high removal rate can itself cost you the badge. Airbnb's Reviews Policy limits removal to reviews that are irrelevant, fake, retaliatory, written to harm competition, tied to bias, deception, extortion, incentives or pressure, or in violation of the Content Policy. It lists examples that don't qualify, including disagreement with a star rating and mentions of factors outside your control, like a noisy neighborhood.
If a review does break the policy, Airbnb's review removal article says you can request removal at any time. Airbnb usually emails a decision within 48 hours, and you can submit a request for the same review up to two times. Removed reviews are excluded from your rating.
Disputes carry a cost. Airbnb says it may suspend or withhold Superhost status for hosts with high review removal rates, and Guest Favorites also weighs review removal rate. A dispute filed for every 4-star review works against you. Save removal requests for reviews that clearly break a written rule, and answer the rest with a short public response. Airbnb's guidance on responding to a review notes that your reply posts immediately and future guests see it beside the review, so write it for the guests deciding whether to book next.
The Reviews Policy also says hosts may not offer discounts, refunds or a reciprocal positive review in exchange for a review, and may not pressure guests about what they write. The line is the exchange: trading anything of value for a review isn't allowed.
Superhost vs. Guest Favorites: Two Different Tests
Superhost judges you as a host every quarter, while Guest Favorites judges each listing every day. They overlap, but the bars differ, and having one doesn't guarantee the other. In the table, the host badge is Superhost and the home badge is Guest Favorites.
Item | Host badge | Home badge |
|---|
Unit | Host acct | Each listing |
Checked | Quarterly | Daily |
Rating | 4.8+ overall | Above 4.9 avg |
Volume | 10 stays | 5 revs/4 yrs |
Airbnb's Guest Favorites help page says listings need at least 5 reviews in the past 4 years, with at least 1 in the past 2 years, and are compared on overall and category ratings, host cancellation rate, review removal rate and quality-related incidents. Airbnb's Understanding Guest Favorites adds that host cancellations and quality-related customer service issues should be below 1% on average, and that each listing is treated individually. Its Why reviews matter page describes Guest Favorites as listings with ratings above 4.9 stars on average plus high marks in all six categories.
If you hold both, Airbnb shows both on your listing page. If you are a Superhost whose listing hasn't qualified for Guest Favorites, you keep the Superhost badge.
What the Superhost badge gets you
Airbnb lists visibility, support and rewards as Superhost benefits, and it publishes a guest-confidence figure for the badge. On its How to become a Superhost page, Airbnb says Superhosts get dedicated Community Support, invites to special events, travel coupons and a boost in search results.
The same page cites two figures: 59% of guests say Superhost status makes them more confident in the quality of accommodation, and Superhosts earn 60% more than hosts who aren't, which its footnote bases on median earnings for Superhosts and non-Superhosts from October 2023 to October 2024. The page doesn't say how the 59% figure was measured. The 60% figure compares median earnings of two groups, and it doesn't show that the badge itself caused the difference. The terms also say benefits can change or end at any time.
How to Become a Superhost on Airbnb: A Quarterly Checklist
Treat the badge as a quarterly scorecard you check before each assessment date. Work through these six steps in order, starting about six weeks before the date.
1. Confirm the account structure
Make sure the listings you want counted sit on your own account as the listing owner. If you co-host, have the owner's account carry the listing and agree in writing who tracks the numbers.
2. Open your Superhost dashboard
In your account, go to Performance, then Superhost, to see where you stand on each requirement. Airbnb recommends tracking your progress periodically, since the 12-month window keeps moving. Note the next assessment date and how many weeks remain.
3. Close the reservation gap
If you're short of 10 stays, open blocked nights you can host, review your trip minimum and shorten advance notice where you can. Airbnb's Superhost guide suggests all three. If your minimum stay leaves unbookable gaps, our guide to the two-night minimum gap shows the tradeoff. Mid-term hosts can qualify on the alternate path: three stays totaling at least 100 nights.
4. Protect the response rate
Load quick replies, turn on message notifications and decide who covers the inbox when you can't. Decline a request you can't host instead of letting it expire.
5. Fix the category that is dragging the rating
Read each guest's category scores and private notes, pick the weakest category and fix it before the next arrivals. If check-in is the weak score, a clear Airbnb welcome book is a low-cost repair, and our list of unit must-haves for five-star reviews covers the physical side.
6. Recheck a week before the date
A week before January 1, April 1, July 1 or October 1, review all four numbers again. Avoid any cancellation you can, and remember that reviews still inside their 14-day window may land in the next period instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to become a Superhost on Airbnb?
You don't need a full year of hosting. Airbnb evaluates the prior 12 months on each quarterly date, and it says you don't have to host the full 12 months to qualify. Once you hit 10 reservations, or 3 reservations totaling at least 100 nights, with the other three numbers in range, you can earn the badge at the next January 1, April 1, July 1 or October 1 assessment, as long as you still qualify then.
Do I have to apply for Superhost status?
No. Airbnb's terms say you don't need to apply. If you meet the requirements on the assessment date, the status is applied automatically and you're notified by email.
Can a co-host become a Superhost?
Not through co-hosted listings. Only listing owners are evaluated, and reviews on listings you co-host don't affect your Superhost status. A co-host who also owns a separate home listing can qualify on that listing's performance.
Does declining a booking request hurt my Superhost status?
No. Airbnb's requirements page says declining new reservation requests doesn't affect your Superhost status, and its response rate article says declining counts as a response. Letting a request expire without replying counts as a non-response.
What happens if I lose Superhost status?
The badge comes off after the assessment where you missed a requirement. You can earn it back at any later quarter where your trailing 12 months meet all four criteria again.
Is Superhost the same as Guest Favorites?
No. Superhost evaluates your account quarterly with a 4.8 overall rating bar. Guest Favorites evaluates each listing daily and looks for ratings above 4.9 on average, at least 5 reviews in 4 years and strong reliability.
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