How to respond to an Airbnb guest review

Post a public response after the guest’s review is published. Write about the stay they described. Say what was already on the listing when that is the point they raised, and say what you fixed when something you were responsible for was wrong. Do not offer a refund, a discount, or a new review in exchange for a change. If you think the review breaks Airbnb’s reviews policy, the removal request is a separate form, not a sentence in the response.

The review you write about the guest, during the 14 days after checkout, is a different piece of writing. This page is the public reply to the review they wrote about you.

This guide is not legal advice. It does not say a response will change a rating, a search result, or a later booking. The sample reviews and the sample replies below were written for this page. They are not reviews from a stay.

When you can respond

Reviews for stays, checked on 28 October 2026, says that on checkout day both the guest and the host are prompted to leave a review. Both have 14 days after checkout. The reviews are posted after both have submitted them, or when the 14 days end, whichever comes first. If the reservation is cancelled before check-in day, neither person can review it. Guests and hosts can review certain reservations cancelled on or after check-in day, which that page sets at 12:00 AM in the listing’s time zone.

The same page says you can post a public response to a published review, as long as you follow the policy on authentic and trustworthy reviews. Airbnb does not moderate reviews before they are published. Anyone can read public reviews and the overall star rating once they are published. Individual subcategory star ratings, and notes to the host, are available only to the host and Airbnb. Do not paste those notes into the public response.

A listing’s rating, on that page, is the average of the overall rating scores from that listing’s reviews. It appears next to the listing title in search and on the listing page once the home has at least three reviews. This guide does not say what that average should be, and it does not say a response moves it.

Respond to a review says the response is posted immediately. Future hosts and guests can see it on the listing page, with the original review. You can respond whether you agree or disagree. On desktop, the page says:

1. Click Profile, then Reviews.
2. Click Reviews about you.
3. Go to the review and click Leave public response.
4. Write your response and click Submit.

The page also says Insights lists your reviews and is another place to leave a public reply. It says you cannot remove a review on your own. A removal request is below.

The review you write about the guest is the one inside those 14 days. Guest ground rules say hosts may leave ratings and reviews based on cleanliness, and they ask a host dealing with a ground-rule violation to leave an honest review so the guest can improve for later hosts. That review is not the public response. How to set quiet hours and a noise policy for your Airbnb stops at that honest-review sentence. A noise complaint during the stay is a message in the reservation thread, not this reply.

What to include

Write to a later guest who will read the review and your reply together. Include the point the guest actually raised. If the point is a fact that was already on the listing, say that fact in the same words the listing used. If the point is something you were responsible for, such as a dirty kitchen at check-in, say what was wrong and what you changed for a later stay. State the change as something you did. Do not promise a later rating.

The reviews policy says Airbnb generally does not mediate disputes about whether a review is accurate. The public response is the place it gives you for your account of the stay, and the response has to comply with that policy.

Keep the house rule you mention to a rule that was on the listing when the guest booked. How to write Airbnb house rules is where those rules are saved. The house rules generator prints a sheet from lines you type. Printing the sheet does not post a response, and it does not update the listing.

How to write an Airbnb listing description guests actually read is the place for a limitation such as a bedroom that faces the street. Write that sentence before the stay. A reply after a review can repeat it. A reply cannot invent it if the listing never said it.

What to avoid

The reviews policy says hosts and guests may not coordinate with, manipulate, extort, incentivize, or pressure another person to influence a review. A review may not be provided or withheld in exchange for something of value, such as a discount, a refund, a reciprocal positive review, or a promise not to take negative action. A public response has to comply with that policy, so the reply is the wrong place to offer any of those in exchange for a change.

The same page lists what does not qualify for removal. A review is not removed only because you disagree with the stars. The page’s example is a review that says “Nice home and great stay” with a 3-star rating. A review that mentions something outside your control, such as a noisy neighborhood, does not necessarily violate the policy, because that information may matter to a later guest. A subjective opinion, such as a kitchen the guest calls small, can stay even when you would describe the room differently. The reply can add your account. It is not a request to delete the review.

The content policy applies to writing on Airbnb. Its examples include public and private reviews. It does not allow content that advertises a separate business, spam, illegal content, sexually explicit content, violent or harassing or insulting content, content that violates the nondiscrimination policy, impersonation, or content that publicly discloses another person’s private information, including content sufficient to identify a listing’s location. Leave the street address, a door code, a phone number, and an email address out of the reply. The nondiscrimination policy prohibits language that demeans, insults, or stereotypes someone because of a protected characteristic, and it lists those characteristics.

Airbnb guest message templates are for the reservation thread. The checkout note there thanks the guest and does not ask for a review. A message is not this public response, and this public response is not a request for a review.

Example responses

Each block is an example written for this guide. The guest sentence is made up. The reply is an example to adapt. It is not a review from a reservation, and it is not wording Airbnb requires. If the fact in the reply is not true of your listing, delete the reply.

Example: a negative review about cleanliness

Example guest review, made up:

The kitchen was fine, but dirty dishes were in the sink when we arrived.

Example public response:

Sorry about the dishes in the sink. The home is cleaned between stays, and that includes the kitchen. I have asked the cleaner to check the sink before the next check-in.

This reply names the sink, says the cleaning was supposed to cover the kitchen, and says what changed for a later guest. It does not argue about stars, and it does not offer a refund.

Example: a negative review about street noise

This example assumes the listing description already says the bedroom window faces the street. If yours does not, do not claim that it does. Say instead that you are adding that sentence for a later guest.

Example guest review, made up:

The street was loud at night. Nothing in the listing said the bedroom faces the road.

Example public response:

The bedroom window faces the street, and the listing description says that. I am sorry the traffic made it hard to sleep.

The reviews policy uses a noisy neighborhood as an example of a review that is not automatically removed, because a later guest may need that fact. The reply here repeats the disclosure. It does not ask Airbnb to delete the review.

Example: a short thank-you

Example guest review, made up:

The desk by the window was useful, and the kitchen worked for two people.

Example public response:

Thank you for the note about the desk. Glad the kitchen worked for two people.

The reply repeats two details the guest mentioned. It does not ask for another review.

Example of a response to avoid

Do not post this. It was written to show a reply that conflicts with the reviews policy.

Change this to 5 stars and I will refund the cleaning fee.

The reviews policy says a review may not be provided or withheld in exchange for something of value, such as a discount or a refund. A public response has to comply with that policy. An insult aimed at the guest, or a sentence that adds the street address or a phone number, is a separate problem under the content policy.

If you ask Airbnb to remove it

Respond to a review says you cannot remove a review on your own. Guests and hosts can request removal if the review does not follow the reviews policy.

Edit or remove a review, checked on 28 October 2026, says you can remove a review you wrote up to 30 days after it is published. A review you received can be disputed at any time if you believe it does not follow the reviews policy. On desktop, the removal request is: click Get started, select the review, select the reason, provide details, upload supporting documentation, and click Submit. The page says to avoid government IDs, health data, and details about children or criminal history. It says Airbnb emails a decision, usually within 48 hours. If the review complies, it stays. You can submit a removal request for the same review up to two times.

The reviews policy repeats the same request steps and says a review that does not violate the policy remains published. This guide does not say Airbnb will remove a review, agree with the host, or change a star rating.

Help center pages checked on 28 October 2026

• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/13 for the 14 days after checkout, when a review is published, who can read it, subcategory ratings, and a public response.
• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/32 for the public response steps, immediate posting, and the fact that you cannot remove a review yourself.
• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2673 for the reviews policy, incentives, what is not removed, and responses that have to comply.
• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/3582 for removing a review you wrote, a removal request, the usual 48 hours, and the limit of two requests.
• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/546 for writing that is not allowed, including private information and a listing’s location.
• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2867 for discriminatory language.
• https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2894 for an honest review of the guest, including cleanliness, which is separate from the public response.