Every property manager knows the difference a great guest makes. They respect house rules, communicate clearly, leave the property the way they found it, and write reviews that help your next booking. Airbnb has now introduced a way to specifically target these guests: the Top Rated Guests discount. Here's how it works, what the pilot results show, and how you can activate it through NextPax.

What is the Top Rated Guests discount?

The Top Rated Guests discount lets hosts offer a 15% discount that only a select group of travellers can see: guests with an average rating of 4.8 stars or higher across at least 3 host reviews. These are guests with a track record of being reliable and respectful.

When you turn on the discount, Airbnb promotes your listing to these guests. The discount becomes visible to them in three ways:

• Better search visibility. Discounted pricing can help your listing rank higher in their search results.
• A special badge on your listing page telling them the host is offering a discount.
• Strikethrough pricing that shows the original rate next to the discounted rate.

Why it matters: the numbers

Airbnb first tested the discount in a limited pilot covering stays with check in dates between February and March 2026, in eleven markets including the US, UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy. Hosts who took part earned more and were more likely to book a highly rated guest. Those guests were also more likely to leave a five star rating.

Airbnb then ran a global pilot in June and July 2026. Based on the results, it estimates that active listings offering the 15% discount generate:

• ~11% more gross booking value
• ~14% more nights booked
• ~43% higher chance of a booking from a top rated guest

Airbnb notes that these figures are modelled from observed performance, so results will vary by listing and market. The direction is still clear: the discount can bring in more revenue and better guests at the same time.

Securing the right guests, not just more guests

Most promotions trade margin for volume. This one is different because it is selective. You give up part of the nightly rate, but only for guests who have repeatedly shown they are good guests. For property managers, that can mean:

• Less risk of damage, complaints and difficult stays
• Smoother operations for housekeeping and guest communication
• A higher chance of five star reviews, which strengthens your listing's ranking and conversion over time

In short, you are putting part of your pricing toward guest quality.

Good to know before you activate

• Nightly rate only. The discount applies to the nightly rate. Additional fees, coupons and local taxes are not included.
• How it stacks with other discounts. Airbnb groups discounts into tiers. Discounts in different tiers stack, while discounts in the same tier do not. The Top Rated Guests discount sits in its own tier, so it is applied on top of your other active Airbnb discounts, such as early bird, last minute and length of stay promotions. Review your combined pricing before turning it on.
• Removing it is safe. If you switch the discount off later, pending and confirmed reservations are not affected.
• Airbnb may discontinue it. Airbnb reserves the right to end the discount at any time.

How to set it up with NextPax

Airbnb advises hosts who use property management software to check whether their provider supports the discount. If you connect to Airbnb through NextPax, it does. You can activate the Top Rated Guests discount in two ways:

1. In the NextPax application. Set up and manage the discount for your listings directly in the app, alongside your other promotions.
2. Through the Supply API. If you integrate with NextPax programmatically, use the Promotions endpoints of the Supply API to apply the discount at scale across your portfolio.

Either way, you manage it from the same place you already run your distribution, with no need to log in to each Airbnb listing separately.

Start attracting top rated guests

The Top Rated Guests discount lets you focus part of your pricing on the guests you most want to host. If you want help setting it up or deciding how it fits your pricing strategy, contact the NextPax team.