How to Get Free Airbnb Stays (Plus Make Money in the Process)

I’ve been on multiple free vacations with my family since getting married in 2013. And let me tell you, there’s nothing that helps me relax more while on vacation than knowing I’m not spending a penny.

You might think I’m talking about single-night stays here and there tacked onto a paid vacation, but that’s not what I’m referring to at all. My family and I have been on multiple week-long hotel stays without spending any money.

There are ways to extend this strategy to get free Airbnb stays at a location of your choice. There are three things you can do to make this happen year after year and enjoy spending time with family without going broke.

3 Ways to Get Airbnb Free

Your free Airbnb stay is right around the corner if you can follow these simple strategies. To make this method work quickest, you’ll need to either own or rent a home in which you have the authority to list on Airbnb. If you can’t do that, you can still earn free Airbnb credit in other ways.

1. Refer Friends to Earn Cash for Airbnb

Originally, I shared that you can get free Airbnb by referring friends to use the service. But since the pandemic hit, travel companies like Airbnb have struggled to maintain a profit. So, this option is no longer available. However, the same principles apply when referring friends and family to use other products and services that you love–you can earn cash for referrals and put it toward your Airbnb travel fund.

The simplest way to earn a free Airbnb night is to refer others to use apps like Cash App. Cash App is a money-management service that I use all the time. It’s perfect for this type of thing because once you try it out and use it for a while, it’s easy to share with friends and earn $30 per person who joins using your unique Cash App referral code.

Using the refer-a-friend method to get free Airbnb credit is a win-win situation because you get to hand out free cash and earn cash at the same time. Just share your Cash App free money code to start earning.

Cash App can also be used to earn up to 15% cash back or free Bitcoin on things like takeout and dine-in meals, groceries, coffee, and much more. This is a huge amount compared to other cashback services like Rakuten and Ibotta. The Cash App Card is a great way to lessen costs while traveling or just making everyday purchases. As you earn cash and Bitcoin Boosts, you can designate those funds to use toward future free Airbnb stays.

2. List Your Home on Airbnb

Another simple way to get your Airbnb for free is to first list your home for rent on the platform. You can list your full house, apartment, or just a room in your home. The amount you earn per night depends on what you have to offer and the demand for Airbnb stays in your area.

The best way to find out how much you can rent your home for is to search for similar listings in your area. If there are no competing listings, you can play with your price until you find a sweet spot that attracts customers.

If you’re wondering where to go while your home is rented out, here’s how you can actually make some money to use toward your future Airbnb stays:

• Stay in a cheap hotel or motel. If you’re only renting your home out for a night here and there, you can take your own mini-vacation and rent a local room. Just make sure to rent your home for more than your hotel stay so that you can pocket the extra money.
• Rent an Airbnb. While your home is rented out, grab another Airbnb rental that costs less than the amount you’ll earn from renting your home.
• Go camping. Grab your tent or RV and go on a cheap or free camping trip while your home is rented to an Airbnb customer.
• Stay with friends or family. You can earn the most profit on your Airbnb listing when you don’t have to pay to stay elsewhere.

Related: How to Get Netflix for Free

3. Do Airbnb Arbitrage

You may have heard of the term “arbitrage” in the retail industry; it’s when you purchase something at a low price and then resell it for a profit. You can apply a similar principle to Airbnb and earn a killing on your efforts. You can use this income to get free Airbnb stays in the future.

Here is how to do Airbnb arbitrage the easy way:

Research the Market

First, to make money with Airbnb arbitrage, you’ll need to do some market research to find high-traffic, popular, touristy locations. Once you pinpoint areas that see a lot of Airbnb traffic, you can start searching for leases in the area.

Lease or Buy a Property

Rent an apartment, vacation home, or house during a busy vacation season. Either keep it year-round or sign a short-term lease. Additionally, this can work with properties that you buy.

Relist on Airbnb

Finally, relist the property on Airbnb. When a customer reserves the listing, you will sublease the property to them.

While Airbnb arbitrage takes some preparation, time, and upfront investment, after a few successes, you should have some loose cash to use toward a free Airbnb stay for yourself.

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Subtract Fees from Your Airbnb Credit and Income

If you use the second or third method to earn money with Airbnb to use toward a free vacation of your own, make sure to calculate your fees. Since Airbnb is a business and needs to make money too, you can expect to be charged some fees for using the platform.

As you list your property or practice Airbnb arbitrage, you can learn the fee structures so that you always make money on each deal. Once you master this, it’s smooth sailing to earning money and free Airbnb credit over and over.

Have some fun with this and enjoy your next free vacation!

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