Airbnb has expanded its Reserve Now, Pay Later payment option to guests worldwide, covering both domestic and international eligible bookings.
Following this announcement, Airbnb has extended its Reserve Now, Pay Later feature to all guests globally, allowing travellers to secure eligible listings without making an immediate payment at the time of booking. The expansion covers both domestic and international trips and applies to listings with a moderate or flexible cancellation policy.
The feature was first introduced in the US last summer for domestic stays. Since its launch, Airbnb reported that over 70% of eligible bookings in the fourth quarter of 2025 used the option, and the company attributed part of its acceleration in nights and seats booked in Q4 2025 compared to Q3 2025 to the feature's adoption.
Payment flexibility as a booking driver
According to the official press release, the global rollout reflects broader demand for flexible payment options among travellers. In a survey conducted by Airbnb and research firm Focaldata among US-based travellers, 60% of respondents said flexible payment options are important when booking a holiday. At the same time, 55% said they use a flexible payment option when booking, with one in ten mentioning they always do so when it is available. The survey also found that 42% of respondents had delayed or missed out on preferred accommodation due to the time spent coordinating payment with co-travellers, pointing to a practical friction point that deferred payment models aim to address.
Reserve Now, Pay Later sits within a wider set of flexible payment options Airbnb offers. These include Pay Part Now, Part Later, which allows guests to split the cost between booking and check-in, and Pay Over Time with Klarna, a BNPL arrangement available through a third-party provider. The expansion of Reserve Now, Pay Later to international trips consolidates these options into a more consistent global offering.
The timing of the rollout coincides with a period of anticipated travel demand growth. The ability to reserve accommodation without upfront payment may support earlier bookings for such events, where availability tends to be limited.
From a structural standpoint, the feature's eligibility criteria (restricted to listings with moderate or flexible cancellation policies) aligns the deferred payment model with lower-risk booking scenarios for both guests and hosts. Listings with strict cancellation policies remain outside the programme's scope, which limits the product's reach but reduces financial exposure for all parties in the event of a cancellation.
The move places Airbnb more directly in competition with accommodation platforms and online travel agencies that have integrated instalment or deferred payment options, a segment that has grown significantly across the broader travel and ecommerce space in recent years.
