Airbnb China is a disaster - Anonymous employee Airbnb Employee Review

2.0
25 Oct 2017
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Engineer team is awesome. There're a lot of fun people in other Airbnb offices. Lots of travel if you like.

Cons

Be ready to be bullied if you're not personally liked by any leader. You can belong anywhere except here. Hierarchy controls how people treat you. Working hard and making success doesn't mean anything here, but making the high leader like you is the only way to survive. People don't dare to take risks and innovate. Everyone knows how to be successful in China, but no one makes the decision and takes the responsibilities. Safety staying in the company , taking advantages of the perks and Airbnb brand, then leaving for a better local chance seems to be the eternal aim of everyone. This team will pour money on some mysterious projects, although they know it'll be a failure before they do. Complaining about how headquarter doesn't understand China, but never proactively step forward. Airbnb used to be my favorite company, and I sincerely wished it to be stronger. All I can say right now is farewell.

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5.0
4 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Airbnb's mission of creating a world where anyone can belong anywhere strongly resonates with me. I'm excited by the opportunity to build products that operate at global scale and directly impact millions of users. My background in full-stack engineering, distributed systems, cloud infrastructure, and AI-powered applications aligns well with Airbnb's focus on innovation, reliability, and exceptional user experiences. I am particularly attracted to Airbnb's engineering culture, emphasis on ownership, and commitment to solving complex technical challenges while delivering meaningful value to hosts, guests, and communities worldwide.

Cons

One challenge of working at Airbnb is the complexity that comes with operating a global platform at scale. Engineering teams must balance reliability, performance, compliance, and user experience across many markets and stakeholders. While this can make development and decision-making more complex, it is also one of the aspects that makes the work technically interesting and professionally rewarding.

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