From homes to haircuts: Airbnb’s new app is designed to do it all

“When Airbnb launched, it was essentially about one thing: booking homes,” says Teo Connor, VP of design, speaking to It’s Nice That at the epic relaunch event in San Francisco yesterday. This singular focus has shaped the brand’s entire design. But now, the company is expanding its remit. Users can now use the app to book ‘services’ – like manicures, haircuts, and PT sessions – along with ‘experiences’ – like food tours and guided hikes. These three pillars now sit side-by-side in a brand new redesigned app that makes it easy to book stays, services, and experiences – all in one place.

The app design, user interface, 3D and illustrations were all done by an in-house team, Teo tells us, whose approach was just as much about adding as it was preserving. “People are always going to come to us to book a home, so we needed to enhance that, not get in the way of it... Some of the magic that we’ve pulled off is going to feel familiar in many ways if you know our brand,” she says. “And that’s something I’m really proud of.”

There’s a softer feel across the board – more curved edges, and a smooth animated interface with subtle intensities. It also features new icons, which the team has slowly built up over the last couple of years. “They’ve got a ton of utility, they’re a universal language, and they’re playful,” says Teo. “If you want to, you can really geek out on some of them – they’ve got loads of fun details in there.”

This redesign marks Airbnb’s expansion from a booking tool into more of a travel companion. The team’s main challenge was creating a platform that still served its original purpose – booking homes – while now accommodating a whole host of useful services and intriguing experiences. “It was about figuring out how to go from an app that was designed to make it easy to book just one thing, to a place where you can browse, learn and understand something brand new,” says Teo. It had to be intuitive, browsable, and genuinely useful – while still feeling unmistakably Airbnb: “Fun, alive, and simple.”

Take the Trips tab, for example. Previously, this was a functional page that listed reservation details. Now, it’s a “living itinerary”. Let’s say you’ve booked an apartment in Marseille, along with a spa treatment and a food tour. The Trips tab now pulls all these elements into one place – sleekly presented, and smartly timed. It reflects how people actually travel: dipping in and out of the app to grab a door code or to quickly find directions. “The goal was to make that experience not just easy to view,” says Teo, “but a pleasure to look at.”

On top of offering everything from homes to haircuts to hiking tours, Airbnb is also introducing guest-to-guest communication. “The connection between hosts and guests has been at the heart of Airbnb since it started, it’s been designed to facilitate that kind of communication and connection,” Teo says. With the new app, guests will now be able to connect with other users joining the tour or fitness class – an opportunity to engage with a place at a deeper level. “We’re trying to create opportunities for people to go out into the real world and stay connected,” Teo ends. “I think that’s what it’s really trying to get at.”