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Free cash flow margins are highly seasonal, ranging from 18.8% in 2025Q4 to 89.8% in 2024Q1, with cumulative OCF of $12.4B exceeding net income of $6.2B, while buybacks consistently exceed $1B per quarter with no dividends.
Airbnb, Inc. (ABNB) cash flow statement — 8-year operating, investing & financing cash flows
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 4.86B | 4.65B | 4.52B | 3.88B | 3.43B | 2.31B | -629.73M | 222.73M | 595.56M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 37.95% | 40.7% | 39.17% | 40.84% | 38.6% | -18.64% | 4.64% | 16.31% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 64.39% | 2.83% | 16.32% | 13.24% | 48.29% | 467.3% | -382.74% | -62.6% | - |
| Net Income | 2.69B | 2.51B | 2.65B | 4.79B | 1.89B | -352.03M | -4.58B | -674.34M | -16.86M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 22M | 0 | 65M | 44M | 89.3M | 175.5M | 125.88M | 114.16M | 82.4M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 1.71B | 1.59B | 1.41B | 1.12B | 930M | 0 | 3B | 97.55M | 53.89M |
| Deferred Taxes | 478M | 376M | 433M | -2.88B | -1M | 10.94M | -19.6M | -5.63M | -5.02M |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 220M | 273M | 32M | 83M | 208M | 1.84B | 1.13B | 70.6M | 60.11M |
| Working Capital Changes | -258M | -106M | -67M | 720M | 319M | 637.92M | -284.61M | 620.38M | 421.03M |
| Change in Receivables | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20M | 39.95M | -73.11M | 75.72M | 29.84M |
| Cash from Investing | -1.32B | -748M | -616M | -1.04B | -28M | -1.35B | 79.59M | -347.15M | -668.17M |
| Capital Expenditures | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -25M | -25.32M | -37.37M | -125.45M | -90.62M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 0% | - | - | - | 0.3% | 0.42% | 1.11% | 2.61% | 2.48% |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -400.3M | -60.15M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | -7M | -46M | -75M | -114M | -2M | 500K | -8.6M | 33.66M | -3.29M |
| Cash from Financing | -2.76B | -3.83B | -3.57B | -2.43B | -689M | 1.31B | 2.94B | 854.58M | 140.52M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 478M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -229M | 1.92B | 0 | 0 |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -4.12B | -3.67B | -3.43B | -2.25B | -1.41B | 189M | 3.65B | 0 | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -4.25B | -3.79B | -3.43B | -2.25B | -1.5B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | 885M | -160M | -142M | -178M | 723M | 1.35B | -2.63B | 854.58M | 140.52M |
| Net Change in Cash | 605M | 726M | 93M | 564M | 2.38B | 2.06B | 2.52B | 704.87M | -91.02M |
| Free Cash Flow | 4.87B | 4.65B | 4.52B | 3.88B | 3.4B | 2.31B | -667.1M | 97.28M | 504.93M |
| FCF Margin % | 36.99% | 37.95% | 40.7% | 39.17% | 40.54% | 38.6% | -19.75% | 2.02% | 13.83% |
| FCF Growth % | 13.58% | 2.83% | 16.32% | 14.07% | 47.21% | 446.72% | -785.79% | -80.74% | - |
| FCF per Share | 8.15 | 7.46 | 7.00 | 5.87 | 5.01 | 3.75 | -1.12 | 0.18 | 0.95 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 1.81x | 1.85x | 1.71x | 0.81x | 1.81x | -6.57x | 0.14x | -0.33x | -35.32x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 2M | 2M | 55M | 8M | 50M | 129.8M | 5.18M | 21.15M |
| Taxes Paid | 64M | 232M | 350M | 132M | 68M | 17M | 15.1M | 28.19M | 44.62M |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying ABNB stock.
Airbnb, Inc. (ABNB) generated $4.65B in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Airbnb, Inc. (ABNB) generated $4.65B in free cash flow in 2025. Free cash flow is the cash left over after capital expenditures, which can be used to pay dividends, repurchase shares, or pay down debt.
Airbnb, Inc. (ABNB) spent $0.0M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.
In 2025, Airbnb, Inc. (ABNB) spent $3.79B on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Regulatory supply shocks
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Cash Conversion Volatility Masks Earnings Power
Operating cash flow exceeded net income in most quarters, with OCF/NI ratios ranging from 0.79 to 11.62, according to recent financial statements, indicating strong cash conversion but high seasonal volatility.
The OCF/NI ratio spiked in Q1 quarters (7.28 to 11.62) due to massive working capital inflows from guest deposits, while Q3 quarters showed ratios near or below 1.0 (0.79 to 0.99), reflecting seasonal outflows. This pattern suggests that reported net income understates the cash-generative capacity of the platform, but investors should normalize for the timing of guest funds.
Free Cash Flow Seasonality Defines the Cycle
Free cash flow margins swing from 18.8% in Q4 to 89.8% in Q1, as reported in the cash flow data, highlighting extreme seasonality that masks a stable annual FCF generation.
The Q1 quarters consistently deliver outsized FCF (e.g., $1.9B in 2024Q1 and $1.8B in 2025Q1) due to working capital releases, while Q4 quarters show the weakest FCF (e.g., $466M in 2024Q4). This pattern indicates that the business generates substantial cash but requires careful quarterly analysis to avoid misreading the trend.
Asset-Light Model Minimizes Capital Intensity
Capital expenditures are negligible, with CapEx/Revenue below 1% in all reported quarters, according to the cash flow data, confirming the platform's asset-light model and high FCF conversion.
CapEx is essentially zero, with only minor amounts in 2025Q2 and 2025Q4, reflecting the lack of owned physical assets. This allows nearly all operating cash flow to convert to FCF, but it also means that growth relies on marketing and product development rather than capital investment, which may limit scalability in new markets.
Guest Float Drives Working Capital Swings
Working capital changes swing from -$895M to +$1.3B across quarters, as per the cash flow data, driven by the timing of guest payments and refunds, creating significant quarterly volatility.
The positive working capital inflows in Q1 (e.g., $1.3B in 2024Q1) and outflows in Q3 (e.g., -$895M in 2024Q3) reflect the seasonal booking cycle and the timing of remittances to hosts. This float provides a temporary liquidity benefit, but it is not a sustainable source of cash and should be excluded from core operating performance.
Buybacks Absorb Cash, No Dividends
Share repurchases consistently exceed $1 billion per quarter, with no dividends paid, according to the cash flow data, indicating a capital allocation strategy focused on returning cash to shareholders.
Buybacks have ranged from $749M to $1.1B per quarter, totaling over $9B over the ten quarters, which appears to offset dilution from stock-based compensation (averaging ~$400M per quarter). However, the effectiveness of these repurchases depends on the stock's valuation, and the lack of dividends suggests management prioritizes flexibility.
Cumulative Cash Outpaces Reported Earnings
Over the ten quarters, cumulative operating cash flow of $12.4B exceeds cumulative net income of $6.2B, as reported in the cash flow data, indicating that earnings understate the company's cash generation.
The cumulative gap of $6.2B is largely attributable to non-cash charges like stock-based compensation and favorable working capital timing. This suggests that the company's true cash-generative power is stronger than GAAP net income implies, but investors should be cautious about the sustainability of working capital benefits.
What the Cash Flow Statement Obscures
Stock-based compensation averaging over $400M per quarter, as disclosed in the cash flow data, inflates operating cash flow relative to net income, potentially masking the true cost of talent.
While SBC is a non-cash expense, it represents real dilution to shareholders, and the consistent buybacks appear to offset this dilution rather than return incremental capital. Additionally, the working capital swings from guest float may overstate the sustainability of cash generation, as these funds are not the company's own capital. Investors should adjust for these factors to assess the underlying cash flow quality.