Possibly inspired by a spate of news stories over the past year with headlines like "Has Airbnb hurt Arizona's hospitality industry?", Airbnb recently released a bunch of data showing how much local hosts earned during spring training.
The short answer is: a lot. Specifically, $12.9 million in total, or $2,350 per host.
Their study looked at the eight cities in the metro Phoenix area that hosted Major League Baseball teams during spring training. According to Airbnb, all eight saw a significant spike in bookings during that time.
While it's likely that some of these visitors were in town for reasons unrelated to baseball, the data nonetheless offers an interesting look at the economic impact of spring training — namely, where people are coming from, and how much they're spending while they're here.
A couple of points of note:
- California was the number one state of origin for spring training visitors, accounting for 13,344 guests, or roughly a quarter of all visitors during that period.
- That's out of a total of 51,238 guests during the period between Wednesday, February 22, and Saturday, April 1. (By comparison, Airbnb reported a total of 9,200 guest arrivals in the Phoenix area during the Final Four.)
- Other states with a strong showing were Illinois, Ohio, and Washington, suggesting that Cubs, Reds, Indians, and Mariners fans were well-represented.
- Scottsdale hosted the most out-of-town visitors (19,858 total) followed closely by Phoenix (19,651).
- Unsurprisingly, Scottsdale appears to be the most lucrative city to run an Airbnb. Hosts there earned an average of $3,730 each during spring training.
- Of the eight cities that hosted MLB teams, Goodyear had the lowest number of bookings — only 486 total — and the smallest economic impact. Hosts there earned an average of $1,400 each, and estimated guest spending was just short of $500K, compared to close to $3 million in Mesa and Tempe.
GLENDALE
Airbnb Guests: 1,448 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (389 guests)
Overall Spike: 92 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 204 percent over the following six-week stretch
Home State Spike: 81 guests arrived from Illinois (Chicago Cubs) compared to
38 in six weeks prior and nine following
Total estimated economic impact: $1.17 million
Host Income: Glendale hosts earned $315,000 through home sharing, an
average of $2,120 per host
Estimated guest spending: $860,000
GOODYEAR
Airbnb Guests: 486 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (131 guests)
Overall Spike: 158 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 215 percent over the following six-week stretch Home State Spike: 61 guests arrived from Ohio (Cincinnati Reds,
Cleveland Indians) compared to three in six weeks prior and three following
Total estimated economic impact: $549,000
Host Income: Goodyear hosts earned $127,000 through home sharing, an
average of $1,400 per host
Estimated guest spending: $422,000
MESA
Airbnb Guests: 3,610 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (708 guests)
Overall Spike: 123 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 189 percent over the following six-week stretch Home State Spike: 386 guests arrived from Illinois (Chicago Cubs) compared
to 95 in six weeks prior and 52 following
Total estimated economic impact: $3.4 million
Host Income: Mesa hosts earned $762,000 through home sharing, an
average of $1,990 per host
Estimated guest spending: $2.67 million
PEORIA
Airbnb Guests: 1,056 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (303 guests)
Overall Spike: 105 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 223 percent over the following six-week stretch
Home State Spike: 183 guests arrived from Washington (Seattle
Mariners) compared to 33 in six weeks prior and 32 following
Total estimated economic impact: $983,000
Host Income: Peoria hosts earned $236,000 through home sharing, an
average of $2,350 per host
Estimated guest spending: $747,000
PHOENIX
Airbnb Guests: 19,651 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (4,684 guests)
Overall Spike: 76 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 128 percent over the following six-week stretch
Home State Spike: 1,126 guests arrived from Illinois (Chicago Cubs)
compared to 589 in six weeks prior and 370 following
Total estimated economic impact: $16.1 million
Host Income: Phoenix hosts earned $4,112,000 through home sharing, an
average of $2,300 per host
Estimated guest spending: $12 million
SCOTTSDALE
Airbnb Guests: 19,858 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (5,904 guests)
Overall Spike: 78 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 101 percent over the following six-week stretch
Home State Spike: 1,584 guests arrived from Illinois (Chicago Cubs)
compared to 787 in six weeks prior and 718 following
Total estimated economic impact: $18.9 million
Host Income: Scottsdale hosts earned $6,271,000 through home sharing,
an average of $3,730 per host
Estimated guest spending: $12.7 million
SURPRISE
Airbnb Guests: 842 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (131 guests)
Overall Spike: 203-percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 266 percent over the following six-week stretch
Home State Spike: 113 guests arrived from Washington (Seattle
Mariners) compared to 28 in six weeks prior and 21 following
Total estimated economic impact: $978,000
Host Income: Surprise hosts earned $226,000 through home sharing, an
average of $2,500 per host
Estimated guest spending: $752,000
TEMPE
Airbnb Guests: 4,287 guest arrivals
Guest Origin: California was the number one origin state (1,094 guests)
Overall Spike: 86 percent spike in guests compared to previous six-week
stretch, 152 percent over the following six-week stretch
Home State Spike: 374 guests arrived from Illinois (Chicago Cubs)
compared to 110 in six weeks prior and 92 following
Total estimated economic impact: $3.7 million
Host Income: Tempe hosts earned $930,000 through home sharing, an
average of $2,500 per host
Estimated guest spending: $2.8 million
