Review category check

What the six categories are

After a stay, Airbnb asks guests for an overall rating and a rating for six categories: cleanliness, accuracy, check-in, communication, location and value (help 1257). Each category has its own question. For check-in it is simply "Was it easy?" For value it is "Was it worth the price?"

The overall rating is a separate question, "How was it?", and Airbnb says it is its own category, not an average of the other six. That is why your overall can sit above or below your categories. The categories are where the reasons live, so they are the place to start when a rating drops.

What this check does

You type in the ratings from your listing's reviews screen. The tool sorts the six categories from weakest to strongest, marks the weakest one, and shows how far each one sits below 4.8. If two categories have the same rating, both are marked as weakest, because there is no honest way to pick one.

Then, for the weakest category and any other below 4.8, it shows the question Airbnb asks guests, the issue types that category usually comes down to, the usual causes, and what to inspect. The sums are simple: each rating is rounded to two decimals, and the gap is 4.8 minus the rating, or nothing if the rating is already there.

Why 4.8

4.8 is the overall rating Airbnb asks of a Superhost. The Superhost criteria include "Maintained a 4.8 or higher overall rating" (help 829). Using the same number as a yardstick for each category gives you a clear line: categories below it are where guests are telling you something.

It is a yardstick, not a promise. Lifting a category doesn't mean you get the badge, and Superhost has other criteria too, including how many stays you host, how fast you reply and how rarely you cancel. Treat the gap as a way to rank your work, not as a target you are owed.

The five issue types

Most low ratings come down to one of five things. Operational: something went wrong on the day, such as a missed clean or a failed lock. Expectation-setting: the stay was fine, but not what the guest expected. Listing: the photos or words don't match the stay. Amenity gap: something guests counted on was missing. Possibly unavoidable preference: a guest wanted something your place will never be.

The type tells you what kind of fix to make. Operational issues need a better routine. Expectation issues need better information before arrival. Listing issues need new photos or new words. Amenity gaps need a purchase or a correction to the listing. Preferences need honest wording so the wrong guests choose somewhere else.

How to use the result

Start with the weakest category and read your recent reviews for it. Look for the same complaint two or three times: that is a pattern, not bad luck. Then walk through the inspect list in the home itself, not just in the listing, because most cleanliness and check-in problems only show up in person.

Fix one or two things properly, then give it time. Ratings only move as new reviews arrive, so check again after the next few stays rather than the next day. Airbnb lets you look at each category over different time frames and compare your rating with similar listings on its hosting data screen (help 2653), which is the best way to see whether a change worked.

What not to do

Don't offer anything in return for a rating, and don't ask a guest to change or remove a review. Airbnb's review policy says reviews may not be "provided or withheld in exchange for something of value" (help 2673). A calm, specific public reply to a fair point is fine. Arguing in public is not, because future guests read your replies too.

A mid-stay message that asks whether anything needs fixing is a real fix, not a request for a rating. Keep it to the stay and leave reviews out of it.

What this check can't tell you

It only sees the numbers you type. It can't read your reviews, see your photos or know your area, so the causes are the usual ones, not a diagnosis of your listing. Nothing you type here is stored or sent anywhere.