Group Planning on Airbnb
Case Study
Overview
A hypothetical feature on Airbnb to support group travel by consolidating group messaging and split payments, in-app.
The project fulfilled Designlab's Add a Feature assignment.
Role
UX/UI Designer
User Research
Timeline
2.5 weeks
Prototyping
Wireframing
Problem
Airbnb connects travelers with unique short-term rentals around the world, offering an experience that goes beyond traditional hotels. However, while users can share wishlists, the platform falls short when it comes to supporting group travel planning—an area where collaboration is essential.
This project explores how Airbnb could better serve group travelers by introducing native tools for shared decision-making, cost-splitting, and logistics coordination.
Research
To better understand the challenges groups face when planning trips, I examined how people currently organize travel, the tools they rely on, and the pain points that arise throughout the process. This exploration was guided by three primary research methods:
Competitive Analysis (SWOT)
User Interviews
POV & HMWs
Competitive Analysis
The SWOT analysis examined Airbnb’s competitors like Booking.com, Vrbo, and TripAdvisor.
While each company has its strengths—Booking.com with its fast checkout, Vrbo for large-group rentals, and TripAdvisor for travel recommendations—none provide a fully integrated, collaborative planning experience.
This revealed a clear opportunity for Airbnb to:
Pull in group travelers from Vrbo by offering better coordination tools
Differentiate from Booking.com by combining social and logistical planning
Reduce reliance on third-party tools like TripAdvisor or Reddit by centralizing inspiration and booking
Key Takeaways:
User Interviews
Overview
Key Insights
Six people (ages of 24-30) who had recently planned group trips were interviewed.
The interviews focused on their experience planning group travel, and what websites or apps they used to coordinate logistics.
“We had six people planning everything in a group chat… then using three different apps to track money. It got chaotic.”
Cost Splitting: Users relied on external tools like Splitwise or Venmo to manage shared expenses.
Communication: Group iMessage threads were the primary hub for decisions—but often became disorganized.
Planning Support: There was interest in in-app recommendations for local restaurants and activities.
App-Switching Fatigue: Managing a trip required bouncing between multiple platforms—reducing efficiency and increasing stress.
Research Synthesis
Using insights from the user interviews, I developed key POVs and HMWs to frame the problem space:
POV
As the default planner in my friend group, I’m overwhelmed by coordinating logistics, aligning preferences, and tracking expenses across multiple tools.
HMW
Reduce app-switching by centralizing planning, communication, and cost-tracking in one place?
POV
HMW
As someone who values where I stay and what I do, it’s inconvenient to leave Airbnb and search elsewhere for trusted local recommendations.
Pull users from our competitors by enticing them with a more robust collection of exclusive booking functionality?
Combine the emotional appeal of Airbnb’s stays with curated planning tools to keep users engaged and inspired?
User Flows
This user flow illustrates the Airbnb Group Travel Companion.
This all-in-one feature would offer group chat capabilities, and built-in cost-splitting, making it easy to plan and coordinate without leaving the app.
Design
The design stage started with mapping user flows, followed by creating low- and high-fidelity wireframes. Each iteration was informed by usability testing and feedback to address pain points and improve clarity.
Low Fidelity Wireframes
The low-fidelity wireframes showcase key features like group messaging, built-in cost-splitting, and a centralized hub for managing trip logistics—such as the selected stay, travel dates, group members, shared preferences, and activity planning. These designs are intended to streamline coordination and keep all aspects of group planning in one cohesive space.
High Fidelity Wireframes
The high-fidelity wireframes incorporated Airbnb’s branding and visual language. Featured here are the Group Planning hub, an expense calculator, and in-app group messaging. I prioritized these designs based on user feedback, focusing on the most significant pain points and identifying features that would make the group booking process more seamless.
Usability Testing & Revisions
Five users took part in usability testing, where they were asked to reserve a stay mentioned in the group chat and split the cost with others. While most could navigate the initial steps, only 60% successfully completed the booking and cost-splitting process. One initial pain point was confusion around what to do after sending an auto-reply in the group chat. Many users felt stuck and uncertain about the next step. To address this, I added clearer labeling and stronger calls to action to guide users toward completing the booking.
Additional feedback pointed to a need for more transparency and flexibility around cost splitting. In the original design, the split payment option felt like an afterthought—briefly mentioned and easy to overlook. Based on user insights, I expanded this feature to provide more context, giving users a clearer understanding of how costs would be divided and who would be charged.
Final Iterations
Updating the split-payment process became a top priority because it came up consistently in user feedback. During testing, many people felt uneasy about the feature—it lacked context, which made the entire checkout experience feel unclear.
To fix this, I integrated the cost-splitting directly into the main payment flow instead of treating it like a one-off decision. To keep things digestible and avoid cognitive overload, I broke the process into multiple screens, following a pacing and layout style similar to Airbnb’s existing flow.
Original design
In the initial design, users were presented with two options at checkout: “Pay Total” as the primary button and “Split Cost” as a secondary option. This hierarchy unintentionally pushed users toward paying in full, and the split option lacked transparency and flexibility.
Updated design
The payment screen shows three equally weighted options: pay in full, split with others, or pay with Klarna.
If users chose to split the cost, they could then select who would be contributing. The updated flow also included a double-confirmation screen that clearly outlined who would be charged and the exact amount for each person.
These updates helped create a calmer, more focused experience, especially during high-stakes moments like confirming payment.
Final Thoughts
This project was a meaningful step in my growth as a UX designer. I gained confidence in the visual design process, especially through practicing UI iterations. I also learned some important lessons—particularly around scope management. I found myself veering away from my original user flow and trying to do too much, which impacted both my timeline and file organization.
A major takeaway from this experience is the importance of staying within scope and managing time effectively. Iteration is valuable, but setting clear boundaries is essential to avoid overcomplication. Going forward, I’ll approach projects with a stronger awareness of when to scale back in service of clarity and usability.