You would be tempted to want to see Airbnb review without writing one after your guest or host has written theirs.
You merely want to see what the other has to say about their experience with you to know how to counter them. Sometimes, the other party can lie about their experience, and you may be trying to avoid saying “you recommend them” while they have fed your integrity to dogs on their part.
For instance, on the guest side, an angry guest who never stayed in a listing can leave a bad review if a host refuses a refund for a canceled reservation. On the host side, a host can give a bad review to a guest, thinking the guest would do the same.
Either way, a review stays as long as it does not make personal insults or go against Airbnb’s review policy.
Can hosts or guests see your Airbnb review?
Generally, you can’t see an Airbnb review as a guest or host without writing yours, if you have been notified about theirs. Both hosts and guests have 14 days, according to Airbnb, at the completion of the stay to post a review about the other.
Immediately after both host and guest reviews are received by Airbnb, they are simultaneously posted on each profile.
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If one party does not write their review after the other does, Airbnb will still publish the only review after 14 days or 2 weeks.
Airbnb uses a blind review system to make sure there is no collusion between host and guest. If as a host or guest you do not review the other person in that 14-day window, that is it. Airbnb does not extend the review window.
Airbnb allows you to post a public response to a review that someone has left for you within 30 days after the review submission (not published), only if you reviewed the person. If you think that the person’s review violates Airbnb’s review policy, you can report it to Airbnb.
How to see Airbnb review without writing one
Although you cannot see an Airbnb guest or host’s review without writing one, you can do the following:
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Wait out the review and respond
Just wait for the review to be posted publicly after 14 days and write a response. When you are reviewed by a host or guest on Airbnb, you will be notified to write your review to view theirs. If you ignore the notification, their review will not post publicly until after 14 days.
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Even if you don’t write your review, the other person’s review will appear on your review page. The good news is that both hosts and guests can write a public response but “only if you have also left a review”.
If you do not review the other person, you forfeit the right to respond publically to their review in the form of public review response.
So, write your own review irrespective of what you think about the other person. Keep your review short and generic. Avoid accusing the host or guest of anything specific to avoid having it reported and removed.
Suppose you are a host. You could write a public response to a bad review like:
I value feedback from my guests. Besides, we improve by listening to our guests. In this case, I would like others to read Guest X‘s review and then read my other reviews. I think other guests’ reviews say more about me. I still wish Guest X well but would recommend them best suited for a hotel.
A guest reading this public response is more likely to book with you, especially if previous reviews say good about you.
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As a guest responding to a bad review, you could write something like:
Host X may not understand how Airbnb works, and to the best of my knowledge, I was a good guest. Nonetheless, I apologize for any inconvenience my stay may have caused him/her. I wish Host X all the best for the future but would not book with them again. I also promise to be a good guest to potential hosts.
With this, another host is more likely to book you, especially since you apologized for any inconveniences.
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Figure out a bad review from Airbnb’s email notification
We figured out that if previous hosts click the “do not recommend this guest” button, a guest will receive a warning email from Airbnb saying that they need to step up. This is similar to the warning emails Airbnb sends to hosts who do not get all 5 stars.
An Airbnb guest or host does not get to read a review about them without writing theirs.
However, as a guest or host, you can figure out that the other person did not leave a good review since you get the message shortly after the listing or stay ends.
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Send a direct positive review first
You can first share a positive review as a guest or host to get the other person to know that you would be expecting a 5-star rating from them. This way, the person may write you a direct response that hints about what to expect as their Airbnb review. This is more like “hey, I need those 5 stars if you loved the experience”.
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Airbnb offers an option to send private comments to each other, which will not be published. Use this medium to know what the other person will possibly say about you.
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Check their previous review history
The previous review record of the other person can tell you if they throw you all the 5 stars or say something bad about you as a guest or host.
Reviews received by a host or a guest stay on their profile page, and anyone can see them, even if they open another account or listing.
Usually, you would find a box that says “This user has reviews from other listings/accounts, view all reviews”.
Is it okay not to leave a review as a host or guest?
This is a two-way affair. Ordinarily, it is okay or polite not to leave a review as a guest or host if you do not feel like it. However, the Airbnb system revolves around reviews, which makes leaving a review important for every party involved.
a. Review history
For instance, Airbnb guests and hosts are assessed and either booked or declined following their review history. For instance, a simple review like “this guest is probably more suited for a hotel” from a host tells other potential hosts what to expect or guides their decision.
b. Host’s standing and status
Secondly, the Airbnb standing and status of a host depends on the review process.
The review statistics help to determine not just the ability of an Airbnb host to earn rewards such as Superhost status, but also, a lack of reviews or too many poor reviews will see a host’s account and listing suspended.
Final thoughts
Airbnb’s review system is not perfect. And since Airbnb runs a 5-star rating system, anything less than 5 stars means something that needs improving.
As such, a guest or host getting a 4-star or below ultimately hurts their profile. For this reason, Airbnb hosts and guests tend to live in a Utopian society where they each give each other 5 stars to avoid offending the other.
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