Racial Disparities in the Sharing Economy: Evidence from More Than 100,000 Airbnb Hosts across 14 Countries

Abstract

Sharing economy platforms, such as Airbnb, often requires (or strongly encourages) hosts to share personal information, such as names and profile photos. Previous research suggests that consumers rely on this information to discriminate against hosts from racial minorities. If there is a preference for White hosts, then they should be able to charge higher prices for qualitatively similar rentals. We test this hypothesis using data from Airbnb. An analysis of 96,150 listings across 24 cities and 14 countries showed that non-White hosts charge approximately 2.5%–3% lower prices for qualitatively similar listings (study 1). A preregistered analysis of 12,648 listings across 14 cities in the United States showed that Black hosts charge approximately 5%–7% lower prices and Asian hosts charge approximately 4%–6% lower prices for similar listings (study 2). These findings support the hypothesis that consumers show a preference for White hosts, which allows White hosts to charge higher prices.