Topic
Tools Used
Group travel should be exciting, not stressful. Yet every group trip starts the same way: one person books everything upfront, then spends weeks awkwardly chasing friends for money. This was designed to eliminate this friction by letting groups collaborate on selecting property and splitting payments seamlessly within the existing booking flow.
Seamless Group Creation
Integrated group creation happens naturally when users select 2+ guests in Airbnb's familiar search flow.
Collaborative Property Selection
Group members get access to a shared space where they can browse properties together, chat, and make decisions collectively.
No more external group chats sending links to properties.
Intelligent Payment Splitting
No more awkward money collection process.
The split payment system gives groups options to divide costs evenly, by nights stayed, or with custom percentages directly through Airbnb.
The Problem
Airbnb is not made for group travelers.
While Airbnb makes it easy to find and book amazing places, the experience falls apart when multiple people need to split costs. As of now, one person takes the entire financial burden upfront, then faces the uncomfortable task of collecting money from friends later.
Research Approach
With survey conducted with 10 frequent group travelers..
Pain Point 1:
Social Awkwardness of Money Collection
"It's hard to tell people to send me money when they don't"
Pain Point 2:
Time-Consuming Manual Calculations
"It's time-consuming to divide payments equally or by night or whatever"
?
?
#+@
(-)
Pain Point 3:
Scattered Communication and Decision-Making
"We have to use an external group chat to share listings."
Current User Journey Pain Points
Group travel booking follows this pattern:
How might we
Enable groups to collaborate on property selection and split payments seamlessly, eliminating the coordination burden on any single person.
Strategy
Integrate group functionality directly into Airbnb's existing booking experience, leading to eliminating the need for external coordination tools while leveraging the platform where users are already making their travel decisions.
Design Principles
Minimize Coordination Burden
Automate what can be automated. Let the system handle the math and track payment automatically.
Convenient Communication
All group members have access to the same collaborative space with real-time updates.
Flexible Payment Options
Whether groups want to split the cost equally, by night stayed, or with custom percentages, the system adapts.
Business Impact Considerations
Increased Conversion Rates
With quicker and seamless group booking decisions, more browsing sessions convert to actual bookings.
Higher Average Booking Values
Group travel typically involves larger properties and longer stays, leading to higher transaction values.
Platform Stickiness
Users with successful group coordinating experiences through Airbnb are more likely to return for future travel.
Final Product
The solution integrates seamlessly into Airbnb's existing mobile experience, adding powerful group coordination capabilities without disrupting familiar user flows.
Feature 1:
Natural Group Formation
The group creation process begins naturally when users select 2 or more guests in Airbnb's standard search interface. Instead of forcing users to think about group coordination as a separate step, the "Create group" option appears contextually when it's actually needed.
Feature 2:
Collaborative Property Selection
Once the group is formed, all members gain access to a collaborative space where they can browse properties together, share thoughts through integrated chat, and make decisions. This eliminates the need for external messaging apps.
Feature 3:
Intelligent Payment Splitting
The payment system offers multiple ways to split costs while handling all calculations automatically. Whether groups want equal splits, porportional divisions by nights, or custom amounts.
User Testing
Group Creation Timing
Users were unsure when to create the group during the booking process.
=> Added contextual messaging that explains "Create group to split payment and collaborate with friends" directly.
-> 100% Understood the feature's purpose.
Payment Split Clarity
-> Users wanted to know exactly how much they are paying before committing.
=> Added real-time calculation preview showing individual share amounts.
-> User felt confident and informed.
=> Relocating uneven split amounts wasn't specified properly, and users had a hard time relocating the amounts.
Chat Integration Discovery
-> Users initially missed the full usage of the chat feature.
=> Enhanced the chat window and made it friendly for property discussions within the group feed
-> The engagement within the collaborative features increased.
=> People didn't understand how to move from discussions to booking. = The interface and instructions weren't straightforward.
Personal Reflection
As my first proper UX project, it challenged me to design for group dynamics rather than individual users. What started as a "split payment" idea just to take a burden off of one user evolved into a comprehensive solution addressing social, communication, and financial challenges.
Designing for groups required a deep understanding of the reason behind late payment and poor communication inside groups, which naturally led to me thinking of experience designs that cover all demographics of users.
Balancing simplicity and functionality was one of the hardest challenges to overcome. Ensuring group formation, collaborative selection, and payment splitting worked seamlessly together required constant user flow validation throughout the design process.
This feature could fundamentally change group travel planning by removing coordination burden from individuals, encouraging more group trips and ultimately creating better shared experiences. The best design solutions don't just improve interfaces - they improve relationships.
Group travel should be exciting, not stressful. Yet every group trip starts the same way: one person books everything upfront, then spends weeks awkwardly chasing friends for money. I designed an integrated group booking and split payment system for Airbnb that eliminates this friction by letting groups collaborate on property selection and split payments seamlessly within the existing booking flow.
Now what?
For Airbnb and for users, what if there is a new payment feature called "Airpay"?
