Booking is one of the oldest online travel agencies still active today, originally launched in 1996 by Geert-Jan Bruinsma as Bookings.nl, which was then merged with Booking.com at the tail end of the dotcom bubble in 2000.
At the same time, Priceline.com was falling headfirst into bankruptcy, after declaring a $1.1 billion loss in 1999 and seeing its stock tank from $974 to $7 a share. Somehow, it survived while many other .com websites failed, and in 2006 acquired Booking.com.
When the acquisition happened, Priceline.com was the more valuable of the two brands, due to its market share in the United States. From 2005 to 2018, the company went under the Priceline brand, before changing to Booking Holdings.
In the two decades since acquisition, Booking has acquired many other companies in the online travel space, including Agoda.com, Kayak, Cheapflights, Rentalcars.com, Momondo, and OpenTable. Booking has also expanded its services to include rental cars, airline tickets, and homestays.
Booking and Expedia were the two dominant online travel agencies throughout the 2000s and early 2010s, with the duopoly acquiring most other websites and apps. However, the launch of Airbnb forced both to expand to homestays and short-term rentals.
That said, Booking is still the market leader when it comes to bookings volume, especially outside the US where the majority of transactions take place.
We have collected data and statistics on Booking. Read on below to find out more.
Disclaimer: Financial data below is for Booking Holdings, which includes Priceline, Agoda, Kayak, Cheapflights, Momondo, and OpenTable. About 89 percent of its revenues came from Booking.com and the affiliated app.
Booking Key Statistics
- Booking generated $10.9 billion revenue in 2021, a 61% increase on the previous year
- 2020 was Booking’s worst year for revenue generation since 2013, due to the coronavirus pandemic
- Booking reported $76.5 billion bookings volume in 2021, with 590 million nights booked and 15.3 million airline tickets purchased
- Booking had over 100 million active mobile users, accounting for about 40% of its bookings
Booking Overview
| Title | Title 2 |
|---|---|
| Launch date | October 1996 |
| HQ | Norwalk, Connecticut |
| People | Glenn Fogel (director, CEO), David Goulden (CFO), Peter J. Millones, Jr (general counsel) |
| Business type | Public (NASDAQ: BKNG) |
| Industry | Travel |
Booking Revenue
Booking made $10.9 billion revenue last year, strong growth compared to last year but still behind on the $15 billion it made in 2019.
Booking quarterly revenue 2010 to 2022 ($mm)
Booking annual revenue 2010 to 2021 ($bn)
| Year | Revenue ($bn) |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 3.08 |
| 2011 | 4.35 |
| 2012 | 5.26 |
| 2013 | 6.79 |
| 2014 | 8.44 |
| 2015 | 9.22 |
| 2016 | 10.74 |
| 2017 | 12.68 |
| 2018 | 14.52 |
| 2019 | 15.06 |
| 2020 | 6.79 |
| 2021 | 10.95 |
Source: Company data
Booking Profit
Booking has made an annual net profit every year, but almost reported a net loss in 2020 when it posted only $59 million profit.
Booking annual net income 2010 to 2021 ($mm)
| Year | Net income ($mm) |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 528 |
| 2011 | 1056 |
| 2012 | 1420 |
| 2013 | 1893 |
| 2014 | 2422 |
| 2015 | 2551 |
| 2016 | 2135 |
| 2017 | 2341 |
| 2018 | 3998 |
| 2019 | 4865 |
| 2020 | 59 |
| 2021 | 1165 |
Source: Company data
Booking Transaction Volume
Booking made $76.5 billion in bookings volume in 2021, double what it made in 2020 but lower than 2017 to 2019 figures.
Booking annual bookings volume 2016 to 2021 ($bn)
| Year | Bookings ($bn) |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 60.08 |
| 2017 | 81.22 |
| 2018 | 92.75 |
| 2019 | 96.44 |
| 2020 | 35.39 |
| 2021 | 76.58 |
Note: Transaction volume = bookings volume. Source: Company data
Booking Room Nights Booked
Similar to transaction volume, Booking increase its room nights booked in 2021, but that figure is lower than 2017 to 2019.
Booking annual room night booked 2016 to 2021 (mm)
| Year | Nights booked (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 556 |
| 2017 | 674 |
| 2018 | 760 |
| 2019 | 844 |
| 2020 | 355 |
| 2021 | 590 |
Booking Airline Tickets
Airline ticket sales are one area where Booking has seen an increase on years prior to 2020, with 15.3 million sales far surpassing the 8.6 million it sold in 2019.
Booking annual airline tickets bought 2016 to 2021 (mm)
| Year | Airline tickets (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 7.3 |
| 2017 | 7.6 |
| 2018 | 8.1 |
| 2019 | 8.6 |
| 2020 | 7.1 |
| 2021 | 15.3 |
Source: Company data
Booking Rental Cars
Booking has seen a downturn in the amount of car rentals since the pandemic, with the 47 million car days booked in 2021 lower than its 2016 figure.
Booking annual rental cars days hired 2016 to 2021 (mm)
| Year | Rental car days booked (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 66.2 |
| 2017 | 73.3 |
| 2018 | 74.3 |
| 2019 | 76.9 |
| 2020 | 31.1 |
| 2021 | 47 |
Source: Company data
Booking Users
Booking had over 100 million users on its mobile app in 2022, accounting for 40% of its total bookings.
Booking annual app users 2018 to 2022 (mm)
| Year | Users (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 60 |
| 2019 | 75 |
| 2020 | 35 |
| 2021 | 90 |
| 2022 | 110 |
Source: Company data
Booking Downloads
Booking’s app was downloaded 47.1 million times in 2021, higher than the download figure in 2020 but lower than 2018 and 2019.
Booking annual app downloads 2018 to 2021 (mm)
| Year | Downloads (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 50 |
| 2019 | 50.4 |
| 2020 | 36.5 |
| 2021 | 47.1 |
Source: Company data
Booking FAQ
How many people have used Booking.com?
Since 2007, Booking has been responsible for over three billion bookings across all of their property types.
What percentage of bookings are made on the Booking app?
According to Booking, 40 percent of all bookings in the first quarter of 2022 were made via the app.
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