Cancún, Quintana Roo — The Mexican Caribbean has cemented its position as Airbnb’s stronghold in Mexico, with three of its tourist destinations ranking among the top 10 municipalities with the highest concentration of listings nationwide, according to a new investigation.
Research by Quinto Elemento Lab, based on data from Inside Airbnb, shows Playa del Carmen tops the national list with 14,963 available units. Tulum ranks third with 12,142 listings, trailing only Mexico City’s Cuauhtémoc borough, while Cancún also made the top 10 with 8,872 spaces.
Together, these three destinations account for 35,977 units, underscoring the platform’s massive presence in the region. Adding Cozumel’s 2,228 listings and Bacalar’s 1,286 brings the total to 39,491 units across five Quintana Roo tourist hubs. Including other Airbnb locations such as Holbox and Chetumal, the figure easily exceeds 40,000 properties.
The study reveals that Airbnb operates in 455 municipalities, or 59% of all Mexican municipalities. However, it warns that the platform’s expansion is increasingly driven by institutional hosts and large investors, moving away from the collaborative economy image it originally promoted.
Another finding indicates that Airbnb’s rapid growth has contributed to rising housing costs in various tourist areas, where residents face greater difficulties buying or renting properties, along with increased prices for services and goods tied to tourism activity.
