Trivago Reports 21% Revenue Growth in Q2, But Its Core Marketplace Grew 9%

Trivago raised its full-year guidance for the second time this year after posting 21% revenue growth and its first positive second-quarter adjusted EBITDA since 2023. The headline number is flattered by an acquisition, though, and the underlying metasearch business grew at less than half that rate.

Total revenue for the three months to June 30 was €168.4 million, up from €139.3 million. Referral revenue, the money trivago earns when a user clicks through to an advertiser or completes a booking from a referral, was €151.4 million, up 9%. The difference sits in "other revenue", which jumped to €17.0 million from €0.7 million a year earlier. That line is almost entirely trivago DEALS, the direct booking business trivago bought in the third quarter of 2025. The comparison is further stretched because trivago removed the one-month reporting lag on DEALS this quarter, so four months of that business landed in a three-month period.

Net loss narrowed to €5.2 million from €6.5 million. Adjusted EBITDA came in at a €1.1 million gain against a €5.0 million loss a year ago, a €6.1 million swing. On €168.4 million of revenue, that is a margin of well under one percent, though the first half is trivago's investment period and the company is targeting a 10% adjusted EBITDA margin by 2028.

Where the growth came from, and where it did not

Referral revenue rose 16% in the Americas to €61.2 million and 14% in Developed Europe to €63.8 million. Rest of World fell 11% to €26.4 million, which trivago attributed to currency weakness and to the Middle East conflict affecting airspace and fuel costs. Japan, Turkey, Australia, Poland and New Zealand were the largest contributors to that segment.

Advertising spend rose 11% to €128.7 million, a more moderate increase than in previous quarters. Global return on advertising spend improved 2.8 percentage points to 121.8%, with the Americas up 8.4 points to 125.3%. Developed Europe and Rest of World both saw ROAS decline slightly.

"Branded channel traffic Referral Revenue growth once again substantially outpaced our total Referral Revenue growth and our conversion rate is up 64% since the second quarter of 2023," said Chief Executive Officer Johannes Thomas, who marked three years since returning to run the company.

The advertiser concentration shift

One disclosure deserves more attention than it will get. Expedia Group brands, including Expedia, Hotels.com, Wotif and Vrbo, accounted for 28% of trivago's referral revenue before intersegment eliminations in the quarter, down from 38% a year earlier. Booking Holdings brands held steady at 37%.

A ten-point drop in a year from the second-largest advertiser is a substantial change in the demand mix for any metasearch platform, and trivago did not explain it in the release. It could reflect Expedia pulling back on metasearch bidding, trivago diversifying its advertiser base, or both. Hotels bidding directly on trivago should note that the auction they are competing in looks different than it did twelve months ago.

Guidance and other items

Trivago raised its full-year outlook to mid-teens percent revenue growth, with adjusted EBITDA of around €30 million. Management said the first weeks of July were in line with expectations and pointed to reduced advertising spend in the lower travel season as a driver of second-half profitability.

The company repurchased 1,659,090 Class A shares for $1.5 million during the quarter, rising to 3,473,215 shares for $3.5 million as of July 31. It also booked €0.9 million of litigation expense in the quarter, and €1.5 million for the half, on its antitrust damages claim against Google over self-preferencing in hotel metasearch. Trivago expects to incur further significant legal costs there.

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash stood at €114.6 million, down from €131.1 million at the end of 2025.

Chief Financial Officer Dr. Wolf Schmuhl said Americas and Developed Europe referral revenue growth "both exceeded our expectations, more than offsetting foreign exchange headwinds and geopolitical pressures in Rest of World." The number to watch next quarter is whether referral revenue growth can move closer to the headline figure once the DEALS comparison normalises.