stockrowWhat it does
Zillow Group runs a digital platform for people looking to rent, buy, sell or finance a home. Its websites and apps connect consumers with property listings and with real estate agents, landlords, property managers, home builders and mortgage professionals. The company also sells software and advertising to those professionals. Zillow was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Seattle. Jeremy Wacksman is its chief executive.
For people searching for a home, Zillow provides listings, home-value estimates and tools to arrange tours. Its database covers approximately 173 million U.S. homes, and its Zestimate model produces estimated home values. Buyers can use Zillow Home Loans to seek mortgage financing; sellers can use agent partners and enhanced listings to market their homes.
Renters can search listings and, where participating properties offer the services, apply, sign leases and pay rent. Housing providers can advertise vacancies and use leasing and property-management tools. For agents, Zillow offers customer-management, appointment and transaction software alongside products that connect them with prospective clients.
The company is linking these services into an integrated experience: a consumer can search on Zillow, connect with a participating agent and potentially finance a purchase through Zillow Home Loans. Zillow is also developing AI tools for consumers and agents. Its AI Mode is available to all signed-in users.
How it makes money
Total revenue was $2.6 billion in FY2025 and $724 million in Q3 2026.
Zillow earns revenue from Residential, Rentals, Mortgages and Other. Residential was $1.7 billion in FY2025, or 66.0% of revenue. It includes agent advertising and connections, software, new-construction advertising and StreetEasy’s for-sale products.
Agents can buy advertising under a market-based model, in which their share of connections in a ZIP code depends on their share of advertising purchased there. Under Zillow Preferred, participating agents receive leads and generally pay a performance fee when a transaction with a lead closes. Zillow also sells enhanced listing advertising through Showcase and subscriptions for software such as Follow Up Boss, dotloop and ShowingTime. Builders can pay to advertise by residential community or impression.
Rentals generated $630.0 million in FY2025. Property managers pay for advertising and tools on bases that include leads, leases, listings, impressions and fixed-fee packages. Prospective renters can also pay a flat service fee to apply to multiple properties. Some advertising packages and software subscriptions provide recurring customer relationships, while lead, lease and transaction-based charges depend on activity.
Mortgages generated $199.0 million in FY2025, primarily from loans originated by Zillow Home Loans and their subsequent sale, as well as advertising sold to mortgage professionals on a cost-per-lead basis. Other revenue comes primarily from display advertising.
In Q3 2026, residential revenue decreased 4% year over year, while rentals revenue grew 26% and mortgages revenue grew 32%. The company expects the shift toward Preferred to change the timing of residential revenue recognition.
| Product or service | Revenue, FY2025 | Share | Change on the year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential | $1.7 billion | 66.0% | 6.90% |
| Rentals | $630.0 million | 24.4% | 39.1% |
| Mortgages | $199.0 million | 7.70% | 37.2% |
| Other | $50.0 million | 1.94% | 13.6% |
Customers and how it sells
Zillow serves consumers and businesses involved in U.S. residential real estate. Consumers include buyers, sellers, renters and borrowers. Its paying business customers include real estate agents and brokerages, home builders, mortgage professionals, landlords and multifamily property managers.
Consumers reach Zillow through its apps and websites, including Zillow, Trulia and StreetEasy. They can search, browse and connect with professionals; businesses pay to advertise, receive connections or use software. The company estimates that 80% of U.S. residential real estate transactions involve agents using at least one Zillow product. In Q3 2026, about 80% of traffic came directly to Zillow rather than through third-party sources.
The platform’s home database and its residential real estate opportunity are focused on the United States. Zillow Home Loans was available in 49 states and the District of Columbia as of the 2025 year-end description. StreetEasy’s Experts product serves the New York City market. Rentals listings span single-family homes and multifamily buildings, while Zillow Rental Manager also serves landlords with properties of fewer than 25 units.
Zillow works with local partners to deliver services. In its Enhanced Markets, the company combines connections to preferred agents with access to Zillow Home Loans.
| Segment | Revenue, FY2025 | Share | Change on the year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reportable Segments | $2.6 billion | 100.0% | 15.5% |
Suppliers and costs
Zillow relies on relationships with agents, brokers, mortgage professionals, landlords, property managers, builders and regional listing services to provide inventory and services to consumers. It also uses listing syndication agreements with Redfin and Realtor.com to expand access to rental listings. Its home database combines property, transaction and listing data from multiple sources, including user updates.
Its operating spending includes product and service development, sales and marketing, technology infrastructure, general and administrative expenses, and expansion of Zillow Home Loans. The company invests in its technology platforms and new products and services. Mortgage originations also require funding, and Zillow generally sells the loans it originates on the secondary market.
Zillow had 7,068 employees at the end of FY2025. In Q2 2026, it announced a restructuring that included eliminating approximately 7% of employees. The company’s cost framework is to use its fixed costs across a growing business, manage variable costs in line with revenue and invest in advertising opportunistically. Payment-processing vendors can impose settlement delays, reserve requirements, fund holds or other restrictions.
- Revenue$2.6B
- Cost of revenue−$668.0M
- Research and development−$607.0M
- Selling, general and administrative−$1.3B
- Operating income−$34.0M
Competitive position
Zillow competes across home search, agent advertising, rentals and mortgages. Customer choices depend on factors such as the breadth and accuracy of listings, price, service quality and brand awareness. For mortgage borrowers, Zillow Home Loans competes with other originators on interest rates, fees, product selection and service. Zillow also competes for real estate professionals’ marketing budgets against other lead sources, including traditional media, referrals and yard signs.
Google has tested a local service advertising product. Zillow said it saw no impact on its traffic or metrics in the markets where the product was tested. Redfin and Realtor.com have listing syndication agreements with Zillow, rather than being identified as competitors in those arrangements.
Zillow’s portfolio recorded approximately 9.6 billion visits in 2025, and its database covers approximately 173 million U.S. homes. Its rentals marketplace had 2.4 million average monthly active rental listings as of December 31, 2025. The company also offers agents software and connections alongside consumer search tools.
Our reading: Zillow’s audience and direct traffic are meaningful defenses because they give professionals access to consumers without relying entirely on outside traffic sources. Our reading: Its property data and network of listings and professional tools can reinforce that position, although Zillow still has to compete on information quality, price and returns for partners.
| Competitor | Where they compete | Threat (our reading) |
|---|---|---|
| Local service advertising for real estate professionals | Low |
Growth opportunities
Zillow’s for-sale strategy is to participate in more transactions and earn more revenue from each one. It is expanding Preferred agent connections and integrating mortgage financing, listing marketing and software into the transaction. In Q3 2026, two-thirds of buyer connections went to a preferred agent partner in the integrated experience. The company expects Preferred to represent more than 75% of connections by year-end and 100% in the first half of 2027.
Zillow is also seeking to grow rentals by adding multifamily properties and selling broader advertising packages. At the end of Q3 2026, 81,000 multifamily properties advertised on Zillow, up 17% year over year. The company estimates that multifamily property managers spend $10 billion a year on advertising.
Zillow Home Loans is another growth focus. The company expects its purchase mortgage originations to grow more than 50% in 2026, as it serves buyers referred through Preferred agents as well as other clients. It is also expanding seller products: Zillow expects Showcase, listing media and sellers transacting with its agent partners to contribute more than $300 million to 2026 revenue.
In technology, Zillow is developing AI in Follow Up Boss to surface leads and recommend actions for agents. For consumers, AI Mode offers conversational guidance within the Zillow experience.
- $2.1BFY2021
- $2.0BFY2022
- $1.9BFY2023
- $2.2BFY2024
- $2.6BFY2025
- $2.9BFY2026 guidance
Structural risks
- Housing conditions: Zillow’s results can be affected by interest rates, housing availability and affordability, inflation and changes in residential real estate activity. Low inventory and elevated mortgage rates have constrained home sales.
- Mortgage funding and rates: Zillow Home Loans needs financing to originate mortgages and access to buyers for those loans on the secondary market. In Q3 2026, a mortgage-rate shock reduced conversion and caused mortgage revenue to fall below the company’s outlook.
- Partner and advertising competition: Zillow must retain consumers and real estate partners, deliver returns for partners and compete for advertising dollars. Partners can choose other providers of leads and marketing services.
- Regulation and licensing: Zillow operates under federal, state and local laws and regulations. Failure to comply or maintain required licenses could harm its operations and financial results.
- Technology and intellectual property: Zillow may be unable to protect its intellectual property or prevent others from copying it or developing similar technology. It must also keep pace with changes in technology, including AI.
- Profitability and investment: Zillow has incurred operating losses in the past and may not sustain revenue growth or profitability. It continues to spend on product development, marketing, technology and mortgage expansion.
Bottom line
Our reading
Our reading: Zillow is a housing marketplace and software business that turns consumer traffic into advertising, agent connections and transaction-related revenue. Its reach, property data and professional tools support that model, while rentals and mortgages provide additional ways to participate in a move. Its exposure remains tied to housing activity, partner returns and the execution of its shift toward fees earned when transactions close.