How should I handle guest complaints on Airbnb?

Answer fast and take the guest's side first, because the speed of your reply shapes the review more than whether you fully fix the thing. A guest who hears "I'm on it" within ten minutes tends to forgive a lot; one who's ignored for three hours writes about being ignored.

The move that works, whatever the complaint, is: acknowledge it immediately and without defensiveness, say the thing back to them so they know you actually read it ("no hot water on your first morning, that's rubbish, I'm sorry"), give a concrete next step with a time on it ("my plumber can be there by two"), and then circle back once it's sorted to confirm. The confirmation step is the one hosts skip, and it's the one that turns a rescued situation into a good review.

The specific fixes vary. A cleanliness miss usually means sending the cleaner back and offering a late checkout or partial refund. Something broken needs a realistic repair window plus a workaround for right now. Noise means you actually deal with the neighbours, not just sympathise. "Not as described" is the one where you own it plainly rather than arguing about interpretation.

What sinks you is getting defensive, making excuses, or hoping the message goes away until checkout. It won't. And oddly, a problem you handle well often reviews better than a stay where nothing went wrong at all, because guests remember being looked after, not the fault itself.