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Since Airbnb needs its users to verify their ID by uploading a photo of their driver's license or passport, I'm in search for another service quite like Airbnb, but without this way of approving one's identity.

Can you recommend me some?

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    It doesn't sound like a good idea to run such a service. Alternatives are wimdu and 9flats. They probably also require you to identify yourself.
    – MastaBaba
    Commented Jul 18, 2015 at 22:24
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    It works the other way, it is hard for Airbnb to trust you without an ID!
    – Michael Hampton
    Commented Jul 19, 2015 at 2:25
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    I'm surprised this needs to be said: Very few individuals will be willing to rent out their place to someone who has not been verified beforehand. If you don't want to verify yourself, you are not too likely to find a place to stay through services where the majority does verify itself.
    – MastaBaba
    Commented Jul 19, 2015 at 3:10
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    I think you can consider Airbnb successful and large enough that you can be pretty sure their business model of brokering lodging is far more profitable than selling your personal data and losing everyone's trust.
    – helm
    Commented Jul 19, 2015 at 13:26
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    Craigslist would probably list a few places that don't require ID
    – zeocrash
    Commented Aug 19, 2015 at 11:54

2 Answers 2

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You have several options:

  1. Use Airbnb without a verified ID. While a lot of hosts require one explicitly, there are still some that don't ask for it. I've tested it myself by registering a brand new user profile - it's still possible to contact hosts and make reservations without an ID scan (or even a photo).

  2. Use an online service that doesn't verify IDs, such as VRBO or 9flats.

  3. Go the old-fashioned way and use a regular classifieds website, such as Craigslist. Countries outside the US usually have their own classifieds websites, so you'd have to do a bit of research for each region you're planning to visit.

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Booking.com and Agoda also seem to do renting without ID verification.

So now the list is VRBO 9flats Booking.com and Agoda.

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  • I've used booking.com quite frequently, it's a pretty nice and straightforward service, I have very good experiences with it, however it (and agoda too i think) is primarily for booking things like hotels and hostels, i.e. the identity verification just happens on-location instead of through the service (which is to be honest much preferable anyways imo.)
    – Cestarian
    Commented Dec 14, 2020 at 19:09

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