Airbnb Rival Sonder Officially Closed up Shop and Announced Financial Issues

There was a time when people thought Sonder might be the new Airbnb once it made the leap from Canada to the United States. In addition to shorter stays, it offered long-term rentals and corporate rental options. So, what happened to Sonder to lead to its sudden end?

According to a press release that Sonder Holdings Inc. put out on Nov. 10, 2025, the company faced financial troubles, which led to plans to file a Chapter 7 liquidation in the U.S. Per Marriott International, the hotel chain ended a long-standing agreement with Sonder. Now, the rental company is no longer an option for travelers in the U.S., but what happened to lead to its abrupt end?

According to Marriott International and Sonder Holding Inc.'s respective statements, Sonder failed to meet the requirements of an agreement in place with Marriott, and Sonder as a whole experienced financial troubles that led to the closing of business in the U.S.

Marriott's press release mentioned the licensing agreement between the companies being "no longer in effect due to Sonder's default."

This likely means Sonder failed to hold up its end of the bargain in the agreement between the companies. According to CBS News, guests who booked Marriott rooms through Sonder were immediately vacated following the announcement on Nov. 9, 2025. The licensing agreement available online says that an inability to pay debts and bankruptcy could result in a contract default event. That appears to have happened for Sonder.

There's probably a reason why Sonder never quite hit the mark. It appears to have relied heavily on its partnership with Marriott. But, according to reviews from guests over the years who booked rooms or apartments through Sonder, the company was not always forthcoming with what their stay would be like.

In a Reddit thread about using Sonder, some former guests criticized Sonder for having beautiful photos and appearances, but being unable to deliver on other guest needs, like communication and functionality. Others claimed in the thread that Sonder was beneficial for guests, especially for long-term stays.

Another thread warned travelers to "beware of Sonder hotels." They wrote in their post that they were forced to stay in a hotel room in New Orleans with no shower for more than two days and that they were only able to text Sonder customer service rather than call for help. Another traveler's thread on Reddit spoke more highly of a customer's experience with Sonder.

Clearly, over the years, different travelers had vastly different experiences with Sonder. Whether that contributed to the company's bankruptcy and Marriott's termination of the licensing agreement is not totally clear.