How Zillow uses artificial intelligence to help find your next home

From search to the Zestimate, AI makes for smarter home shopping on Zillow

By David Beitel

At Zillow, we believe artificial intelligence is a great tool to help more people get home. As the most popular real estate website, we’re uniquely positioned to lead in AI innovation. Today, we are using AI to make renting, buying, selling and financing easier.

From enhanced property searches to a more accurate Zestimate, AI is at the heart of creating a seamless and intuitive experience on Zillow. Let’s dive into the key AI-powered features enhancing your journey on Zillow today.

Natural language search: Speak like a human, search like a pro

Zillow is the first and only major real estate platform to implement this type of AI-powered search experience.

You can specify details like location or style — and now there are new options to search by commute time, affordability, schools and nearby points of interest.

• Points of interest (POI): Look for homes near your favorite places. For example, queries like “Apartments near Denver Union Station” will yield results that keep you close to the places that matter to you.
• Commute time: Find homes based on travel time to key locations — not just to work. For instance, you can search for “Homes 30 min drive from Millennium Park.”
• Affordability: Set your budget and let natural language search handle the rest. Just type “Homes for sale under $400,000 in Austin” or search by monthly payment, such as “Seattle homes under $4,000 monthly,” to discover options in your price range.
• Schools: Find homes in a specific school district by searching for terms like “3-bedroom houses near Roosevelt High School” or simply “Roosevelt High School.”

To use Zillow’s AI-powered search:

1. Open the Zillow app: Ensure you have the latest version of the app installed on your iOS or Android device.
2. Type your query: Use everyday language to describe what you’re looking for, like “Homes under 300k in Chicago” or “Houses near Lake Tahoe.”
3. Browse the results: Explore the tailored listings that match your search criteria.

Whether you’re a first-time home buyer on a budget or relocating to be closer to work, natural language search can help you discover homes that fit your wish list.

Interactive floor plans: Explore every corner

It’s no secret that buyers want to avoid wasting time on properties that aren’t a good match; our data shows that more than half of buyers regret visiting homes they would have skipped if they’d had access to the floor plan up front. In fact, 79% of buyers say they’re more likely to explore a listing if it features a floor plan that appeals to them.

Our AI-powered interactive floor plans take the home shopping experience to the next level. This feature seamlessly integrates listing photos and virtual tours into a dynamic digital layout, making it easier for buyers to visualize the space and get a true feel for the property. Each photo is linked to its exact location within the floor plan, offering a more immersive way to explore a home.

Zillow Showcase: Immersive, AI-powered listings

Showcase listings are unique AI-powered listings available only on Zillow, and are designed to provide an even deeper understanding of the home with features such as:

• Virtual tours paired with interactive floor plans, so that each photo is seamlessly connected to its exact location within the home through a highlighted overlay of the floor plan
• Floor plan on a map allows buyers to view the home’s position on the lot
• Room-by-room photo organization
• Self-rotating carousel of large and striking high-resolution photos

Explore these Showcase demo listings in Phoenix and Cleveland to see how AI brings these homes to life. 

For Apple Vision Pro™ users, exploring Showcase listings reaches a new level. All Showcase listings are available on the Zillow Immerse app. Advanced spatial computing technology is used to transport users inside a home, offering a panoramic 360-degree view of every room.

When prospective buyers start looking for a home, they often turn to Zillow. Partnering with an agent who can offer the Showcase treatment can help sellers connect with serious buyers. 

Personalized home recommendations: Just for you

At Zillow, we use advanced machine learning and natural language processing to enhance your home search experience. We work to understand your preferences, suggesting homes you haven’t seen yet but are likely to love. Our system looks at a home’s features, such as location and size, and considers user preferences to suggest similar homes, so you can discover the perfect home faster.

By using both detailed home information and user activity, we strive to make recommendations that are spot-on for your home search.

As you progress through different stages of buying or renting, we tailor recommendations and services to match your needs. Whether you’re just starting your search or are ready to make a decision, we provide relevant information and suggestions suited to your current stage. Additionally, when you’re ready, we can help connect you with a top Premier Agent partner who is best equipped to help you sell your house or find your dream home.

The Zestimate: Zillow’s first AI-powered tool

The Zestimate®  is a powerful starting point in determining a home’s value. Since its launch in 2006, it has evolved to cover more than 100 million homes in the U.S., with estimates that continually react to market trends. The Zestimate’s accuracy and responsiveness have significantly improved, thanks to advances in machine learning and AI.

In June 2021, Zillow introduced the “Neural Zestimate,” an upgrade that leverages deep learning to enhance the system’s performance. This new AI-powered model allows the Zestimate to quickly adapt to current market trends and offers substantial gains in accuracy. The Zestimate incorporates various data points, including sales transactions, tax assessments, and home details like square footage and location, to provide the best estimate of a home’s market value, even for those not actively listed for sale.

Using AI to unlock life’s next chapter

AI is transforming the world around us, including the way we search for homes, making the process smarter, faster and more enjoyable. Zillow is committed to leveraging the latest technology to simplify the real estate process by making it more intuitive for everyone involved. As a product- and technology-focused company, Zillow will continue to use AI as a significant tool in how we meet — and exceed — customer expectations.