--- title: "Budget vs Thrifty: Which is searched more in Australia?" description: "Is Budget or Thrifty more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Car rental companies set in Australia. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time." canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/au/compare/budget-vs-thrifty" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Budget vs Thrifty: Which is searched more in Australia? Is Budget or Thrifty more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Car rental companies set in Australia. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time. ## Key facts - **Compared**: Budget and Thrifty - **Competitive set**: Car rental companies - **Market**: Australia - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Budget Share of Search**: 14.2% - **Thrifty Share of Search**: 6.4% ## Is Budget or Thrifty more popular in search? - In September 2026, Budget had more branded searches than Thrifty among car rental companies in Australia. Budget had about 49,500 branded searches, while Thrifty had 22,200. Budget made up 14.2% of all car rental company searches we track, and Thrifty accounted for 6.4%. - Budget was ahead of Thrifty in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Budget’s share of searches among car rental companies in Australia moved from 11.1% to 14.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 49.5K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Thrifty’s share of searches among car rental companies in Australia moved from 5% to 6.4%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 22.2K. ## Top car rental companies in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Budget appeared in all five answers. Thrifty was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Budget was listed before Thrifty in every answer. Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options. | Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sixt | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Budget | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Avis | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | East Coast Car Rentals | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Hertz | 5th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Europcar | 6th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Thrifty | 7th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about car rental companies - Asked ChatGPT "Which car rental company should I use in Australia?": 1. Avis, 2. Sixt, 3. Budget, 4. East Coast Car Rentals, 5. Hertz - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best car hire companies in Australia?": 1. East Coast Car Rentals, 2. Budget, 3. Avis, 4. Sixt, 5. Hertz, 6. Thrifty, 7. Europcar - Asked ChatGPT "What's the cheapest car hire company at Australian airports?": 1. East Coast Car Rentals, 2. Sixt, 3. Budget, 4. Avis, 5. Europcar - Searched Google, AI Overview "car rental": 1. Hertz, 2. Avis, 3. Sixt, 4. Budget, 5. East Coast Car Rentals - Searched Google, AI Overview "car hire": 1. Hertz, 2. Budget, 3. Sixt, 4. East Coast Car Rentals Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in Australia on October 22, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for Australia car rental companies in September 2026? - In September 2026, Europcar overtook Avis and Budget to rank 2nd among car rental companies in Australia, with 17.3% of the searches. - In September 2026, Sixt overtook Avis and Budget to rank 3rd among car rental companies in Australia, with 17.3% of the searches. - In September 2026, Thrifty gained share of searches among car rental companies in Australia, from 5.8% to 6.4%. - In September 2026, Budget lost share of searches among car rental companies in Australia, from 15.8% to 14.2%. ## Month by month | Month | Budget estimated searches | Budget Share of Search | Budget rank | Thrifty estimated searches | Thrifty Share of Search | Thrifty rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 49.5K | 11.1% | 5 | 22.2K | 5% | 7 | | Nov 2025 | 60.5K | 13.3% | 3 | 22.2K | 4.9% | 7 | | Dec 2025 | 60.5K | 13.4% | 2 | 22.2K | 4.9% | 7 | | Jan 2026 | 60.5K | 12.4% | 5 | 22.2K | 4.5% | 7 | | Feb 2026 | 60.5K | 13% | 4 | 18.1K | 3.9% | 7 | | Mar 2026 | 60.5K | 12.7% | 3 | 22.2K | 4.7% | 7 | | Apr 2026 | 60.5K | 14.5% | 2 | 18.1K | 4.3% | 7 | | May 2026 | 49.5K | 11.7% | 5 | 22.2K | 5.3% | 7 | | Jun 2026 | 49.5K | 13.1% | 5 | 22.2K | 5.9% | 7 | | Jul 2026 | 49.5K | 13.8% | 5 | 22.2K | 6.2% | 7 | | Aug 2026 | 60.5K | 15.8% | 3 | 22.2K | 5.8% | 7 | | Sep 2026 | 49.5K | 14.2% | 5 | 22.2K | 6.4% | 7 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Budget’s and Thrifty’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading. - **Budget**: Measured on the search term “budget car rental”. - **Thrifty**: Measured on the search term “thrifty”. - [Budget profile](/demand/au/brands/budget) - [Thrifty profile](/demand/au/brands/thrifty) - [All car rental companies in Australia](/demand/au/categories/au-car-rental-companies): The set both shares are measured inside, 7 brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is Budget or Thrifty more popular in search? In September 2026, Budget had more branded searches than Thrifty among car rental companies in Australia. Budget had about 49,500 branded searches, while Thrifty had 22,200. Budget made up 14.2% of all car rental company searches we track, and Thrifty accounted for 6.4%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Budget vs Thrifty: Which is searched more in Australia?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/au/compare/budget-vs-thrifty This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/au/compare/budget-vs-thrifty. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.