Brandwave

Athearn vs Hornby:Which is more popular?

In October 2026, Hornby had more branded searches than Athearn among model railway brands worldwide. Hornby had about 60,500 branded searches, while Athearn had 6,800. Hornby made up 30% of all model railway brand searches we track, and Athearn accounted for 3.4%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about model railway brands, Hornby appeared in three of the five answers and Athearn in two. Hornby was mentioned before Athearn in two out of three answers.

Among model railway brands worldwide in October 2026

Who do people search for more?

Hornby, about 9 searches for every 1 for Athearn

Hornby 60.5K searchesAthearn 6.8K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Hornby, mentioned in 3 of 5 answers, Athearn in 2

Hornby in 3 of 5Athearn in 2 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Hornby, named ahead of Athearn in 2 of 3 answers

Hornby first in 2Athearn first in 1

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Top model railway brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Hornby was mentioned in three out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Athearn was mentioned in two out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Hornby was listed before Athearn in two out of three answers.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. Kato1st
  2. Bachmann2nd
  3. Hornby3rd
  4. Marklin4th
  5. Roco5th
  6. PIKO6th
  7. Athearn7th
  8. Atlas Model Railroad8th
  9. Lionel9th
  10. MTH–
  11. +5 more

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • Bachmann4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Kato4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Hornby3 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Marklin2 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Athearn2 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • PIKO2 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Lionel1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Atlas Model Railroad1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Roco1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • MTH0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

+5 more

See every answer about model railway brands

5 answers

Not named in any answer:

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 21, 2026.

Is Athearn or Hornby more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Athearn and Hornby by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all 15 model railway brands we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Athearn and Hornby among model railway brands worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for Hornby, Athearn. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthHornbyMTHLionelMarklinBachmannRapido TrainsAthearnKatoWalthersAtlas Model RailroadRocoGraham FarishPecoPIKOFleischmann
Nov 202528.8%10.5%26.3%8.6%7.1%4.7%3%2.8%3.3%2.1%0.66%0.6%0.55%0.51%0.36%
Dec 202526.4%9.7%27.3%9.7%7.9%4.3%3.4%3.1%3.4%1.9%0.61%0.7%0.59%0.55%0.39%
Jan 202633.4%12.2%16.7%10%6.7%4.5%4.1%3.1%3.6%2.4%0.86%0.7%0.73%0.59%0.47%
Feb 202629.7%16.3%14.9%8.9%7.3%4.9%4.7%3.5%4%2.7%0.73%0.79%0.67%0.49%0.51%
Mar 202629.7%16.2%15.7%8.9%5.9%5.9%3.8%3.9%4%2.6%0.68%0.93%0.69%0.43%0.51%
Apr 202631.4%17.2%14.3%9.4%6.3%5.1%3.8%3.7%3.6%2.3%0.77%0.83%0.55%0.46%0.41%
May 202631.9%17.4%13%9.5%6.4%5.2%3.8%3.7%3.7%2.3%0.72%0.84%0.48%0.46%0.52%
Jun 202633.5%15%13.7%10%6.7%5.5%3.3%3.4%3.7%2.4%0.61%0.72%0.51%0.49%0.47%
Jul 202632.8%14.7%15.6%8%6.6%5.4%4%3.5%3.6%2.9%0.8%0.7%0.56%0.48%0.46%
Aug 202630.5%16.7%14.5%9.1%7.5%5%3.4%3.6%3.8%2.7%0.8%0.81%0.69%0.5%0.56%
Sep 202631.8%17.4%13.8%9.5%6.4%5.2%3.6%3.6%3.9%1.9%0.67%0.84%0.57%0.53%0.42%
Oct 202630%16.4%15%11%6%6%3.4%3.4%3.2%2.2%0.94%0.79%0.66%0.64%0.49%

How has branded search for Athearn and Hornby changed worldwide over the last 12 months?

3 findings
  • Hornby was ahead of Athearn in every measured month of the 12 months ending October 2026.
  • Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Athearn’s share of searches among model railway brands worldwide moved from 3% to 3.4%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 9.5K to 6.8K.
  • Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Hornby’s share of searches among model railway brands worldwide moved from 28.8% to 30%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 90.5K to 60.5K.

How did search popularity change for model railway brands worldwide in October 2026?

2 changes

  1. In October 2026, Hornby lost share of searches among model railway brands worldwide, from 31.8% to 30%.

  2. In October 2026, Athearn rose from 8th to 7th among model railway brands worldwide.

How are Athearn’s and Hornby’s branded searches counted?

3 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Athearn’s and Hornby’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.

Athearn

2 branded search terms

  • athearn
  • athearn trains

Hornby

1 branded search term

  • hornby

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among model railway brands

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