--- title: "Budget vs National Car Rental: Which is searched more?" description: "Is Budget or National Car Rental more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Rental car companies set worldwide. 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/global-en/compare/budget-vs-national-car-rental" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Budget vs National Car Rental: Which is searched more? Is Budget or National Car Rental more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Rental car companies set worldwide. 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 National Car Rental - **Competitive set**: Rental car companies - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Budget Share of Search**: 12.2% - **National Car Rental Share of Search**: 8.1% ## Is Budget or National Car Rental more popular in search? - In September 2026, Budget had more branded searches than National Car Rental among rental car companies worldwide. Budget had about 1.5 million branded searches, while National Car Rental had 1 million. Budget made up 12.2% of all rental car company searches we track, and National Car Rental accounted for 8.1%. - Budget was ahead of National Car Rental in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Budget’s share of searches among rental car companies worldwide moved from 13.8% to 12.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.8M to 1.5M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, National Car Rental’s share of searches among rental car companies worldwide moved from 7.5% to 8.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 1M. ## Top rental car companies in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Budget appeared in all five answers. National Car Rental was mentioned in four out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. National Car Rental was listed before Budget in three out of five answers. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Enterprise Rent-A-Car | 1st | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Budget | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | National Car Rental | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Hertz | 4th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Avis | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Sixt | 6th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Europcar | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Turo | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Thrifty | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about rental car companies - Asked ChatGPT "Which rental car company should I book?": 1. Budget, 2. Hertz, 3. Avis - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best rental car companies?": 1. Enterprise Rent-A-Car, 2. National Car Rental, 3. Hertz, 4. Avis, 5. Budget - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best rental car company for airport trip?": 1. Enterprise Rent-A-Car, 2. Budget, 3. National Car Rental - Searched Google, AI Overview "rental car companies": 1. Enterprise Rent-A-Car, 2. Hertz, 3. Avis, 4. National Car Rental, 5. Budget - Searched Google, AI Overview "best car rental": 1. National Car Rental, 2. Enterprise Rent-A-Car, 3. Budget, 4. Sixt Not named in any answer: Europcar, Turo and Thrifty. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 19, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for rental car companies worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, Sixt overtook Budget and Europcar to rank 3rd among rental car companies worldwide, with 14.9% of the searches. - In September 2026, National Car Rental overtook Turo to rank 7th among rental car companies worldwide, with 8.1% of the searches. - In September 2026, Budget lost share of searches among rental car companies worldwide, from 12.7% to 12.2%. ## Month by month | Month | Budget estimated searches | Budget Share of Search | Budget rank | National Car Rental estimated searches | National Car Rental Share of Search | National Car Rental rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 1.8M | 13.8% | 3 | 1M | 7.5% | 7 | | Nov 2025 | 1.5M | 12.7% | 3 | 823K | 6.9% | 7 | | Dec 2025 | 1.5M | 12.4% | 3 | 823K | 6.8% | 7 | | Jan 2026 | 1.5M | 12% | 3 | 823K | 6.6% | 8 | | Feb 2026 | 1.5M | 12.5% | 3 | 1M | 8.3% | 7 | | Mar 2026 | 1.8M | 12.2% | 3 | 1M | 6.7% | 8 | | Apr 2026 | 1.8M | 13.2% | 3 | 1M | 7.2% | 8 | | May 2026 | 1.8M | 13% | 3 | 1.2M | 8.7% | 7 | | Jun 2026 | 1.8M | 12.7% | 3 | 1.2M | 8.5% | 7 | | Jul 2026 | 1.8M | 12.3% | 4 | 1M | 6.7% | 8 | | Aug 2026 | 1.8M | 12.7% | 3 | 1M | 6.9% | 8 | | Sep 2026 | 1.5M | 12.2% | 4 | 1M | 8.1% | 7 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Budget’s and National Car Rental’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”. - **National Car Rental**: Measured on the search term “national car rental”. - [Budget profile](/demand/global-en/brands/budget) - [National Car Rental profile](/demand/global-en/brands/national-car-rental) - [All rental car companies worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/rental-car-companies): The set both shares are measured inside, 9 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 National Car Rental more popular in search? In September 2026, Budget had more branded searches than National Car Rental among rental car companies worldwide. Budget had about 1.5 million branded searches, while National Car Rental had 1 million. Budget made up 12.2% of all rental car company searches we track, and National Car Rental accounted for 8.1%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Budget vs National Car Rental: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/budget-vs-national-car-rental This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/budget-vs-national-car-rental. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.