--- title: "Citizens: search popularity in the United States" description: "Citizens offers private student loans and refinancing. 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/us/brands/citizens-student-loans" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Citizens: search popularity in the United States Citizens offers private student loans and refinancing. 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 - **Brand**: Citizens - **Market**: United States - **Measured month**: Sep 2026 - **Share of Search among student loan lenders**: 0.88% ## Where the brand sits | Competitive set | Rank | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Student loan lenders | 6 | 0.88% | 2.9K | - [Student loan lenders](/demand/us/categories/us-student-loan-lenders) ## Top student loan lenders in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Citizens was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Citizens is the sixth most recommended of the six. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Earnest | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | SoFi | 2nd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | College Ave | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Sallie Mae | 4th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Ascent | 5th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Citizens | 6th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about student loan lenders - Asked ChatGPT "Which private student loan lender should I use in the US?": 1. College Ave, 2. Earnest, 3. Sallie Mae, 4. Ascent - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best private student loan lenders in the US?": 1. College Ave, 2. Earnest, 3. SoFi, 4. Sallie Mae, 5. Ascent, 6. Citizens - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best lender in the US to refinance my student loans?": 1. Earnest, 2. SoFi - Searched Google, AI Overview "private student loans": named none of the brands we track - Searched Google, AI Overview "student loan refinance": 1. SoFi, 2. Earnest Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 22, 2026. ## How has branded search demand for Citizens changed in the United States over the last 12 months? - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, estimated monthly branded searches for Citizens in the United States rose from 2.4K to 2.9K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Citizens’ share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States held steady, from 0.73% to 0.88%. ## How did search popularity change for United States student loan lenders in September 2026? - In September 2026, SoFi overtook Earnest and Ascent to rank 3rd among student loan lenders in the United States, with 3% of the searches. - In September 2026, Sallie Mae gained share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States, from 70.3% to 74.5%. - In September 2026, College Ave lost share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States, from 21% to 18.3%. - In September 2026, Ascent lost share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States, from 2.3% to 1.3%. - In September 2026, Earnest lost share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States, from 2.8% to 2%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Citizens in the United States rose 20.8% over 12 measured months, from 2.4K to 2.9K in September 2026. ## Historical estimated branded-search demand | Month | Competitive set | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | Student loan lenders | 2.4K | 0.73% | 6 | | Nov 2025 | Student loan lenders | 2.4K | 0.89% | 6 | | Dec 2025 | Student loan lenders | 2.9K | 1.1% | 6 | | Jan 2026 | Student loan lenders | 4.4K | 1.1% | 6 | | Feb 2026 | Student loan lenders | 3.6K | 1.1% | 6 | | Mar 2026 | Student loan lenders | 3.6K | 0.92% | 6 | | Apr 2026 | Student loan lenders | 3.6K | 0.92% | 6 | | May 2026 | Student loan lenders | 2.9K | 0.87% | 6 | | Jun 2026 | Student loan lenders | 4.4K | 1.3% | 6 | | Jul 2026 | Student loan lenders | 6.6K | 1.5% | 6 | | Aug 2026 | Student loan lenders | 6.6K | 1.3% | 6 | | Sep 2026 | Student loan lenders | 2.9K | 0.88% | 6 | ## How are Citizens’ branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Citizens’ name. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for this branded term can be used to understand whether interest in the brand is growing, holding steady, or fading. - “citizens student loans” ## Which student loan lenders compete with Citizens? - [Sallie Mae](/demand/us/brands/sallie-mae): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/citizens-student-loans-vs-sallie-mae - [College Ave](/demand/us/brands/college-ave): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/citizens-student-loans-vs-college-ave - [SoFi](/demand/us/brands/sofi): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/citizens-student-loans-vs-sofi - [Earnest](/demand/us/brands/earnest-loans): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/citizens-student-loans-vs-earnest-loans - [Ascent](/demand/us/brands/ascent-funding): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/ascent-funding-vs-citizens-student-loans ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Citizens: search popularity in the United States". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/brands/citizens-student-loans This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/brands/citizens-student-loans. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.