--- title: "How popular is Self? Searches and AI answers in the United States" description: "Self offers credit builder loans and secured cards. 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/self-credit-builder" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # How popular is Self? Searches and AI answers in the United States Self offers credit builder loans and secured cards. 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**: Self - **Market**: United States - **Measured month**: Oct 2026 - **Share of Search among credit builder apps**: 9.9% ## Where does Self compete? | Competitive set | Rank | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Credit builder apps | 3 | 9.9% | 9.9K | - [Credit builder apps](/demand/us/categories/us-credit-builder-apps) ## Top credit builder apps in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Self was mentioned in two out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Self is the second most recommended of the five. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Kikoff | 1st | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Self | 2nd | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Chime | 3rd | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Grow Credit | 4th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Credit Strong | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about credit builder apps - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best way to build credit from scratch?": named none of the brands we track - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best credit builder app?": 1. Kikoff, 2. Self, 3. Grow Credit - Asked ChatGPT "How can I raise my credit score quickly?": named none of the brands we track - Searched Google, AI Overview "credit builder": 1. Chime, 2. Kikoff - Searched Google, AI Overview "best credit builder": 1. Self, 2. Kikoff Not named in any answer: Credit Strong. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 27, 2026. ## How has branded search demand for Self changed in the United States over the last 12 months? - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, estimated monthly branded searches for Self in the United States fell from 12.1K to 9.9K. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Self’s share of searches among credit builder apps in the United States decreased from 11.9% to 9.9%. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Self’s share of searches among credit builder apps in the United States peaked at 14.2% in February 2026 and was lowest at 9.9% in October 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United States credit builder apps in October 2026? - In October 2026, Chime gained share of searches among credit builder apps in the United States, from 4.4% to 6.6%. - In October 2026, Self lost share of searches among credit builder apps in the United States, from 12.1% to 9.9%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Grow Credit in the United States fell 47.4% over 12 measured months, from 1.9K to 1K in October 2026. ## Historical estimated branded-search demand | Month | Competitive set | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Nov 2025 | Credit builder apps | 12.1K | 11.9% | 3 | | Dec 2025 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 14.2% | 3 | | Jan 2026 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 14.2% | 3 | | Feb 2026 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 14.2% | 3 | | Mar 2026 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 13.2% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 12.9% | 3 | | May 2026 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 12.9% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | Credit builder apps | 14.8K | 13.7% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | Credit builder apps | 12.1K | 11.5% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | Credit builder apps | 12.1K | 10.9% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | Credit builder apps | 12.1K | 12.1% | 3 | | Oct 2026 | Credit builder apps | 9.9K | 9.9% | 3 | ## How are Self’s branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Self’s 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. - “self credit builder” ## Which credit builder apps compete with Self? - [Kikoff](/demand/us/brands/kikoff): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/kikoff-vs-self-credit-builder - [Credit Strong](/demand/us/brands/credit-strong): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/credit-strong-vs-self-credit-builder - [Chime](/demand/us/brands/chime): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/chime-vs-self-credit-builder - [Grow Credit](/demand/us/brands/grow-credit): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/grow-credit-vs-self-credit-builder ## 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. "How popular is Self? Searches and AI answers in the United States". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/brands/self-credit-builder This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/brands/self-credit-builder. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.