--- title: "Car marketplaces in United States: Which are searched most?" description: "Compare the sites people buy and sell cars on. Share of Search among Carvana, CarGurus, CarMax, Carfax and Cars.com, the car marketplaces Brandwave compares in United States, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. 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/categories/us-car-marketplaces" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Car marketplaces in United States: Which are searched most? Compare the sites people buy and sell cars on. Share of Search among Carvana, CarGurus, CarMax, Carfax and Cars.com, the car marketplaces Brandwave compares in United States, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. 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 - **Competitive set**: Car marketplaces - **Market**: United States - **Brands compared**: 5 - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Highest Share of Search**: Carvana, 32.3% ## Which brand is most popular in search among car marketplaces in United States? - In September 2026, Carvana was the most searched among car marketplaces in United States, with an estimated 4.1M branded searches and 32.3% estimated Share of Search within this set. - CarGurus is in 2nd place, 5.8 percentage points behind at 26.5% Share of Search. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Carvana’s estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States increased from 28.1% to 32.3%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CarGurus’ estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States decreased from 28.1% to 26.5%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CarMax’s estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States decreased from 28.1% to 26.5%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Carfax’s estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States decreased from 12.6% to 11.9%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Carvana’s estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States peaked at 32.3% in September 2026 and was lowest at 24.2% in November 2025. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CarGurus’ estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States peaked at 29.6% in November 2025 and was lowest at 24.9% in April 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CarMax’s estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States peaked at 32.3% in January 2026 and was lowest at 26.5% in September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Carfax’s estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States peaked at 13.3% in November 2025 and was lowest at 11.1% in April 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Carvana rose from 3rd to 1st among car marketplaces in United States. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CarGurus fell from 1st to 2nd among car marketplaces in United States. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CarMax fell from 2nd to 3rd among car marketplaces in United States. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Cars.com held steady: its estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States moved less than 0.5 percentage points. ## Compare search popularity between leading brands - [Carvana vs CarGurus: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/cargurus-vs-carvana): 32.3% against 26.5% Share of Search. - [Carvana vs CarMax: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/carmax-vs-carvana): 32.3% against 26.5% Share of Search. - [Carvana vs Carfax: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/carfax-vs-carvana): 32.3% against 11.9% Share of Search. - [Carvana vs Cars.com: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/cars-com-vs-carvana): 32.3% against 2.9% Share of Search. - [CarGurus vs CarMax: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/cargurus-vs-carmax): 26.5% Share of Search each. - [CarGurus vs Carfax: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/carfax-vs-cargurus): 26.5% against 11.9% Share of Search. - [CarGurus vs Cars.com: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/cargurus-vs-cars-com): 26.5% against 2.9% Share of Search. - [CarMax vs Carfax: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/carfax-vs-carmax): 26.5% against 11.9% Share of Search. - [CarMax vs Cars.com: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/carmax-vs-cars-com): 26.5% against 2.9% Share of Search. - [Carfax vs Cars.com: compare search popularity](/demand/us/compare/carfax-vs-cars-com): 11.9% against 2.9% Share of Search. ## How did search popularity change for United States car marketplaces in September 2026? - In September 2026, Carvana overtook CarMax to become the leader among car marketplaces in United States, with 32.3% estimated Share of Search. - In September 2026, CarGurus overtook CarMax to rank 2nd among car marketplaces in United States, with 26.5% estimated Share of Search. - In September 2026, Carfax gained estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States, from 11.1% to 11.9%. - In September 2026, CarMax lost estimated Share of Search among car marketplaces in United States, from 30.3% to 26.5%. ## Share of Search ranking | Rank | Brand | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | Change vs prior month | Owned by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Carvana | 32.3% | 4.1M | 0.0% | Carvana | | 2 | CarGurus | 26.5% | 3.4M | 0.0% | CarGurus | | 3 | CarMax | 26.5% | 3.4M | -18.1% | CarMax | | 4 | Carfax | 11.9% | 1.5M | 0.0% | Carfax | | 5 | Cars.com | 2.9% | 368K | -18.2% | Cars.com | ## Historical estimated branded-search demand | Month | Brand | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 28.1% | 1 | | Oct 2025 | CarMax | 3.4M | 28.1% | 2 | | Oct 2025 | Carvana | 3.4M | 28.1% | 3 | | Oct 2025 | Carfax | 1.5M | 12.6% | 4 | | Oct 2025 | Cars.com | 368K | 3.1% | 5 | | Nov 2025 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 29.6% | 1 | | Nov 2025 | CarMax | 3.4M | 29.6% | 2 | | Nov 2025 | Carvana | 2.7M | 24.2% | 3 | | Nov 2025 | Carfax | 1.5M | 13.3% | 4 | | Nov 2025 | Cars.com | 368K | 3.3% | 5 | | Dec 2025 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 28.1% | 1 | | Dec 2025 | CarMax | 3.4M | 28.1% | 2 | | Dec 2025 | Carvana | 3.4M | 28.1% | 3 | | Dec 2025 | Carfax | 1.5M | 12.6% | 4 | | Dec 2025 | Cars.com | 368K | 3.1% | 5 | | Jan 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 32.3% | 1 | | Jan 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 26.5% | 2 | | Jan 2026 | Carvana | 3.4M | 26.5% | 3 | | Jan 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.9% | 4 | | Jan 2026 | Cars.com | 368K | 2.9% | 5 | | Feb 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 28.1% | 1 | | Feb 2026 | CarMax | 3.4M | 28.1% | 2 | | Feb 2026 | Carvana | 3.4M | 28.1% | 3 | | Feb 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 12.6% | 4 | | Feb 2026 | Cars.com | 368K | 3.1% | 5 | | Mar 2026 | CarGurus | 4.1M | 28.1% | 1 | | Mar 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 28.1% | 2 | | Mar 2026 | Carvana | 4.1M | 28.1% | 3 | | Mar 2026 | Carfax | 1.8M | 12.6% | 4 | | Mar 2026 | Cars.com | 450K | 3.1% | 5 | | Apr 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 30.3% | 1 | | Apr 2026 | Carvana | 4.1M | 30.3% | 2 | | Apr 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 24.9% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.1% | 4 | | Apr 2026 | Cars.com | 450K | 3.3% | 5 | | May 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 30.3% | 1 | | May 2026 | Carvana | 4.1M | 30.3% | 2 | | May 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 24.9% | 3 | | May 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.1% | 4 | | May 2026 | Cars.com | 450K | 3.3% | 5 | | Jun 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 32.3% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 26.5% | 2 | | Jun 2026 | Carvana | 3.4M | 26.5% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.9% | 4 | | Jun 2026 | Cars.com | 368K | 2.9% | 5 | | Jul 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 30.5% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | Carvana | 4.1M | 30.5% | 2 | | Jul 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 25% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.2% | 4 | | Jul 2026 | Cars.com | 368K | 2.7% | 5 | | Aug 2026 | CarMax | 4.1M | 30.3% | 1 | | Aug 2026 | Carvana | 4.1M | 30.3% | 2 | | Aug 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 24.9% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.1% | 4 | | Aug 2026 | Cars.com | 450K | 3.3% | 5 | | Sep 2026 | Carvana | 4.1M | 32.3% | 1 | | Sep 2026 | CarGurus | 3.4M | 26.5% | 2 | | Sep 2026 | CarMax | 3.4M | 26.5% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | Carfax | 1.5M | 11.9% | 4 | | Sep 2026 | Cars.com | 368K | 2.9% | 5 | ## What is being compared - **Carfax**: Measured on the search term “carfax”. - **CarGurus**: Measured on the search term “cargurus”. - **CarMax**: Measured on the search term “carmax”. - **Cars.com**: Measured on the search term “cars.com”. - **Carvana**: Measured on the search term “carvana”. - [Carfax](/demand/us/brands/carfax) - [CarGurus](/demand/us/brands/cargurus) - [CarMax](/demand/us/brands/carmax) - [Cars.com](/demand/us/brands/cars-com) - [Carvana](/demand/us/brands/carvana) ## Methodology - [How is branded search demand measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Which brand is most popular in search among car marketplaces in United States? In September 2026, Carvana was the most searched among car marketplaces in United States, with an estimated 4.1M branded searches and 32.3% estimated Share of Search within this set. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Car marketplaces in United States: Which are searched most?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/categories/us-car-marketplaces This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/categories/us-car-marketplaces. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.