Brandwave

College Ave vs SoFi:Which is searched more in the United States?

In September 2026, College Ave had more branded searches than SoFi among student loan lenders in the United States. College Ave had about 60,500 branded searches, while SoFi had 9,900. College Ave made up 18.3% of all student loan lender searches we track, and SoFi accounted for 3%.

Share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States in September 2026Is College Ave or SoFi more popular in search?
College Ave18.3%60.5K searches
vs
SoFi3%9.9K searches

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Is College Ave or SoFi more popular in search?

Compare the lenders that offer 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.

College Ave and SoFi among student loan lenders in the United States, by month

Share of searches by month for College Ave, SoFi. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthSallie MaeCollege AveSoFiEarnestAscentCitizens
Oct 202575.3%18.5%3%1.3%1.1%0.73%
Nov 202574.4%18.3%3.7%1.3%1.3%0.89%
Dec 202573.5%18.1%4.4%1.6%1.3%1.1%
Jan 202674%18.2%3.6%2%1.1%1.1%
Feb 202674%18.2%3.6%2%1.1%1.1%
Mar 202676.8%15.4%3.8%1.7%1.4%0.92%
Apr 202677%15.5%3.1%2.1%1.4%0.92%
May 202673.7%18.1%4.4%1.6%1.3%0.87%
Jun 202672.7%17.9%4.4%2.4%1.3%1.3%
Jul 202668.4%20.6%3.4%3.4%2.8%1.5%
Aug 202670.3%21%2.3%2.8%2.3%1.3%
Sep 202674.5%18.3%3%2%1.3%0.88%

How has the College Ave and SoFi comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for United States student loan lenders in September 2026?

2 changes
  1. In September 2026, SoFi overtook Earnest and Ascent to rank 3rd among student loan lenders in the United States, with 3% of the searches.

  2. In September 2026, College Ave lost share of searches among student loan lenders in the United States, from 21% to 18.3%.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using College Ave’s and SoFi’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.

College Ave

1 branded search term

  • college ave

SoFi

1 branded search term

  • sofi student loan refinance

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among student loan lenders

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Put your own brand in this comparison

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