How AI Search Is Recommending Auto Refinance Loans: Monthly Trends

Executive Summary

myAutoloan retains the lead in AI recommendation coverage at 46.9% in September 2026. The brand's series moved from 41.9% in July to 52.6% in August to 46.9% in September; the change from August sits within normal month-to-month variation for the brand, and myAutoloan is classified stable across the three-month series. LightStream holds second place at 42.9%, a 4.0-point gap behind the leader, with Capital One Auto Finance close behind at 37.2%; both are likewise classified stable.

RateGenius posted the largest significant month-over-month gain, rising 6.3 points from 10.7% in August to 17.0% in September, extending a two-month upward streak from its 10.1% July baseline. Auto Approve also posted a significant month-over-month gain, up 6.4 points from 10.5% in August to 16.9% in September, though the brand remains down 4.9 points from its July baseline of 21.8%. Caribou remains the standout riser across the full series, up 11.6 points from 21.8% in July to 33.4% in September.

The category is mixed: three brands are significant risers from baseline, three are significant decliners, and the remaining four are stable. LendingClub has now declined for two consecutive months, and the gap between Caribou and LendingClub has widened every month since July, from 4.4 points at baseline to 27.5 points in September.

The July 2026 baseline began with 800 prompt-surface observations (565 unique questions), including 800 brand or competitor mentions, narrowing to 643 relevant prompts and 157 irrelevant prompts, for a final qualified benchmark set of 587 observations. The September 2026 report month began with 800 prompt-surface observations (547 unique questions), including 800 brand or competitor mentions, narrowing to 681 relevant prompts and 119 irrelevant prompts, for a final qualified benchmark set of 623 observations. All brand-level percentages in this report use the qualified benchmark set as the denominator.

Key Findings

Benchmark Context

The report separates the raw collection universe from the qualified analysis set. Brand-level recommendation percentages are calculated within the qualified benchmark set only.

Benchmark-level aggregates summarize how the category behaved as a whole across the two measured months, separate from any single brand's standing. August 2026, with 420 qualified observations, was the smallest month in the series.

Benchmark-Level Metrics

AI Recommendation Trend

Leadership Is Stable at the Top While the Middle Tier Reorders

The three-month baseline-to-current comparison shows three significant risers (Caribou, RateGenius, RefiJet) and three significant decliners (Auto Approve, Gravity Lending, LendingClub), with the remaining four brands — Capital One Auto Finance, LightStream, myAutoloan, and OpenRoad Lending — holding stable positions within normal month-to-month variation. The middle tier is reordering even as the top three remain stable.

What Changed This Month

myAutoloan

myAutoloan holds the current lead in valid recommendation coverage, moving from 41.9% in July to 52.6% in August to 46.9% in September. The change from August sits within the brand's normal range of variation, and myAutoloan's position is classified stable across the three-month series.

myAutoloan's raw mention presence eased from 56.9% in August to 53.9% in September, while top-three rate moved from 27.9% to 23.4%. Rank-one rate rose slightly, from 3.8% to 5.8%, with 36 rank-one recommendations in September. The rank-one gains suggest the brand continues winning top placements even as its overall frequency moved within a normal range this month.

The leader retains the top position in the category across the series. The month-to-month movement is not large enough to be treated as a significant change, while the baseline comparison still shows net progress from July.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which prompt clusters or AI surfaces affected myAutoloan's recommendation frequency in September, and which brands captured any shifted placements?

Caribou

Caribou is the largest riser across the baseline-to-current series, with valid recommendation coverage up 11.6 points from 21.8% in July to 33.4% in September. The brand was essentially flat from August, down just 0.2 points from 33.6%.

Caribou's raw mention presence rose 13.2 points from 29.0% in July to 42.2% in September, a significant gain. Top-three rate rose from 8.5% to 13.8%. Rank-one rate moved from 1.7% to 3.2%, with 20 rank-one recommendations in September.

The distinction to notice: Caribou's presence expanded sharply while its coverage stabilized month over month. The brand is now being surfaced broadly, holding fourth place, but is not converting that presence into additional top placements at the same rate.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which evidence sources and AI surfaces now surface Caribou consistently, and what is preventing further rank-one gains?

RateGenius

RateGenius was the largest riser from the prior month, up 6.3 points from 10.7% in August to 17.0% in September. This extends a two-month upward streak, with baseline coverage of 10.1% in July.

RateGenius's top-three rate rose 2.7 points from 3.2% in July to 5.9% in September, a significant move. Raw mention presence rose 3.2 points from 19.6% to 22.8%. Rank-one rate was essentially flat, moving from 0.7% to 0.8%. Net sentiment improved from 0.6 to 0.8 across the series.

The brand moved from lower-tier territory into the mid tier. With 106 valid recommendations in September, up from 45 in August, RateGenius is being recommended more often and with more positive framing.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which prompt categories and surfaces drove the two-month climb, and is the gain sustainable across the full question set?

RefiJet

RefiJet holds at 18.3% in September, matching its August level and up 6.2 points from 12.1% in July. RefiJet is classified as a significant riser on the baseline comparison, with raw mention presence up 9.1 points from 15.8% to 24.9%.

Top-three rate rose 3.5 points from 4.4% to 7.9%, while rank-one rate declined slightly from 0.9% to 0.8%, with 5 rank-one recommendations in September. Net sentiment improved from 0.8 to 0.9.

The brand's coverage has risen significantly from baseline while its rank-one share has not followed at the same pace. RefiJet is appearing in recommendation shortlists more often but rarely as the single top pick, suggesting broader visibility without top-slot dominance.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which competitors hold the rank-one position when RefiJet is recommended, and what evidence supports those top placements?

LendingClub

LendingClub continues its decline, with valid recommendation coverage down 11.5 points from 17.4% in July to 5.9% in September. The brand has now declined for two consecutive months. Raw mention presence dropped 15.9 points from 24.2% to 8.3%.

Top-three rate fell 9.0 points from 10.6% to 1.6%, and rank-one rate fell 2.4 points from 2.6% to 0.2%, with just 1 rank-one recommendation in September. The brand recorded 37 valid recommendations, down from 102 in July.

The decline is broad-based across presence, coverage, and placement. LendingClub now sits at the bottom of the tracked set, and the gap between Caribou and LendingClub has widened every month since July.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which prompt categories and AI surfaces stopped surfacing LendingClub, and which competitors received those recommendations instead?

Auto Approve

Auto Approve rose 6.4 points from August to September, from 10.5% to 16.9%, but remains down 4.9 points from its July baseline of 21.8%. The August decline of 11.3 points was the largest single-month move in the brand's series.

Raw mention presence recovered to 21.0% in September, up from 13.8% in August but still below the July level of 25.6%. Rank-one rate rose from 1.4% in July to 1.8% in September, with 11 rank-one recommendations. Net sentiment remained stable at 0.9.

The recovery from August is real but partial. Auto Approve is back to mid-tier coverage after its sharp drop, though it has not returned to baseline levels.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which of the prompts lost in August are now returning to Auto Approve, and which remain with competitors?

Gravity Lending

Gravity Lending's valid recommendation coverage is down 5.5 points from 36.8% in July to 31.3% in September, a significant decline. The brand rose 0.8 points from August to September, from 30.5% to 31.3%.

Raw mention presence declined from 40.0% to 36.6%, while top-three rate moved from 19.8% to 17.8% and rank-one rate from 4.9% to 3.4%. Net sentiment remained high at 0.9.

Gravity Lending dropped from the top tier into the middle of the pack. The decline reflects being surfaced less often rather than being framed negatively, as sentiment stayed strong throughout.

Highest-priority diagnostic: Which AI surfaces shifted away from Gravity Lending, and which brands absorbed those placements?

Buyer-Intent Interpretation

All 623 qualified observations in September fell into the Brand Recommendation cluster. None qualified for Pricing & Value or Multi-Brand Comparison. This means the public benchmark can currently measure which providers AI systems recommend, but it cannot yet answer which provider is favored on price, value, or direct head-to-head comparisons. Those commercial questions require a deeper, company-level analysis.

Brand Opportunity Summary

The benchmark identifies where attention is warranted; a company-level analysis is needed to explain why.

Evidence Behind the Benchmark

The aggregate metrics are built from prompt-level observations — query, surface, recommendation outcome, rank, sentiment, and citations where exposed. Company-level analysis can go deeper into prompt, competitor, surface, and evidence patterns. Source presence in the benchmark is not by itself treated as proof of causation.

Related methodology resources:

• AI Industry Market Discovery Methodology
• AI Industry Market Discovery Metrics
• AI Industry Market Discovery Standards

Report-Specific Interpretation Notes

• Movement between months identifies changes worth investigating; it does not by itself establish the cause of those changes.
• The qualified benchmark set (623 observations in September) is the denominator for all brand-level percentages; raw collection volume was higher.
• Small counts (for example, LendingClub at 37 valid recommendations and a 0.2% rank-one rate) mean single-digit shifts can produce large percentage movements.
• The August 2026 month had a smaller qualified set of 420 observations; comparisons across all three months should account for that variation.
• This analysis is intended to flag where attention is warranted, not to diagnose why a change occurred.

Next Step

The Public Benchmark Shows Where a Brand Is Winning or Losing. A Company-Level Audit Shows Why.

Beneath the aggregate percentage sit the questions that matter for strategy: which high-intent prompts is a brand winning, which competitor takes the recommendation when a brand loses, what attributes do AI systems associate with each option, and which external sources shape those answers. The public benchmark can show the "what" of visibility; it cannot yet answer the "why."

A company-specific AI visibility audit maps those prompt, surface, competitor, ranking, sentiment, and evidence-source patterns into a prioritized visibility strategy, turning the benchmark's signals into an actionable plan.

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