United Kingdom, June 2026
Which brands lead personal loans in AI search in the United Kingdom?
first direct leads what AI recommends for personal loans in the UK, but 31% of the citations go to affiliate and comparison sites rather than the providers.
A snapshot of who AI is recommending right now, not a fixed ranking.
The exact prompt we asked
I want a personal loan in the UK with a low rate. Which lenders have the best personal loan rates right now? Give me a ranked top five of named lenders, each with the representative APR and a one-line reason.
Asked to ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews, up to 100 times each. Everything below is measured from their answers.
The short answer
There is no single AI favourite for personal loans in the UK. ChatGPT picks first direct but only 15% of the time, Gemini leads with TSB at 42%, and Google AI Overviews picks M&S Bank 74% of the time. The three engines agree on 60% of their top five, sharing Tesco Bank, TSB and M&S Bank.
How consistent is the answer?
ChatGPT
Gemini
Google AI OverviewsDo the engines agree?
ChatGPTGeminiGoogle AI Overviews
M&S Bank
Tesco Bank
TSB
Nationwide
first direct
Lloyds Bank
HSBC
SantanderEach cell shows where an engine ranks that brand. Blue rows are the brands every engine puts in its top five.
Recommendation share of voice
Which brands AI names
Share of runs each brand was named, by engine. Google showed an AI Overview in 91% of searches; its bars are measured over the runs where one appeared.
ChatGPT
first direct21%Tesco Bank20%TSB10%Lloyds Bank8%M&S Bank8%HSBC6%
Novuna6%Nationwide4%
Halifax4%
MBNA3%Gemini
M&S Bank100%Nationwide90%Tesco Bank79%TSB76%HSBC50%Santander47%first direct42%Novuna8%
Zopa1%Google AI Overviews
M&S Bank97%Tesco Bank93%Nationwide68%TSB57%Santander48%Zopa15%Novuna11%HSBC4%MBNA3%Who wins the citations
What kind of sites get cited
This is what AI links to as its sources, which is not the same as the brands it names above. AI often recommends a provider by name but sends the citation to a publisher or affiliate instead, so “First-party brand” means a link to the provider’s own website. Here is the mix by engine.
ChatGPTGeminiGoogle AI OverviewsWhat the answers are really about
The themes behind the recommendations
Looking past the brand names, these are the concepts and buyer intent the AI answers kept returning to for this product. Each finding starts with what the engines foreground, then what it means for you.
UK personal loan answers are built around the representative APR and the reality that most applicants may not get it.
Representative APR is only a best case
Answers stress that the representative APR is guaranteed to just over half of accepted applicants. Buyers learn the advertised rate may not be theirs, which rewards honest rate framing.
Your credit score sets the offer
The models tie the actual rate to credit score and history. Lenders that explain how credit affects the offer align with the AI's framing rather than only advertising the floor.
Loyalty perks are a differentiator
Answers flag member and loyalty rates, such as supermarket cardholder discounts. Buyers are shown that existing relationships can lower the rate, so lenders with loyalty pricing get noted.
Questions
People also ask
Which brands lead personal loans in AI search in the UK?
It depends on the engine. ChatGPT leans to first direct, Gemini to TSB, and Google AI Overviews to M&S Bank.
How consistent is AI when you ask for the best Personal loans?
Moderately consistent. The engines share 60% of their top five, with Tesco Bank, TSB and M&S Bank common across them.
What kind of websites does AI cite for Personal loans?
Brand-owned sites lead at 48%, followed by affiliate pages at 33% and editorial at 10%.
More reports
Other United Kingdom products in AI search
Want this for your brand?
We track AI recommendations every month across the US, UK and Australia. Talk to us about regular monitoring or a custom AI search study for the products and prompts that matter to you.