LendingTree
LendingTree operates a U.S. online financial services marketplace that connects consumers with a network of 700+ lenders, insurers, and credit card issuers, monetizing through lead-generation and referral fees across lending and insurance verticals.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1996
- HeadquartersCharlotte, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What LendingTree does
LendingTree is a U.S.-based online financial services marketplace operator, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and listed on NASDAQ under the ticker TREE. The company runs a self-serve, two-sided platform connecting consumers with a network of 700+ lenders, insurers, and financial product providers across mortgages, personal loans, auto loans, business loans, home equity products, credit cards, and insurance. Its core technology is a multi-lender comparison engine that lets users complete a single questionnaire and receive competing offers side-by-side without an initial hard credit pull; CardIQ extends this with soft-pull credit card matching and LendingTree Spring provides ongoing credit monitoring. Revenue is generated on a lead-generation and referral/affiliate basis: the marketplace is free to consumers, and lenders pay for qualified leads and matched customers.
The business spans the core LendingTree marketplace plus wholly owned subsidiaries including QuoteWizard (insurance comparison, the engine behind LendingTree's largest growth vertical), CompareCards, DepositAccounts, MagnifyMoney, ValuePenguin, and SnapCap. Operationally it is capital-light and highly digital — approximately 430 employees generate $1.12B in FY2025 revenue, with a digital distribution model anchored in SEO-driven content and organic search. LendingTree monetizes through marketplace commissions from lenders and insurance carriers, with economics tied to consumer intent data and lender competition rather than balance-sheet lending.
Most recently the company has reported record financial results, including Q1 2026 revenue of $327.3M (+37% YoY), Adjusted EBITDA of $42M (+71% YoY), and raised FY2026 guidance to $1.300-$1.350B, while deleveraging net debt from 3.4x to 2.1x and earning an S&P upgrade to B+ stable. Insurance (now the largest segment) grew 51% YoY, offsetting cyclical pressure in mortgage lead generation. Leadership transitioned in early 2026 following founder Doug Lebda's passing, with Scott Peyree elevated to CEO, Ian Smith promoted to COO, and Laura Nelson leading insurance. The company has also redirected investment toward AI-powered consumer tools via Snowflake Cortex Code agents and an internal automation push that included a 24-person workforce reduction.
LendingTree firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- LendingTree
- Legal name
- LendingTree, LLC
- Website
- https://lendingtree.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1996
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- LendingTree operates a U.S. online financial services marketplace that connects consumers with a network of 700+ lenders, insurers, and credit card issuers, monetizing through lead-generation and referral fees across lending and insurance verticals.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
LendingTree industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Consumer Lending Marketplace
- NAICS
- Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310), Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)
- SIC
- Loan Brokers (6163)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Personal Loan & Unsecured Credit Intermediation (FSAEAEAM)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Wholesale Mortgage Lending (Broker Channel) (FSALACAA), Alternative Data & Credit Scoring (Cashflow, Telco, Utility, Open Banking) (FSAGAHAC), Multi-Loan / Multi-Creditor Consolidation Loans (FSAKAIAD)
Keywords
Where LendingTree is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Charlotte
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
LendingTree business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations
Revenue model
- Lead Generation / Referral Fees: LendingTree generates revenue by matching consumers with lenders and financial service providers. Lenders pay for qualified leads and customer referrals, creating a transaction-based revenue stream. The company states it is compensated by companies whose listings appear on its site.
- Affiliate/Referral Revenue: The platform receives compensation when consumers connect with partner lenders and financial products including mortgages, personal loans, auto loans, insurance, and credit cards. This affiliate model drives the majority of revenue.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free consumer marketplace access |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
LendingTree product offering
Product offeringCore offering
LendingTree operates a free online financial services marketplace connecting consumers with a network of over 300 lenders who compete for their business. Consumers complete brief questionnaires and receive up to 5 personalized offers across mortgages, personal loans, auto loans, business loans, credit cards, and insurance products. The company generates revenue by collecting lead generation and referral fees from lenders, not from charging consumers.
Product overview
LendingTree operates as a multi-product online financial services marketplace with a platform-plus-portfolio architecture. The core LendingTree.com marketplace connects consumers with 300+ lenders for personal loans, auto loans, business loans, mortgages (home purchase and refinance), home equity products (loans and HELOCs), and credit cards. The platform is complemented by insurance comparison verticals (car, home, renters, health) through the QuoteWizard subsidiary, credit monitoring via LendingTree Spring, and additional sub-brands including DepositAccounts, MagnifyMoney, CompareCards, ValuePenguin, and SnapCap. The company generates revenue by matching consumers with lenders and收取广告推广费用。
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Spring: LendingTree's credit score monitoring and financial health platform offering free credit scores, loan tracking, and personalized offers.
- CardIQ
Products and services
- LendingTree Marketplace Core online financial services marketplace platform enabling consumers to complete a single questionnaire and receive up to 5 personalized offers from competing lenders across multiple product categories. Free for consumers; revenue is generated through lead generation fees paid by lender partners.
- Personal Loans Marketplace vertical for comparing unsecured personal loans, debt consolidation loans, quick loans, bad credit personal loans, and cosigned personal loans from multiple lenders.
- Auto Loans Marketplace vertical for new and used auto purchase loans, auto refinance, car lease buyout loans, RV loans, boat loans, motorcycle loans, and powersport loans.
- Business Loans Marketplace vertical for small business lending including term loans, business lines of credit, working capital loans, equipment financing, SBA loans, and payroll loans.
- Home Purchase Mortgages Marketplace vertical for comparing home purchase mortgage rates and terms including conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, ARM, jumbo, investment property, land, 30-year, and 15-year mortgages.
- Home Refinance Marketplace vertical for mortgage refinance and cash-out refinance loans to allow homeowners to access better rates or tap home equity.
- Home Equity Loans and HELOCs Marketplace vertical combining home equity lump-sum loans and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), including high-LTV and debt consolidation variants.
- Car Insurance Marketplace vertical for comparing auto insurance quotes from multiple carriers, including state-specific offerings and coverage type comparisons.
- Home Insurance Marketplace vertical for comparing homeowners insurance quotes and coverage from multiple carriers.
- Renters Insurance Marketplace vertical for comparing renters insurance policies and quotes from multiple carriers.
- Health Insurance Marketplace vertical for comparing health insurance plans from multiple carriers.
- Credit Cards Marketplace vertical for comparing credit cards by category (travel, cash back, balance transfer, rewards, low interest, airline, no annual fee) with personalized matching via CardIQ soft credit pull technology.
- LendingTree Spring Sub-brand offering free credit score monitoring, debt tracking, loan tracking, and personalized financial product offers via web and mobile app.
- QuoteWizard Insurance Comparison Wholly-owned subsidiary brand providing insurance quote comparison platform for auto, home, and other insurance products.
- CardIQ Credit Card Matching Sub-product offering personalized credit card recommendations using soft credit pull technology that does not impact consumer credit scores.
- DepositAccounts Banking Comparison Wholly-owned subsidiary platform for comparing savings accounts, CDs, and checking accounts from banks and credit unions.
- MagnifyMoney Personal Finance Content Wholly-owned subsidiary providing personal finance research, education content, and product comparison tools.
- CompareCards Credit Card Reviews Wholly-owned subsidiary offering credit card comparison, reviews, and educational content.
- ValuePenguin Financial Research Wholly-owned subsidiary providing financial research and rate comparison across banking, insurance, and lending products.
- SnapCap Business Lending Wholly-owned subsidiary operating a small business lending platform offering various financing options to small business owners.
Quantifiable outcome
- Borrowers who choose the lowest available rate over the highest could save an average of $62,572 over the life of a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use LendingTree
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
LendingTree technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
LendingTree partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators10 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
LendingTree competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- NerdWallet: Public financial product comparison marketplace operating across credit cards, mortgages, personal loans, insurance, and banking products with a similar SEO/content-driven consumer model. Most directly comparable peer by business model and product breadth.
- Bankrate: Long-standing financial comparison site covering mortgages, credit cards, banking, and insurance with a content-and-lead-gen model directly overlapping LendingTree's core marketplace mechanics.
- Credit Karma: Owned by Intuit; operates a free credit-score-led consumer platform that matches users to credit cards, loans, and insurance products. Closely comparable on consumer acquisition motion and lender monetization.
- Policygenius: Insurance comparison marketplace (life, home, auto, disability) acquired by Zillow; overlaps directly with LendingTree's QuoteWizard insurance vertical and competes for the same carrier relationships.
- Credible: Multi-product financial comparison marketplace originally focused on student loans, now spanning mortgages, personal loans, and refinancing. Comparable consumer-facing loan-aggregation model and lender-network economics.
Broad incumbents
- Rocket Companies: Vertically integrated mortgage and personal-loan giant (Rocket Mortgage, Rocket Loans) that competes for both consumer demand and lender-of-record economics, a broader incumbent that can disintermediate aggregators.
- SoFi Technologies: Broadly diversified consumer fintech offering personal loans, mortgages, credit cards, banking, and investing with a direct-to-consumer brand that competes for the same LendingTree-served customer segments.
Emerging players
- SelectQuote: Direct-to-consumer insurance comparison and lead-generation platform focused primarily on life and senior-market health products. Comparable on insurance lead-gen economics even if narrower in product scope than QuoteWizard.
- Insurance.com: Insurance comparison marketplace aggregating auto, home, and life carriers with similar consumer funnels to LendingTree's car/home insurance flow; an emerging, narrower-scope peer in the insurance vertical.
Regional players
- MoneySupermarket Group: UK-listed financial price comparison platform covering insurance, mortgages, loans, and credit cards with the same lead-generation/marketplace economics as LendingTree, but operating in the UK rather than the U.S.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
LendingTree social profiles
Digital presenceLendingTree financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
LendingTree leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles15 records
LendingTree subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries6 records
LendingTree funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
LendingTree M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A12 records
Investments3 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about LendingTree
What does LendingTree do?
LendingTree operates a free online financial services marketplace connecting consumers with a network of over 300 lenders who compete for their business. Consumers complete brief questionnaires and receive up to 5 personalized offers across mortgages, personal loans, auto loans, business loans, credit cards, and insurance products. The company generates revenue by collecting lead generation and referral fees from lenders, not from charging consumers.
Is LendingTree a public or private company?
LendingTree is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was LendingTree founded?
LendingTree was founded in 1996. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is LendingTree based?
LendingTree is headquartered in Charlotte, United States, in the North America region.
How does LendingTree make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Lead Generation / Referral Fees are the primary driver. The others are affiliate/Referral Revenue.
Who are LendingTree's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are NerdWallet, Bankrate, Credit Karma, Policygenius and Credible. Broad incumbents are Rocket Companies and SoFi Technologies. Emerging players are SelectQuote and Insurance.com. MoneySupermarket Group is listed as a regional player.
Does LendingTree have an API?
No public API is recorded for LendingTree.
What industry is LendingTree in?
LendingTree's product category is Online Consumer Lending Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAEAEAM, Personal Loan & Unsecured Credit Intermediation, with a secondary code of FSALACAA, Wholesale Mortgage Lending (Broker Channel). Its NAICS code is 522310 and its SIC code is 6163.