Canstar
Canstar is an Australian financial product comparison platform founded in 1991, serving Australian and New Zealand consumers with expert Star Ratings, side-by-side comparison tools, and educational content across banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and mobile categories, monetized via provider referral and sponsorship fees.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1991
- HeadquartersBrisbane, Australia
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Canstar does
Canstar is an Australian financial product comparison platform founded in 1991 that serves consumers in Australia and New Zealand. The company aggregates and compares more than a thousand financial products across over 20 verticals, including home loans, personal loans, car loans, credit cards, home, car, health, life, travel and pet insurance, transaction and savings accounts, superannuation, share trading and ETFs, energy (electricity, gas, solar), and mobile and internet plans. The platform operates as a self-serve digital comparison destination, enabling consumers to research, compare and access financial product providers without sales intervention.
The core platform is built around Canstar's proprietary Star Ratings methodology, an expert rating framework that evaluates products on value rather than price alone, and a separate Awards system recognizing category leaders. Supporting consumer tools include the Canstar mobile app (rate alerts, credit score checks, on-the-go comparison), a free Credit Score Checker, Interest Rate Alerts that notify users of home loan and savings rate changes, and a suite of financial calculators covering mortgages, personal loans, car loans, term deposits and income tax. Real-time quote comparison has been deployed in verticals such as travel insurance, integrating multiple providers. Distribution is driven primarily by organic SEO, a deep evergreen content library, earned media coverage across major Australian outlets, and an active social media presence on Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.
Canstar uses a freemium consumer model with all comparison tools, ratings, and quote generation free to use; revenue is generated entirely from financial product providers. Two streams dominate: referral fees paid when users are referred through comparison tables, and sponsorship or promotion fees paid by providers seeking prominent placement, with sponsorship fees varying by provider, position and revenue model and explicitly not influencing Star Ratings. The company operates as CANSTAR Pty Limited (ABN 21 053 646 165), is privately held, employs 51-100 people, and runs a parallel New Zealand platform under the Canstar NZ brand.
Canstar firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Canstar
- Legal name
- CANSTAR Pty Limited
- Website
- https://canstar.com.au
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1991
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Canstar is an Australian financial product comparison platform founded in 1991, serving Australian and New Zealand consumers with expert Star Ratings, side-by-side comparison tools, and educational content across banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and mobile categories, monetized via provider referral and sponsorship fees.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Canstar industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Financial Product Comparison Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Lead Generation, Comparison & Marketplace Platforms (Financial Products) (FSAEAMAM)
Keywords
Where Canstar is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Brisbane
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
Canstar business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Provider Referral Fees: Canstar receives fees from financial product providers when users are referred through the website comparison tables and product listings.
- Sponsorship and Promotion Fees: Product providers pay sponsorship or promotion fees to feature prominently on the Canstar website, with fees varying by provider, website position, and revenue model. These fees do not influence Star Ratings.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free consumer comparison platform |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Canstar product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Canstar operates a free financial product comparison platform that aggregates and compares over 1,000 brands and products across banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and mobile categories for Australian and New Zealand consumers. The platform uses proprietary Star Ratings methodology to evaluate products based on value rather than just price, supported by comparison tools, calculators, and editorial content. Revenue is generated through referral fees when users are referred to providers and sponsorship fees paid by financial product providers for prominent placement.
Product overview
Canstar is a financial product comparison platform offering a unified website with multiple comparison verticals and consumer tools. The core offering is the Canstar Website Platform which aggregates and compares over a thousand financial products across banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and telecommunications categories. Supporting the platform are consumer-facing tools including the Canstar App (mobile application), Canstar Account (personalized user accounts), Credit Score Checker (free credit scoring), Interest Rate Alerts (rate change notifications), and Financial Calculators (mortgage, loan, and tax calculators). The platform uses expert Star Ratings & Awards methodology to rate products across comparison verticals including Home Loans, Personal Loans, Credit Cards, Insurance Products (home, car, health, life, travel, pet), Banking Products, Superannuation & Investing, Energy, and Mobile & Internet.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Canstar App: Mobile application providing interest rate alerts, credit score checks, and financial comparison tools
Products and services
- Canstar Comparison Platform Free online platform that aggregates and compares over 1,000 financial product brands across banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and mobile categories, using proprietary Star Ratings methodology to help Australian and New Zealand consumers make informed financial decisions.
- Canstar App Mobile application providing on-the-go access to comparison tools, interest rate alerts, credit score checks, and financial product comparisons for Australian consumers.
- Canstar Account Personalized user account for managing saved comparisons, alerts, and financial product research on the Canstar platform.
- Credit Score Checker Free credit score checking tool that allows users to discover how banks view their creditworthiness without affecting their credit score.
- Interest Rate Alerts Free notification tool that tracks home loan and savings rate changes, alerting users when rates change.
- Financial Calculators Suite of free calculators including mortgage calculator, home loan borrowing calculator, car loan calculator, personal loan repayment calculator, term deposit calculator, and income tax calculator.
- Star Ratings & Awards Canstar's expert rating system that analyzes and rates financial products to identify outstanding value for consumers across various categories including banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and telecommunications.
- Home Loans Comparison Comparison tool for home loans including refinance, fixed rate, variable rate, offset accounts, first home buyer, investment property, and construction loans across Australian lenders.
- Personal Loans Comparison Comparison tool for personal loans including low interest, unsecured, fast, debt consolidation, self-employed, green loans, and specialty loans (motorcycle, caravan, boat).
- Car Loans Comparison Comparison tool for car loans including used car loans, new car loans, refinancing, secured loans, green loans, and pre-approval options.
- Credit Cards Comparison Comparison tool for credit cards including rewards, frequent flyer (Qantas, Velocity), balance transfer, low rate, travel insurance, airport lounge access, and business cards.
- Insurance Comparison Comparison tools across multiple insurance verticals including home and contents, car, health, life, travel, and pet insurance from Australian providers.
- Banking Comparison Comparison tools for transaction accounts, savings accounts, term deposits, business accounts, and international money transfers from Australian banks.
- Superannuation & Investing Comparison Comparison tools for super funds, self-managed super funds (SMSF), share trading platforms, ETFs, managed funds, and cryptocurrency.
- Energy Comparison Comparison tools for electricity, gas, solar, and business energy plans across Australian states.
- Mobile & Internet Comparison Comparison tools for mobile plans (SIM only, prepaid, 5G, eSIM) and internet plans (NBN, home wireless, phone and internet bundles).
Companies that use Canstar
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Canstar technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Canstar partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- 1Cover Travel Insurancecore1Cover is listed as an Online Partner on Canstar's travel insurance comparison platform. Providers pay referral fees to Canstar when users are referred through comparison tables.
- Fast CovercoreFast Cover is listed as an Online Partner on Canstar's travel insurance comparison platform, offering comprehensive and frequent traveller policies.
- PassportCardcorePassportCard is listed as an Online Partner on Canstar's travel insurance comparison platform, recognized with multiple Outstanding Value Awards.
- Southern Cross Travel InsurancecoreSouthern Cross Travel Insurance is an Online Partner on Canstar's platform, offering cruise and international travel coverage.
- World2CovercoreWorld2Cover is an Online Partner offering travel insurance on Canstar's comparison platform, with age limits for policies.
- Tick Travel InsurancecoreTick Travel Insurance is listed as an Online Partner on Canstar's travel insurance comparison platform.
- Travel ProtectcoreTravel Protect is an Online Partner offering cruise, domestic, and international travel insurance on Canstar's platform.
- WAS InsurancecoreWAS Insurance (Wise and Silent) is an Online Partner offering cruise, domestic, and international travel insurance.
- Zoom Travel InsurancecoreZoom Travel Insurance is an Online Partner on Canstar's platform, offering international and senior travel coverage.
- Butter InsurancecoreButter Insurance is listed as an Online Partner on Canstar's travel insurance comparison platform.
- InsureandGocoreInsureandGo is an Online Partner on Canstar's platform offering Gold travel insurance policies.
- ReadySet InsurancecoreReadySet Insurance is an Online Partner offering single and multi-trip policies on Canstar's platform.
- Qantas InsurancecoreQantas Insurance is an Online Partner on Canstar's platform, recognized with Outstanding Value Award for domestic travel insurance.
- MedibankminorMedibank is listed as a travel insurance provider on Canstar's comparison platform.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Canstar competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Finder: Finder is a leading Australian and global financial product comparison platform operating across banking, insurance, energy, and telco. It is the most directly comparable Australian competitor to Canstar with the same affiliate-referral and sponsorship-driven business model.
- RateCity: RateCity is an Australian financial comparison platform now owned by Canstar following its 2021 acquisition. It was a direct competitor across home loans, credit cards, and deposits and remains a relevant peer for category-level benchmarking.
- Compare the Market: Compare the Market is a major Australian financial and insurance comparison aggregator. It competes head-to-head with Canstar in insurance, home loans, and credit cards using a similar provider-fee monetization model.
Regional players
- InfoChoice: InfoChoice is an Australian financial product comparison site covering savings accounts, term deposits, credit cards, and home loans. It is a regional peer with overlapping product verticals and provider referral economics.
- Choice: Choice is an Australian consumer advocacy and product review organization covering banking, insurance, and household services. It is an adjacent regional peer that competes with Canstar for consumer trust and editorial authority on financial products.
- Savings.com.au: Savings.com.au is an Australian comparison and coupon platform covering banking, insurance, and retail offers. It is an adjacent regional player that overlaps with Canstar in financial product comparison.
Broad incumbents
- MoneySupermarket Group: MoneySupermarket is a publicly listed UK comparison platform covering financial services, insurance, energy, and travel. It is a broad incumbent demonstrating the mature comparison-platform model and the category breadth Canstar could pursue.
- NerdWallet: NerdWallet is a US financial comparison and advice platform monetized via provider referral fees. Its content-led, SEO-driven consumer acquisition approach closely parallels Canstar's PLG motion.
- GoCompare: GoCompare is a UK financial and insurance comparison platform with a similar provider-fee and affiliate model. It serves as a useful proxy for how a comparison platform monetizes at scale across multiple consumer financial verticals.
- Credit Karma: Credit Karma is a global consumer finance platform offering free credit scores and financial product comparisons. It shares Canstar's freemium consumer model and provider referral mechanics, particularly in credit cards and loans.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Canstar social profiles
Digital presenceCanstar financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Canstar leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Canstar funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Canstar M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Canstar
What does Canstar do?
Canstar operates a free financial product comparison platform that aggregates and compares over 1,000 brands and products across banking, insurance, superannuation, energy, and mobile categories for Australian and New Zealand consumers. The platform uses proprietary Star Ratings methodology to evaluate products based on value rather than just price, supported by comparison tools, calculators, and editorial content. Revenue is generated through referral fees when users are referred to providers and sponsorship fees paid by financial product providers for prominent placement.
Is Canstar a public or private company?
Canstar is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Canstar founded?
Canstar was founded in 1991. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Canstar based?
Canstar is headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does Canstar make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Provider Referral Fees are the primary driver. The others are sponsorship and Promotion Fees.
Who are Canstar's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Finder, RateCity and Compare the Market. Regional players are InfoChoice, Choice and Savings.com.au. Broad incumbents are MoneySupermarket Group, NerdWallet, GoCompare and Credit Karma.
Does Canstar have an API?
No public API is recorded for Canstar.
What industry is Canstar in?
Canstar's product category is Financial Product Comparison Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAEAMAM, Lead Generation, Comparison & Marketplace Platforms (Financial Products).