Consumers are increasingly choosing Anthropic’s Claude over ChatGPT, according to trend data from Indagari, a credit card transaction analysis company. This suggests Claude is not just popular with tech-savvy developers but also mainstream users.

The trend is evident across multiple metrics: payments for Claude subscriptions and API tokens have grown by 75% since January 2026. Further, interest in Claude among DataCamp’s user base has surged, with it becoming the most searched term on the platform even outperforming 'AI'.

While ChatGPT still dominates consumer markets, Claude is making strides. Courses related to Claude are gaining popularity at a staggering rate, three times that of ChatGPT among self-directed consumers. Demand for Claude courses has increased 18 times in the last 30 days alone.

However, challenges lie ahead. The U.S. government has banned Anthropic from allowing its powerful models to be used by non-Americans, causing them to withdraw these models temporarily from the market. Despite this setback, data indicates continued growth for Claude among both consumers and enterprise users.

The battle between these AIs is far from over, and as both Anthropic and OpenAI prepare for potential public listings, the stakes are high. The coming months will reveal whether Claude can truly rival or even surpass ChatGPT’s consumer appeal.