# Cars Commerce

> Cars Commerce is the public automotive technology company behind Cars.com, Dealer Inspire, AccuTrade, DealerClub and an in-market media network. It attracts shoppers with listings, reviews and editorial research, then sells dealerships and automakers subscription software, advertising, websites, appraisal tools and wholesale infrastructure intended to carry a vehicle from discovery through trade-in and resale.

- **Founded:** 1998
- **Headquarters:** Chicago, United States
- **Founders:** Mitch Golub (Founding president and first employee), William Swislow (Founding editorial leader), Alex Vetter (Co-founder and early executive)
- **Team size:** Approximately 1,700 employees as of December 31, 2025
- **Products:** Cars.com Marketplace, Dealer Inspire, AccuTrade, Cars Commerce Media Network, D2C Media
- **Notable:** Cars.com has operated since 1998 and became a standalone NYSE-listed company in 2017., The platform recorded 627 million visits and 25.7 million average monthly unique visitors in 2025., Cars Commerce reported $723.2 million in 2025 revenue and $211 million in adjusted EBITDA.

## Products & services

- **Cars.com Marketplace** — Consumer vehicle listings, reviews, editorial research, financing and seller tools that connect shoppers with local dealers.
- **Dealer Inspire** — Dealer websites, digital retailing, messaging and automotive marketing services integrated with the marketplace.
- **AccuTrade** — VIN-specific trade-in appraisal, acquisition and inventory-management software with market data and diagnostic inputs.
- **Cars Commerce Media Network** — Audience-targeted display, social, search, video and custom media products for dealers, OEMs and automotive-adjacent brands.
- **D2C Media** — Canadian dealership websites and digital marketing services acquired to extend the platform in Canada.
- **DealerClub** — A reputation-based dealer-to-dealer digital wholesale auction connected to AccuTrade.
- **Carson** — A multilingual conversational AI search assistant that maps natural-language needs to relevant Cars.com inventory.
- **AccuTrade IMS** — An inventory-management system combining appraisals, risk scoring, profit forecasting, merchandising and retail-or-wholesale exit options.
- **VIN-specific AI video** — Automated video advertising that turns dealer photos and vehicle data into inventory-specific creative targeted with marketplace demand signals.

## Achievements

- Cars.com has operated since 1998 and became a standalone NYSE-listed company in 2017.
- The platform recorded 627 million visits and 25.7 million average monthly unique visitors in 2025.
- Cars Commerce reported $723.2 million in 2025 revenue and $211 million in adjusted EBITDA.
- Cars.com held more than 13 million consumer reviews and millions of vehicle listings.
- Nearly 70% of marketplace traffic arrived organically in 2025, according to company investor materials.
- Cars Commerce served 19,544 dealer customers at the end of 2025.
- The company was included in U.S. News & World Report's 2024 Best Companies to Work For list and multiple Built In Chicago workplace lists.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — Cars.com published its 2026 American-Made Index and a companion affordability guide.
- **2026-06** — Sarah Kettler joined as chief marketing officer after a decade in marketing and communications leadership at SeatGeek.
- **2026-05** — First-quarter revenue rose 1% year over year to $180.2 million; dealer customers reached 19,390 and the company outlined new Carson and dealer-app integrations.
- **2026-04** — Cars.com reported early results from VIN-specific AI video ads, including a 47% lift in influenced vehicle sales for the measured campaign.
- **2026-02** — Cars Commerce announced a DealerCloud CRM pilot with Del Grande Dealer Group and Salesforce and launched AccuTrade IMS.
- **2026-01** — Tobias Hartmann became chief executive officer, succeeding Alex Vetter.
- **2025-11** — Cars.com launched Carson, its multilingual conversational AI shopping assistant.

## Links

- Website: https://www.carscommerce.inc/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cars-commerce/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/Cars_Commerce
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@carscommerce
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/carscommerce
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarsCommerce/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/cars-commerce
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-13