As they race to become public companies, Uber is bigger but Lyft is friendlier.

That's according to a new survey of 1,062 U.S. consumers conducted by investment firm Raymond James.

The report, published Monday, found Uber is the most popular ride-hailing app with 60 percent of market share, compared to Lyft's 23 percent. But one-third of respondents picked Lyft for its driver friendliness and brand image, compared to one-fourth who picked Uber for those parameters.

Lyft customers were also more loyal; it was the top choice among users who take at least two trips with ride-hailing apps per month.

"While Lyft trails Uber in share, it does have a highly engaged user base - we found that Lyft users actually use the service more frequently than Uber users," the report said.

The research comes as both companies are racing to list as public companies next year. Uber reportedly filed confidential paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week for an initial public offering (IPO) that could put the ride-hailing giant's valuation at $120 billion. Lyft also filed a confidential paperwork for an IPO last week. The offering is expected to exceed the $15.1 billion valuation Lyft posted in June.

Uber declined to comment on its potential IPO when contacted by CNBC. Lyft issued a press release that confirmed the confidential filing but did not specify the number of shares to be offered or the price range.