Most Searched Things on Google in 2026

In 2026, Google search behavior is being shaped by three major forces: live sports, everyday utility, and platform-driven discovery.

Across the global and trending lists, sports dominate the search landscape. The IPL is the standout story, ranking as the top global and top trending search, with search volume far ahead of every other query. Basketball, football, baseball, cricket, and major leagues also appear throughout the top 100, showing how live competition continues to generate massive, recurring search demand.

At the same time, familiar utility searches still hold their ground. Queries like “maps,” “weather,” and “news” remain among the most searched terms, proving that Google continues to function as an everyday tool for practical, high-frequency needs.

The data also shows how search is increasingly used as a gateway to platforms and content destinations. YouTube is the most common traffic leader across the global, US, and trending lists, while sites like Instagram, NBA.com, Gemini, and league-specific domains capture demand depending on the query. In the US, AI also stands out more clearly, with “gemini” ranking as the top search and “gemini ai” appearing in the top 25.

Using Similarweb’s data, I analyzed the top 100 Google searches globally, in the US, and across trending terms to understand what people are searching for, where that demand is going, and which topics are driving attention in 2026.

What are the most popular Google searches worldwide?

Here’s a sneak peek into the full list of the top 1,000 Google searches, which you can download below.

Key stats

• Top searched keyword: ipl
• Search volume (for #1): ~607.9M
• Top traffic leader (for #1): iplt20.com
• Total volume (Top 100): ~3.40B searches
• Most common traffic leader (Top 100): youtube.com
• Unique traffic leaders (Top 100): 53

Takeaway

• Cricket is now commanding global search behavior, with “ipl” far outpacing every other query, reflecting the massive and growing scale of cricket fandom across South Asia and beyond.
• Navigation and utility queries like “maps” and “weather” remain fixtures in the top five, confirming that everyday practical intent still anchors a significant share of global search volume.
• Sports continues to dominate the top 100, with cricket, football, basketball, and baseball all well represented, showing how live competition generates relentless, recurring search demand across markets.
• YouTube is the most common traffic destination across the top 100, capturing clicks for sports, entertainment, music, and trending content, reinforcing its role as the default destination for video-first intent.
• The competitive landscape has widened compared to previous periods: 53 distinct domains capture traffic across the top 100 queries, reflecting genuinely diverse intent and user journeys across global markets.

What are the most popular Google searches in the US?

Key stats

• Top searched keyword: gemini

• Search volume (for #1): ~20.4M

• Top traffic leader (for #1): gemini.google.com

• Total volume (Top 100): ~723.5M searches

• Most common traffic leader (Top 100): youtube.com

• Unique traffic leaders (Top 100): 34

Takeaway

• AI tool adoption is now clearly reflected in US search behavior, with “gemini” holding the top spot and “gemini ai” also cracking the top 25, signaling that Americans are actively seeking and navigating to AI products through Google.
• Sports is the backbone of the US top 100, with NBA queries alone accounting for multiple top-10 entries, including “nba,” “nba playoffs,” “nba games,” and individual team names, showing how deeply basketball is woven into daily search habits.
• Despite the AI surge at the top, utility queries like “weather,” “maps,” and “news” remain among the most searched, confirming that habitual, high-frequency behavior continues to account for a substantial share of US search volume.
• YouTube dominates as the most common traffic leader across the top 100, edging out x.com (14 appearances) and nba.com (8), suggesting that even in a sports-heavy market, video remains the preferred consumption format.
• The US traffic landscape is relatively concentrated, with only 34 unique domains winning clicks across the top 100 queries, compared to 53 globally, pointing to a more platform-centric search ecosystem domestically.

What are the most trending Google searches?

Key stats

• Top trending keyword: ipl

• Search volume (for #1): ~607.9M

• Top traffic leader (for #1): iplt20.com

• Total volume (Top 100): ~2.36B searches

• Most common traffic leader (Top 100): youtube.com

• Unique traffic leaders (Top 100): 41

Takeaway

• The IPL (Indian Premier League) is the clear trending force this period, generating search volume that dwarfs every other trending query and pulling in traffic not just for the league itself but for individual franchises and match-specific terms throughout the top 100.
• Sports leagues and competitions account for the overwhelming majority of trending demand, with the NBA playoffs, Premier League, MLB, PSL, and multiple soccer leagues all driving sustained spikes, confirming that live sports remain the most powerful and predictable trigger for trending search.
• Entertainment is a secondary but meaningful driver, with shows like “euphoria,” “the boys,” and “from” generating significant search interest tied to new seasons and episode releases.
• YouTube is the dominant traffic destination, appearing 21 times in the top 100, and is especially strong for trending sports and entertainment content where users want fast, visual coverage of what’s happening.
• With 41 unique traffic leaders, trending search is more fragmented than US search but slightly less than global overall search, reflecting a mix of league-specific destinations, streaming platforms, and global sports properties all competing for a share of event-driven clicks.

Where can you find data on the top Google searches?

To create these lists, I used Similarweb’s Demand Trends feature and Keyword Research Tool, part of our SEO toolkit.

Here’s a quick breakdown of how I did it:

1. In the Market Analysis suite, go to ‘Demand Trends’

2. Select ‘All Industries’ as shown below, or – to get a more targeted list – choose a specific industry

3. Select either ‘Worldwide’ data or a specific country in the country filter on the top right

4. For the trending terms I filtered the data based on ‘Trending Terms’

Then, to sort by traffic (like I did) or for other further analysis, download the full list and filter from there.

Methodology

I updated this page in May 2026 using data from April 2026. This provides you with an accurate and reliable view of the search landscape and top searches during that period.

The lists are for worldwide, US and trending terms.

I have included: average monthly search volume, traffic (how many of the searches end up going to a website), traffic share, and the traffic leader.

Similarweb Search Intelligence allows you to view things people search for by country and industry. Our data covers billions of keywords worldwide (we’re constantly growing our keyword list each and every day, with real searches as they happen), and we analyze over 2 terabytes of data each day.

FAQs

What is the most searched thing on Google in 2026?

Based on Similarweb’s April 2026 data, the most searched query worldwide is “ipl”, with approximately 607.9 million searches.

What is the most searched thing on Google in the US?

In the US, the most searched query is “gemini”, with approximately 20.4 million searches, showing strong interest in AI tools.

What is the top trending Google search?

The top trending Google search is “ipl”, which also ranks as the top global search term.

Why is IPL the most searched term?

IPL is driving massive search demand because of the scale of cricket fandom, especially across South Asia, and the constant need for match updates, teams, schedules, scores, and league information.

Why do sports searches dominate the list?

Sports generate recurring, real-time search demand. People search for teams, scores, standings, games, playoffs, drafts, and live events, which keeps sports-related queries highly visible across global, US, and trending lists.

Which everyday queries are still searched highly?

Utility searches like “maps,” “weather”, and “news” remain among the top queries, showing that people still use Google heavily for practical, everyday needs.

Why does YouTube appear so often as a traffic leader?

YouTube is the most common traffic leader across the top 100 lists because many users want fast, visual content, especially for sports highlights, entertainment updates, music, and trending topics.

by Maayan Zohar Basteker

Senior SEO Specialist at Similarweb

Maayan is a senior SEO specialist with 7+ years of experience in SEO. She loves complex research projects, creating SEO strategies and performing technical audits.