---
title: "Airlines in Australia: Which are searched most?"
description: "Compare the airlines Australians fly with. Share of Search among Jetstar, Qantas, Virgin Australia and Rex, the airlines Brandwave compares in Australia, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time."
canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/au/categories/au-airlines"
publisher: "Brandwave"
---

# Airlines in Australia: Which are searched most?

Compare the airlines Australians fly with. Share of Search among Jetstar, Qantas, Virgin Australia and Rex, the airlines Brandwave compares in Australia, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

## Key facts

- **Competitive set**: Airlines
- **Market**: Australia
- **Brands compared**: 4
- **Month measured**: Sep 2026
- **Highest Share of Search**: Jetstar, 41.5%

## Which brand is most popular in search among airlines in Australia?

- In September 2026, Jetstar was the most searched among airlines in Australia, with an estimated 1.2M branded searches, 41.5% of all searches for the four we track.
- Qantas is in 2nd place, 7.5 percentage points behind at 34%.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Jetstar’s share of searches among airlines in Australia peaked at 44.3% in May 2026 and was lowest at 36.7% in February 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Qantas’ share of searches among airlines in Australia peaked at 36.8% in July 2026 and was lowest at 29.6% in May 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Virgin Australia’s share of searches among airlines in Australia peaked at 26.6% in June 2026 and was lowest at 22.8% in October 2025.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Jetstar, Qantas, Virgin Australia and Rex held steady: their share of searches among airlines in Australia each moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

## Top airlines in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In Brandwave's three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Jetstar and Virgin Australia were mentioned most often, in four of the five answers. Virgin Australia was recommended most often, coming first in one out of four answers that gave a list. Qantas was second, and Jetstar was third. Rex, which ranked fourth in searches, was not mentioned at all.

Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options.

| Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Virgin Australia | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 |
| Qantas | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 |
| Jetstar | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 |
| Rex | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 |

## Every AI answer about airlines

- Asked ChatGPT "Which airline should I fly with in Australia?": 1. Qantas, 2. Virgin Australia, 3. Jetstar
- Asked ChatGPT "What are the best airlines in Australia?": 1. Qantas, 2. Virgin Australia, 3. Jetstar
- Asked ChatGPT "What's the best value airline for domestic flights in Australia?": 1. Virgin Australia, 2. Jetstar, 3. Qantas
- Searched Google, AI Overview "flights": named none of the brands we track
- Searched Google, AI Overview "cheap flights": 1. Jetstar, 2. Virgin Australia

Not named in any answer: Rex.

Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in Australia on October 22, 2026.

## Compare search popularity between leading brands

- [Jetstar vs Qantas: compare search popularity](/demand/au/compare/jetstar-vs-qantas): 41.5% against 34% Share of Search.
- [Jetstar vs Virgin Australia: compare search popularity](/demand/au/compare/jetstar-vs-virgin-australia): 41.5% against 22.9% Share of Search.
- [Qantas vs Virgin Australia: compare search popularity](/demand/au/compare/qantas-vs-virgin-australia): 34% against 22.9% Share of Search.

## How did search popularity change for Australia airlines in September 2026?

- Virgin Australia’s share of searches among airlines in Australia has lost ground for 3 months in a row, from 26.6% to 22.9% in September 2026.
- Estimated monthly branded searches for Rex in Australia fell 33.1% over 12 measured months, from 74K to 49.5K in September 2026.
- Estimated monthly branded searches for Jetstar in Australia fell 18.7% over 12 measured months, from 1.5M to 1.2M in September 2026.
- Estimated monthly branded searches for Qantas in Australia fell 18% over 12 measured months, from 1.2M to 1M in September 2026.

## Share of Search ranking

| Rank | Brand | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | Change vs prior month | Owned by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Jetstar | 41.5% | 1.2M | -18.7% | Qantas Group |
| 2 | Qantas | 34% | 1M | -18.0% | Qantas Group |
| 3 | Virgin Australia | 22.9% | 673K | -18.2% | Virgin Australia |
| 4 | Rex | 1.7% | 49.5K | 0.0% | Rex |

## Historical estimated branded-search demand

| Month | Brand | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oct 2025 | Jetstar | 1.5M | 41.5% | 1 |
| Oct 2025 | Qantas | 1.2M | 33.7% | 2 |
| Oct 2025 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 22.8% | 3 |
| Oct 2025 | Rex | 74K | 2% | 4 |
| Nov 2025 | Jetstar | 1.5M | 41.6% | 1 |
| Nov 2025 | Qantas | 1.2M | 33.9% | 2 |
| Nov 2025 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 22.8% | 3 |
| Nov 2025 | Rex | 60.5K | 1.7% | 4 |
| Dec 2025 | Jetstar | 1.2M | 41.5% | 1 |
| Dec 2025 | Qantas | 1M | 34% | 2 |
| Dec 2025 | Virgin Australia | 673K | 22.9% | 3 |
| Dec 2025 | Rex | 49.5K | 1.7% | 4 |
| Jan 2026 | Jetstar | 1.5M | 41.6% | 1 |
| Jan 2026 | Qantas | 1.2M | 33.9% | 2 |
| Jan 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 22.8% | 3 |
| Jan 2026 | Rex | 60.5K | 1.7% | 4 |
| Feb 2026 | Jetstar | 1.2M | 36.7% | 1 |
| Feb 2026 | Qantas | 1.2M | 36.7% | 2 |
| Feb 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 24.8% | 3 |
| Feb 2026 | Rex | 60.5K | 1.8% | 4 |
| Mar 2026 | Jetstar | 1.5M | 41.6% | 1 |
| Mar 2026 | Qantas | 1.2M | 33.9% | 2 |
| Mar 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 22.8% | 3 |
| Mar 2026 | Rex | 60.5K | 1.7% | 4 |
| Apr 2026 | Jetstar | 1.2M | 41.5% | 1 |
| Apr 2026 | Qantas | 1M | 34% | 2 |
| Apr 2026 | Virgin Australia | 673K | 22.9% | 3 |
| Apr 2026 | Rex | 49.5K | 1.7% | 4 |
| May 2026 | Jetstar | 1.5M | 44.3% | 1 |
| May 2026 | Qantas | 1M | 29.6% | 2 |
| May 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 24.3% | 3 |
| May 2026 | Rex | 60.5K | 1.8% | 4 |
| Jun 2026 | Jetstar | 1.2M | 39.5% | 1 |
| Jun 2026 | Qantas | 1M | 32.3% | 2 |
| Jun 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 26.6% | 3 |
| Jun 2026 | Rex | 49.5K | 1.6% | 4 |
| Jul 2026 | Jetstar | 1.2M | 36.8% | 1 |
| Jul 2026 | Qantas | 1.2M | 36.8% | 2 |
| Jul 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 24.8% | 3 |
| Jul 2026 | Rex | 49.5K | 1.5% | 4 |
| Aug 2026 | Jetstar | 1.5M | 41.8% | 1 |
| Aug 2026 | Qantas | 1.2M | 34% | 2 |
| Aug 2026 | Virgin Australia | 823K | 22.9% | 3 |
| Aug 2026 | Rex | 49.5K | 1.4% | 4 |
| Sep 2026 | Jetstar | 1.2M | 41.5% | 1 |
| Sep 2026 | Qantas | 1M | 34% | 2 |
| Sep 2026 | Virgin Australia | 673K | 22.9% | 3 |
| Sep 2026 | Rex | 49.5K | 1.7% | 4 |

## What is being compared

- **Jetstar**: Measured on the search term “jetstar”.
- **Qantas**: Measured on the search term “qantas”.
- **Rex**: Measured on the search terms “rex airline” and “rex airlines”, summed into one figure.
- **Virgin Australia**: Measured on the search term “virgin australia”.

- [Jetstar](/demand/au/brands/jetstar)
- [Qantas](/demand/au/brands/qantas)
- [Rex](/demand/au/brands/rex-airlines)
- [Virgin Australia](/demand/au/brands/virgin-australia)

## Methodology

- [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which brand is most popular in search among airlines in Australia?

In September 2026, Jetstar was the most searched among airlines in Australia, with an estimated 1.2M branded searches, 41.5% of all searches for the four we track.

## Cite this page

Brandwave. "Airlines in Australia: Which are searched most?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/au/categories/au-airlines

This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/au/categories/au-airlines. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.