H&M vs Zara:Which is more popular?
In September 2026, Zara had more branded searches than H&M among dresses worldwide. Zara had about 37.2 million branded searches, while H&M had 16.6 million. Zara made up 62.8% of all dress searches we track, and H&M accounted for 28%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about dresses, Zara appeared in one of the five answers and H&M in none.
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Top dresses in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews
In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Zara was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. H&M did not appear in any of the five answers.
Mentioned by AI
Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.
Lulus2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
Zara1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
Reformation1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
H&M0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
ASOS0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
Mango0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
See every answer about dresses
5 answers
Asked ChatGPT
“Which dress should I buy?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What are the best dress brands?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What's the best dress for a special occasion?”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“dresses”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“women's dresses”
Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 19, 2026.
Share of searches by month for Zara, H&M. The figures are in the table below the chart.
View monthly share of searches table
| Month | Zara | H&M | ASOS | Lulus | Mango | Reformation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 58% | 31.8% | 9.5% | 0.21% | 0.25% | 0.14% |
| Nov 2025 | 61.7% | 27.6% | 10.1% | 0.15% | 0.26% | 0.15% |
| Dec 2025 | 62.9% | 28.2% | 8.5% | 0.13% | 0.25% | 0.13% |
| Jan 2026 | 61.7% | 27.5% | 10.1% | 0.22% | 0.26% | 0.18% |
| Feb 2026 | 61.5% | 27.5% | 10.1% | 0.33% | 0.32% | 0.22% |
| Mar 2026 | 61.4% | 27.4% | 10.1% | 0.41% | 0.37% | 0.27% |
| Apr 2026 | 61.4% | 27.4% | 10.1% | 0.41% | 0.35% | 0.27% |
| May 2026 | 57.7% | 31.6% | 9.5% | 0.38% | 0.48% | 0.31% |
| Jun 2026 | 58.9% | 32.3% | 7.9% | 0.32% | 0.39% | 0.26% |
| Jul 2026 | 62.6% | 28% | 8.4% | 0.34% | 0.38% | 0.28% |
| Aug 2026 | 62.7% | 28% | 8.4% | 0.34% | 0.31% | 0.28% |
| Sep 2026 | 62.8% | 28% | 8.4% | 0.34% | 0.29% | 0.19% |
How has the H&M and Zara comparison changed over the last 12 months?
3 findings
- Zara was ahead of H&M in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, H&M’s share of searches among dresses worldwide moved from 31.8% to 28%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 20.4M to 16.6M.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Zara’s share of searches among dresses worldwide moved from 58% to 62.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 37.2M.
How did search popularity change for dresses worldwide in September 2026?
2 changes
How are branded searches counted?
2 search terms
Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using H&M’s and Zara’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.
Other head-to-heads among dresses
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