AP News vs Google News:Which is more popular?
In September 2026, Google News had more branded searches than AP News among news apps worldwide. Google News had about 7.5 million branded searches, while AP News had 1.2 million. Google News made up 78.5% of all news app searches we track, and AP News accounted for 12.8%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about news apps, both AP News and Google News appeared in all five answers. Google News was mentioned before AP News in four out of five answers.
Who do people search for more?
Google News, about 6 searches for every 1 for AP News
Who does AI mention more?
Both are mentioned in every answer we collected.
Who does AI recommend more?
Google News, named ahead of AP News in 4 of 5 answers
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Top news apps in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews
In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, both AP News and Google News showed up in all five answers. Google News was listed before AP News in four of them.
Most recommended by AI
Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.
- Google News1st
AP News2nd
Ground News3rd
Apple News4th
NewsBreak5th
Flipboard6th
Feedly7th
SmartNews–
Mentioned by AI
Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.
- Google News5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- AP News5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Ground News5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Apple News4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- NewsBreak2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Feedly1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
- Flipboard1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
- SmartNews0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
See every answer about news apps
5 answers
Asked ChatGPT
“Which news app should I use?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What are the best news apps?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What's the best news app for daily headlines?”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“news apps”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“breaking news app”
Not named in any answer:
Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 19, 2026.
Is AP News or Google News more popular in search?
This chart shows how often people search Google for AP News and Google News by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all eight news apps we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.
Share of searches by month for Google News, AP News. The figures are in the table below the chart.
View monthly share of searches table
| Month | Google News | AP News | NewsBreak | Apple News | Ground News | SmartNews | Feedly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 80.6% | 10.8% | 3.2% | 1.8% | 3.2% | 0.36% | 0.01% | <0.01% |
| Nov 2025 | 81.3% | 10.9% | 3.3% | 1.5% | 2.7% | 0.36% | <0.01% | <0.01% |
| Dec 2025 | 83.6% | 9.1% | 3.4% | 1.2% | 2.3% | 0.37% | <0.01% | <0.01% |
| Jan 2026 | 78.7% | 12.9% | 3.2% | 1.7% | 3.2% | 0.35% | 0.01% | 0.01% |
| Feb 2026 | 81.8% | 10.9% | 2.7% | 1.5% | 2.7% | 0.36% | 0.01% | 0.01% |
| Mar 2026 | 78.8% | 13% | 2.6% | 2.1% | 3.2% | 0.29% | 0.02% | <0.01% |
| Apr 2026 | 77.6% | 15.5% | 2.6% | 1.4% | 2.6% | 0.34% | 0.02% | <0.01% |
| May 2026 | 79.4% | 13% | 3.2% | 1.4% | 2.6% | 0.35% | 0.02% | <0.01% |
| Jun 2026 | 82.3% | 11% | 2.7% | 1.5% | 2.2% | 0.3% | 0.02% | <0.01% |
| Jul 2026 | 79.4% | 13% | 3.2% | 1.4% | 2.6% | 0.35% | 0.02% | <0.01% |
| Aug 2026 | 79.2% | 12.9% | 3.2% | 1.7% | 2.6% | 0.35% | 0.02% | <0.01% |
| Sep 2026 | 78.5% | 12.8% | 3.2% | 2.6% | 2.6% | 0.35% | 0.02% | 0.01% |
How has the AP News and Google News comparison changed over the last 12 months?
3 findings
- Google News was ahead of AP News in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, AP News’ share of searches among news apps worldwide moved from 10.8% to 12.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 1.2M.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Google News’ share of searches among news apps worldwide moved from 80.6% to 78.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 9.1M to 7.5M.
How did search popularity change for news apps worldwide in September 2026?
1 change
In September 2026, Google News lost share of searches among news apps worldwide, from 79.2% to 78.5%.
How are branded searches counted?
2 search terms
Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using AP News’ and Google News’ 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.
AP News
1 branded search term
- ap news
Google News
1 branded search term
- google news
Other head-to-heads among news apps
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