--- title: "Hotjar vs Microsoft Clarity: Which is searched more?" description: "Is Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Session replay tools set worldwide. 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/global-en/categories/session-replay-tools/compare/hotjar-vs-microsoft-clarity" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Hotjar vs Microsoft Clarity: Which is searched more? Is Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Session replay tools set worldwide. 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 - **Compared**: Hotjar and Microsoft Clarity - **Competitive set**: Session replay tools - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Hotjar Share of Search**: 19.8% - **Microsoft Clarity Share of Search**: 28.3% ## Is Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity more popular in search? - In September 2026, Microsoft Clarity had more branded searches than Hotjar among session replay tools worldwide. Microsoft Clarity had about 165,000 branded searches, while Hotjar had 115,000. Microsoft Clarity made up 28.3% of all session replay tool searches we track, and Hotjar accounted for 19.8%. - The lead changed hands once in the 12 months ending September 2026: Microsoft Clarity took it in December 2025. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Hotjar’s share of searches among session replay tools worldwide moved from 31.6% to 19.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 138K to 115K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Microsoft Clarity’s share of searches among session replay tools worldwide moved from 25.2% to 28.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 110K to 165K. ## Top session replay tools in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Microsoft Clarity was mentioned in four out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. Hotjar was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Microsoft Clarity was listed before Hotjar in every answer that named either. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Fullstory | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | PostHog | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | LogRocket | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Microsoft Clarity | 4th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Contentsquare | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | OpenReplay | 6th | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Hotjar | 7th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Smartlook | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Glassbox | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about session replay tools - Asked ChatGPT "Which session replay tool should I use?": 1. PostHog, 2. LogRocket, 3. Microsoft Clarity, 4. Fullstory, 5. Contentsquare - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best session replay tools?": 1. PostHog, 2. LogRocket, 3. Microsoft Clarity, 4. Fullstory, 5. Contentsquare, 6. Hotjar, 7. OpenReplay - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best session replay tool for support team insights?": 1. Fullstory, 2. LogRocket, 3. PostHog - Searched Google, AI Overview "session replay tool": 1. Microsoft Clarity, 2. Fullstory, 3. LogRocket, 4. OpenReplay, 5. PostHog - Searched Google, AI Overview "user session recording": 1. Fullstory, 2. Contentsquare, 3. Microsoft Clarity, 4. PostHog, 5. OpenReplay Not named in any answer: Smartlook and Glassbox. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 21, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for session replay tools worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, Hotjar gained share of searches among session replay tools worldwide, from 10.9% to 19.8%. - In September 2026, Microsoft Clarity lost share of searches among session replay tools worldwide, from 34.3% to 28.3%. ## Month by month | Month | Hotjar estimated searches | Hotjar Share of Search | Hotjar rank | Microsoft Clarity estimated searches | Microsoft Clarity Share of Search | Microsoft Clarity rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 138K | 31.6% | 1 | 110K | 25.2% | 2 | | Nov 2025 | 113K | 28.2% | 1 | 110K | 27.5% | 2 | | Dec 2025 | 93.4K | 25% | 3 | 110K | 29.4% | 1 | | Jan 2026 | 114K | 25.1% | 3 | 135K | 29.9% | 1 | | Feb 2026 | 78.4K | 21.4% | 3 | 135K | 36.9% | 1 | | Mar 2026 | 64.9K | 15.1% | 3 | 135K | 31.4% | 2 | | Apr 2026 | 65.9K | 17.5% | 3 | 135K | 35.8% | 1 | | May 2026 | 56.1K | 13.8% | 3 | 165K | 40.5% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | 79.4K | 15.5% | 3 | 165K | 32.2% | 2 | | Jul 2026 | 52.4K | 11.1% | 3 | 165K | 34.8% | 2 | | Aug 2026 | 52.4K | 10.9% | 3 | 165K | 34.3% | 2 | | Sep 2026 | 115K | 19.8% | 3 | 165K | 28.3% | 2 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Hotjar’s and Microsoft Clarity’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. - **Hotjar**: Measured on the search terms “hotjar” and “hotjar heatmap”, summed into one figure. - **Microsoft Clarity**: Measured on the search term “microsoft clarity”. - [Hotjar profile](/demand/global-en/brands/hotjar) - [Microsoft Clarity profile](/demand/global-en/brands/microsoft-clarity) - [All session replay tools worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/session-replay-tools): The set both shares are measured inside, 9 brands. ## 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 ### Is Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity more popular in search? In September 2026, Microsoft Clarity had more branded searches than Hotjar among session replay tools worldwide. Microsoft Clarity had about 165,000 branded searches, while Hotjar had 115,000. Microsoft Clarity made up 28.3% of all session replay tool searches we track, and Hotjar accounted for 19.8%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Hotjar vs Microsoft Clarity: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/categories/session-replay-tools/compare/hotjar-vs-microsoft-clarity This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/categories/session-replay-tools/compare/hotjar-vs-microsoft-clarity. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.