--- title: "Barnes & Noble Press vs Kobo Writing Life: Which is searched more?" description: "Is Barnes & Noble Press or Kobo Writing Life more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Self publishing platforms 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/compare/barnes-and-noble-press-vs-kobo-writing-life" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Barnes & Noble Press vs Kobo Writing Life: Which is searched more? Is Barnes & Noble Press or Kobo Writing Life more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Self publishing platforms 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**: Barnes & Noble Press and Kobo Writing Life - **Competitive set**: Self publishing platforms - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Barnes & Noble Press Share of Search**: 0.58% - **Kobo Writing Life Share of Search**: 0.38% ## Is Barnes & Noble Press or Kobo Writing Life more popular in search? - In September 2026, Barnes & Noble Press had more branded searches than Kobo Writing Life among self publishing platforms worldwide. Barnes & Noble Press had about 22,200 branded searches, while Kobo Writing Life had 14,800. Barnes & Noble Press made up 0.58% of all self publishing platform searches we track, and Kobo Writing Life accounted for 0.38%. - Barnes & Noble Press was ahead of Kobo Writing Life in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Barnes & Noble Press’ share of searches among self publishing platforms worldwide moved from 0.69% to 0.58%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 18.1K to 22.2K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Kobo Writing Life’s share of searches among self publishing platforms worldwide moved from 0.46% to 0.38%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 12.1K to 14.8K. ## Top self publishing platforms in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Barnes & Noble Press was mentioned in three out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. Kobo Writing Life was mentioned in two out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Barnes & Noble Press and Kobo Writing Life were each listed first in two of the four answers 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Draft2Digital | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | IngramSpark | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Lulu | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Barnes & Noble Press | 5th | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Amazon KDP | 6th | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Kobo Writing Life | 7th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Smashwords | 8th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about self publishing platforms - Asked ChatGPT "Which self publishing platform should I use?": 1. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, 2. IngramSpark, 3. Draft2Digital, 4. Lulu, 5. Amazon KDP - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best self publishing platforms?": 1. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, 2. IngramSpark, 3. Draft2Digital, 4. Lulu, 5. Barnes & Noble Press, 6. Amazon KDP - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best self publishing platform for independent authors?": 1. Amazon KDP, 2. IngramSpark, 3. Draft2Digital, 4. Lulu, 5. Kobo Writing Life, 6. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing - Searched Google, AI Overview "self publishing platform": 1. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, 2. Kobo Writing Life, 3. Barnes & Noble Press, 4. Draft2Digital, 5. Smashwords, 6. IngramSpark, 7. Lulu - Searched Google, AI Overview "publish a book online": 1. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, 2. Barnes & Noble Press, 3. Lulu, 4. Draft2Digital 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 self publishing platforms worldwide in September 2026? - Estimated monthly branded searches for Barnes & Noble Press worldwide rose 22.7% over 12 measured months, from 18.1K to 22.2K in September 2026. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Kobo Writing Life worldwide rose 22.3% over 12 measured months, from 12.1K to 14.8K in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Barnes & Noble Press estimated searches | Barnes & Noble Press Share of Search | Barnes & Noble Press rank | Kobo Writing Life estimated searches | Kobo Writing Life Share of Search | Kobo Writing Life rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 12.1K | 0.46% | 7 | | Nov 2025 | 18.1K | 0.83% | 6 | 9.9K | 0.45% | 7 | | Dec 2025 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 9.9K | 0.38% | 7 | | Jan 2026 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 9.9K | 0.38% | 7 | | Feb 2026 | 18.1K | 0.83% | 6 | 9.9K | 0.46% | 7 | | Mar 2026 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 9.9K | 0.38% | 7 | | Apr 2026 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 12.1K | 0.46% | 7 | | May 2026 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 12.1K | 0.46% | 7 | | Jun 2026 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 12.1K | 0.46% | 7 | | Jul 2026 | 18.1K | 0.69% | 6 | 12.1K | 0.46% | 7 | | Aug 2026 | 22.2K | 0.69% | 6 | 14.8K | 0.46% | 7 | | Sep 2026 | 22.2K | 0.58% | 6 | 14.8K | 0.38% | 7 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Barnes & Noble Press’ and Kobo Writing Life’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. - **Barnes & Noble Press**: Measured on the search term “barnes & noble press”. - **Kobo Writing Life**: Measured on the search term “kobo writing life”. - [Barnes & Noble Press profile](/demand/global-en/brands/barnes-and-noble-press) - [Kobo Writing Life profile](/demand/global-en/brands/kobo-writing-life) - [All self publishing platforms worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/self-publishing-platforms): The set both shares are measured inside, 8 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 Barnes & Noble Press or Kobo Writing Life more popular in search? In September 2026, Barnes & Noble Press had more branded searches than Kobo Writing Life among self publishing platforms worldwide. Barnes & Noble Press had about 22,200 branded searches, while Kobo Writing Life had 14,800. Barnes & Noble Press made up 0.58% of all self publishing platform searches we track, and Kobo Writing Life accounted for 0.38%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Barnes & Noble Press vs Kobo Writing Life: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/barnes-and-noble-press-vs-kobo-writing-life This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/barnes-and-noble-press-vs-kobo-writing-life. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.