Brandwave

Bensound vs Epidemic Sound:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Epidemic Sound had more branded searches than Bensound among royalty-free music libraries worldwide. Epidemic Sound had about 466,000 branded searches, while Bensound had 33,100. Epidemic Sound made up 10.4% of all royalty-free music library searches we track, and Bensound accounted for 0.74%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about royalty-free music libraries, Epidemic Sound appeared in four of the five answers and Bensound in two. Epidemic Sound was mentioned before Bensound in three out of five answers.

Among royalty-free music libraries worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Epidemic Sound, about 14 searches for every 1 for Bensound

Epidemic Sound 466K searchesBensound 33.1K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Epidemic Sound, mentioned in 4 of 5 answers, Bensound in 2

Epidemic Sound in 4 of 5Bensound in 2 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Epidemic Sound, named ahead of Bensound in 3 of 5 answers

Epidemic Sound first in 3Bensound first in 2

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Top royalty-free music libraries in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Epidemic Sound was mentioned in four out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Bensound was mentioned in two out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in both Google AI Overviews. Epidemic Sound was listed before Bensound in three out of five answers.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. Epidemic Sound1st
  2. Artlist2nd
  3. Pixabay3rd
  4. Musicbed4th
  5. Bensound4th
  6. Soundstripe4th
  7. PremiumBeat7th

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • Epidemic Sound4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Pixabay3 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Artlist3 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Musicbed3 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Soundstripe3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Bensound2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • PremiumBeat1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about royalty-free music libraries

5 answers

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 21, 2026.

Is Bensound or Epidemic Sound more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Bensound and Epidemic Sound by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all seven royalty-free music libraries we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Bensound and Epidemic Sound among royalty-free music libraries worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for Epidemic Sound, Bensound. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthPixabayArtlistEpidemic SoundMusicbedBensoundSoundstripePremiumBeat
Oct 202573.9%14.7%8.4%0.9%1.1%0.68%0.27%
Nov 202577.7%12.3%7.2%0.78%1.1%0.58%0.28%
Dec 202577.9%12.3%7.3%0.78%0.94%0.58%0.23%
Jan 202676.6%12.1%8.7%0.93%0.93%0.48%0.23%
Feb 202674.6%14.1%8.5%0.91%1.1%0.55%0.22%
Mar 202676.5%12.2%8.7%0.93%0.93%0.5%0.23%
Apr 202676.8%12%8.7%0.94%0.93%0.44%0.19%
May 202673.2%14%10.2%1.1%0.89%0.43%0.22%
Jun 202675.2%11.8%10.5%1.1%0.74%0.43%0.22%
Jul 202671.4%13.7%12.1%1.3%0.71%0.5%0.26%
Aug 202671.2%14%12.1%1.3%0.7%0.49%0.26%
Sep 202674.7%12.4%10.4%1.1%0.74%0.42%0.22%

How has the Bensound and Epidemic Sound comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for royalty-free music libraries worldwide in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Epidemic Sound lost share of searches among royalty-free music libraries worldwide, from 12.1% to 10.4%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Bensound worldwide fell 45.3% over 12 measured months, from 60.5K to 33.1K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

5 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Bensound’s and Epidemic Sound’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.

Bensound

1 branded search term

  • bensound

Epidemic Sound

4 branded search terms

  • epidemic sound
  • epidemic sound app
  • epidemic sound music
  • epidemicsound

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among royalty-free music libraries

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