--- title: "British Airways vs Cathay Pacific: Which is searched more?" description: "Is British Airways or Cathay Pacific more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Airline brands 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/british-airways-vs-cathay-pacific" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # British Airways vs Cathay Pacific: Which is searched more? Is British Airways or Cathay Pacific more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Airline brands 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**: British Airways and Cathay Pacific - **Competitive set**: Airline brands - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **British Airways Share of Search**: 15.7% - **Cathay Pacific Share of Search**: 4.7% ## Is British Airways or Cathay Pacific more popular in search? - In September 2026, British Airways had more branded searches than Cathay Pacific among airline brands worldwide. British Airways had about 5 million branded searches, while Cathay Pacific had 1.5 million. British Airways made up 15.7% of all airline brand searches we track, and Cathay Pacific accounted for 4.7%. - British Airways was ahead of Cathay Pacific in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, British Airways’ share of searches among airline brands worldwide moved from 12% to 15.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 4.1M to 5M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Cathay Pacific’s share of searches among airline brands worldwide moved from 5.3% to 4.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.8M to 1.5M. ## Top airline brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Cathay Pacific was mentioned in two out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. British Airways did not appear in any of the five answers. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Delta Air Lines | 1st | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Qatar Airways | 2nd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Singapore Airlines | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Southwest Airlines | 4th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | United Airlines | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Emirates | 6th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Cathay Pacific | 7th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | British Airways | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Qantas | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Air New Zealand | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about airline brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which airline brand should I book?": 1. Delta Air Lines, 2. Southwest Airlines, 3. United Airlines - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best airline brands?": 1. Qatar Airways, 2. Singapore Airlines, 3. Emirates, 4. Cathay Pacific, 5. Delta Air Lines, 6. United Airlines, 7. Southwest Airlines - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best airline brand for long haul travel?": 1. Singapore Airlines, 2. Qatar Airways, 3. Cathay Pacific, 4. Emirates - Searched Google, AI Overview "cheap flights": named none of the brands we track - Searched Google, AI Overview "best airline": 1. Delta Air Lines, 2. United Airlines, 3. Southwest Airlines, 4. Qatar Airways, 5. Singapore Airlines, 6. Emirates Not named in any answer: British Airways, Qantas and Air New Zealand. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 19, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for airline brands worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, British Airways overtook Southwest Airlines to rank 2nd among airline brands worldwide, with 15.7% of the searches. - In September 2026, Cathay Pacific rose from 9th to 8th among airline brands worldwide. ## Month by month | Month | British Airways estimated searches | British Airways Share of Search | British Airways rank | Cathay Pacific estimated searches | Cathay Pacific Share of Search | Cathay Pacific rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 4.1M | 12% | 4 | 1.8M | 5.3% | 8 | | Nov 2025 | 3.4M | 10.4% | 5 | 1.5M | 4.7% | 9 | | Dec 2025 | 3.4M | 11% | 5 | 1.5M | 4.9% | 8 | | Jan 2026 | 5M | 13.4% | 2 | 1.8M | 4.9% | 8 | | Feb 2026 | 4.1M | 12.1% | 4 | 1.5M | 4.4% | 9 | | Mar 2026 | 5M | 10.8% | 4 | 2.2M | 4.8% | 8 | | Apr 2026 | 4.1M | 12.6% | 3 | 1.5M | 4.6% | 8 | | May 2026 | 4.1M | 12.6% | 3 | 1.5M | 4.6% | 8 | | Jun 2026 | 4.1M | 12.6% | 3 | 1.5M | 4.6% | 8 | | Jul 2026 | 4.1M | 12.3% | 3 | 1.5M | 4.5% | 8 | | Aug 2026 | 4.1M | 12.4% | 3 | 1.5M | 4.6% | 9 | | Sep 2026 | 5M | 15.7% | 2 | 1.5M | 4.7% | 8 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using British Airways’ and Cathay Pacific’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. - **British Airways**: Measured on the search term “british airways”. - **Cathay Pacific**: Measured on the search term “cathay pacific”. - [British Airways profile](/demand/global-en/brands/british-airways) - [Cathay Pacific profile](/demand/global-en/brands/cathay-pacific) - [All airline brands worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/airline-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 10 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 British Airways or Cathay Pacific more popular in search? In September 2026, British Airways had more branded searches than Cathay Pacific among airline brands worldwide. British Airways had about 5 million branded searches, while Cathay Pacific had 1.5 million. British Airways made up 15.7% of all airline brand searches we track, and Cathay Pacific accounted for 4.7%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "British Airways vs Cathay Pacific: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/british-airways-vs-cathay-pacific This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/british-airways-vs-cathay-pacific. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.