--- title: "Clairol vs K18: Which is more popular?" description: "Is Clairol or K18 more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Purple shampoo 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/clairol-vs-k18-hair" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Clairol vs K18: Which is more popular? Is Clairol or K18 more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Purple shampoo 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**: Clairol and K18 - **Competitive set**: Purple shampoo brands - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Oct 2026 - **Clairol Share of Search**: 13.2% - **K18 Share of Search**: 10.8% ## Is Clairol or K18 more popular in search? - In October 2026, Clairol had more branded searches than K18 among purple shampoo brands worldwide. Clairol had about 12,100 branded searches, while K18 had 9,900. Clairol made up 13.2% of all purple shampoo brand searches we track, and K18 accounted for 10.8%. - The lead changed hands 2 times in the 12 months ending October 2026: K18 took it in April 2026, Clairol took it in October 2026. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Clairol’s share of searches among purple shampoo brands worldwide moved from 14.4% to 13.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 9.9K to 12.1K. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, K18’s share of searches among purple shampoo brands worldwide moved from 0.31% to 10.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 210 to 9.9K. ## Top purple shampoo brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, neither Clairol nor K18 showed up 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Amika | 1st | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Olaplex | 2nd | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Redken | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Pureology | 4th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Fanola | 5th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Matrix | 6th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Clairol | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | K18 | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Joico | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Kristin Ess | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about purple shampoo brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which purple shampoo should I use?": 1. Pureology, 2. Olaplex - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best purple shampoo brands?": 1. Amika, 2. Olaplex, 3. Redken, 4. Fanola, 5. Matrix - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best purple shampoo for brassy blonde hair?": 1. Amika, 2. Redken - Searched Google, AI Overview "purple shampoo": 1. Olaplex - Searched Google, AI Overview "best purple shampoo": 1. Olaplex, 2. Amika Not named in any answer: Clairol, K18, Joico and Kristin Ess. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 25, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for purple shampoo brands worldwide in October 2026? - In October 2026, K18 lost share of searches among purple shampoo brands worldwide, from 12.7% to 10.8%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Clairol worldwide rose 22.2% over 12 measured months, from 9.9K to 12.1K in October 2026. ## How has branded search for Clairol and K18 changed worldwide over the last 12 months? | Month | Clairol estimated searches | Clairol Share of Search | Clairol rank | K18 estimated searches | K18 Share of Search | K18 rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Nov 2025 | 9.9K | 14.4% | 2 | 210 | 0.31% | 10 | | Dec 2025 | 9.9K | 14.5% | 2 | 210 | 0.31% | 10 | | Jan 2026 | 9.9K | 14.9% | 2 | 260 | 0.39% | 10 | | Feb 2026 | 9.9K | 15.4% | 2 | 210 | 0.33% | 10 | | Mar 2026 | 9.9K | 12.5% | 3 | 2.4K | 3% | 8 | | Apr 2026 | 9.9K | 10.6% | 4 | 14.8K | 15.8% | 2 | | May 2026 | 12.1K | 11.6% | 4 | 22.2K | 21.2% | 2 | | Jun 2026 | 9.9K | 10.8% | 4 | 14.8K | 16.2% | 2 | | Jul 2026 | 9.9K | 10.5% | 4 | 18.1K | 19.2% | 2 | | Aug 2026 | 12.1K | 13.7% | 2 | 12.1K | 13.7% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | 9.9K | 12.7% | 3 | 9.9K | 12.7% | 4 | | Oct 2026 | 12.1K | 13.2% | 3 | 9.9K | 10.8% | 4 | ## How are Clairol’s and K18’s branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Clairol’s and K18’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. - **Clairol**: Measured on the search term “clairol shimmer lights”. - **K18**: Measured on the search term “k18 purple shampoo”. - [Clairol profile](/demand/global-en/brands/clairol) - [K18 profile](/demand/global-en/brands/k18-hair) - [All purple shampoo brands worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/purple-shampoo-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 Clairol or K18 more popular in search? In October 2026, Clairol had more branded searches than K18 among purple shampoo brands worldwide. Clairol had about 12,100 branded searches, while K18 had 9,900. Clairol made up 13.2% of all purple shampoo brand searches we track, and K18 accounted for 10.8%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Clairol vs K18: Which is more popular?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/clairol-vs-k18-hair This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/clairol-vs-k18-hair. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.