--- title: "HEC-RAS vs STAAD: Which is searched more?" description: "Is HEC-RAS or STAAD more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Civil engineering software 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/hec-ras-vs-staad" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # HEC-RAS vs STAAD: Which is searched more? Is HEC-RAS or STAAD more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Civil engineering software 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**: HEC-RAS and STAAD - **Competitive set**: Civil engineering software - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **HEC-RAS Share of Search**: 0.78% - **STAAD Share of Search**: 0.78% ## Is HEC-RAS or STAAD more popular in search? - In September 2026, HEC-RAS and STAAD were level in searches among civil engineering software worldwide, with an estimated 22.2K branded searches each, at 0.78% of the total each. - The lead changed hands once in the 12 months ending September 2026: STAAD took it in July 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, HEC-RAS’s share of searches among civil engineering software worldwide held steady at 0.78%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 22.2K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, STAAD’s share of searches among civil engineering software worldwide moved from 0.52% to 0.78%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 14.8K to 22.2K. ## Top civil engineering software in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, STAAD appeared in all five answers. HEC-RAS was mentioned in four out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. STAAD was listed before HEC-RAS in four out of 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | AutoCAD | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Civil 3D | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Revit | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | STAAD | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | ETABS | 5th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | SAP2000 | 6th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | HEC-RAS | 7th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | OpenRoads | 8th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Esri ArcGIS | 9th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | EPANET | 10th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Primavera P6 | 11th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | 12d Model | 12th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | InfraWorks | 13th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | QGIS | 14th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about civil engineering software - Asked ChatGPT "Which civil engineering software should I use?": 1. AutoCAD, 2. Civil 3D, 3. ETABS, 4. STAAD, 5. HEC-RAS, 6. Revit, 7. SAP2000, 8. Esri ArcGIS, 9. QGIS, 10. EPANET, 11. Primavera P6, 12. InfraWorks - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best civil engineering software options?": 1. Civil 3D, 2. AutoCAD, 3. SAP2000, 4. ETABS, 5. OpenRoads, 6. HEC-RAS, 7. Esri ArcGIS, 8. STAAD, 9. EPANET, 10. Revit, 11. Primavera P6, 12. QGIS - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best civil engineering software for road design?": 1. Civil 3D, 2. AutoCAD, 3. OpenRoads, 4. 12d Model, 5. InfraWorks, 6. Revit, 7. STAAD - Searched Google, AI Overview "civil engineering software": 1. AutoCAD, 2. Civil 3D, 3. Revit, 4. STAAD, 5. ETABS, 6. Primavera P6, 7. HEC-RAS, 8. Esri ArcGIS, 9. SAP2000 - Searched Google, AI Overview "civil design software": 1. AutoCAD, 2. Civil 3D, 3. Revit, 4. STAAD, 5. SAP2000, 6. ETABS, 7. HEC-RAS, 8. EPANET, 9. Esri ArcGIS Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 20, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for civil engineering software worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, HEC-RAS rose from 9th to 8th among civil engineering software worldwide. - In September 2026, STAAD fell from 8th to 9th among civil engineering software worldwide. ## Month by month | Month | HEC-RAS estimated searches | HEC-RAS Share of Search | HEC-RAS rank | STAAD estimated searches | STAAD Share of Search | STAAD rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 22.2K | 0.78% | 8 | 14.8K | 0.52% | 11 | | Nov 2025 | 22.2K | 0.78% | 8 | 14.8K | 0.52% | 11 | | Dec 2025 | 18.1K | 0.8% | 8 | 12.1K | 0.54% | 11 | | Jan 2026 | 18.1K | 0.75% | 8 | 14.8K | 0.61% | 11 | | Feb 2026 | 18.1K | 0.75% | 8 | 14.8K | 0.61% | 11 | | Mar 2026 | 22.2K | 0.78% | 8 | 18.1K | 0.64% | 11 | | Apr 2026 | 22.2K | 0.89% | 8 | 18.1K | 0.73% | 11 | | May 2026 | 22.2K | 0.91% | 8 | 22.2K | 0.91% | 9 | | Jun 2026 | 22.2K | 0.96% | 8 | 22.2K | 0.96% | 9 | | Jul 2026 | 18.1K | 0.87% | 9 | 22.2K | 1.1% | 8 | | Aug 2026 | 18.1K | 0.78% | 9 | 27.1K | 1.2% | 8 | | Sep 2026 | 22.2K | 0.78% | 8 | 22.2K | 0.78% | 9 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using HEC-RAS’s and STAAD’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. - **HEC-RAS**: Measured on the search term “hec ras”. - **STAAD**: Measured on the search term “staad”. - [HEC-RAS profile](/demand/global-en/brands/hec-ras) - [STAAD profile](/demand/global-en/brands/staad) - [All civil engineering software worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/civil-engineering-software): The set both shares are measured inside, 14 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 HEC-RAS or STAAD more popular in search? In September 2026, HEC-RAS and STAAD were level in searches among civil engineering software worldwide, with an estimated 22.2K branded searches each, at 0.78% of the total each. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "HEC-RAS vs STAAD: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/hec-ras-vs-staad This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/hec-ras-vs-staad. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.