---
title: "Sephora vs Ulta Beauty: Which is more popular by branded search?"
description: "Which is more popular in search, Sephora or Ulta Beauty? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Beauty retailers 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/sephora-vs-ulta-beauty"
publisher: "Brandwave"
---

# Sephora vs Ulta Beauty: Which is more popular by branded search?

Which is more popular in search, Sephora or Ulta Beauty? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Beauty retailers 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**: Sephora and Ulta Beauty
- **Competitive set**: Beauty retailers
- **Market**: Global
- **Month measured**: Aug 2026
- **Sephora Share of Search**: 58.7%
- **Ulta Beauty Share of Search**: 14.5%

## Which is more popular in search, Sephora or Ulta Beauty?

- In August 2026, Sephora had more branded searches than Ulta Beauty among beauty retailers worldwide. Sephora was estimated to have 16.6M branded searches compared to Ulta Beauty’s 4.1M, and held a 58.7% Share of Search versus Ulta Beauty’s 14.5%.
- Sephora was ahead of Ulta Beauty in every measured month of the 11 months ending August 2026.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sephora’s estimated Share of Search among beauty retailers worldwide moved from 52.5% to 58.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 16.6M.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Ulta Beauty’s estimated Share of Search among beauty retailers worldwide moved from 12.9% to 14.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 4.1M.

## How did search popularity change for beauty retailers worldwide in August 2026?

- In August 2026, Sephora gained estimated Share of Search among beauty retailers worldwide, from 54% to 58.7%.
- In August 2026, Ulta Beauty lost estimated Share of Search among beauty retailers worldwide, from 16.2% to 14.5%.

## Month by month

| Month | Sephora estimated searches | Sephora Share of Search | Sephora rank | Ulta Beauty estimated searches | Ulta Beauty Share of Search | Ulta Beauty rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oct 2025 | 16.6M | 52.5% | 1 | 4.1M | 12.9% | 3 |
| Nov 2025 | 30.4M | 64.6% | 1 | 5M | 10.6% | 3 |
| Dec 2025 | 24.9M | 58.8% | 1 | 6.1M | 14.5% | 3 |
| Jan 2026 | 16.6M | 58.5% | 1 | 4.1M | 14.4% | 3 |
| Feb 2026 | 13.6M | 55% | 1 | 3.4M | 13.5% | 3 |
| Mar 2026 | 16.6M | 58.3% | 1 | 4.1M | 14.4% | 3 |
| Apr 2026 | 16.6M | 58.5% | 1 | 4.1M | 14.4% | 3 |
| May 2026 | 13.6M | 53.8% | 1 | 4.1M | 16.2% | 3 |
| Jun 2026 | 13.6M | 54% | 1 | 4.1M | 16.2% | 3 |
| Jul 2026 | 13.6M | 54% | 1 | 4.1M | 16.2% | 3 |
| Aug 2026 | 16.6M | 58.7% | 1 | 4.1M | 14.5% | 3 |
| Sep 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## How each brand is measured

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Sephora’s and Ulta Beauty’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.

- **Sephora**: Measured on the search term “sephora”.
- **Ulta Beauty**: Measured on the search term “ulta beauty”.

- [Sephora profile](/demand/global-en/brands/sephora)
- [Ulta Beauty profile](/demand/global-en/brands/ulta-beauty)
- [All beauty retailers worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/beauty-retailers): The set both shares are measured inside, 5 brands.

## Methodology

- [How is branded search demand measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which is more popular in search, Sephora or Ulta Beauty?

In August 2026, Sephora had more branded searches than Ulta Beauty among beauty retailers worldwide. Sephora was estimated to have 16.6M branded searches compared to Ulta Beauty’s 4.1M, and held a 58.7% Share of Search versus Ulta Beauty’s 14.5%.

## Cite this page

Brandwave. "Sephora vs Ulta Beauty: Which is more popular by branded search?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/sephora-vs-ulta-beauty

This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/sephora-vs-ulta-beauty. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.