--- title: "The Washington Post vs The Wall Street Journal: Which is searched more?" description: "Is The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Newspapers 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/the-washington-post-vs-wall-street-journal" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # The Washington Post vs The Wall Street Journal: Which is searched more? Is The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Newspapers 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**: The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal - **Competitive set**: Newspapers - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **The Washington Post Share of Search**: 10.6% - **The Wall Street Journal Share of Search**: 14.3% ## Is The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal more popular in search? - In September 2026, The Wall Street Journal had more branded searches than The Washington Post among newspapers worldwide. The Wall Street Journal had about 1.8 million branded searches, while The Washington Post had 1.4 million. The Wall Street Journal made up 14.3% of all newspaper searches we track, and The Washington Post accounted for 10.6%. - The lead changed hands 2 times in the 12 months ending September 2026: The Washington Post took it in January 2026, The Wall Street Journal took it in March 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, The Washington Post’s share of searches among newspapers worldwide moved from 15% to 10.6%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 2.1M to 1.4M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, The Wall Street Journal’s share of searches among newspapers worldwide moved from 15.7% to 14.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 2.2M to 1.8M. ## Top newspapers in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, The Wall Street Journal was mentioned in four out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. The Washington Post was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. The Wall Street Journal was listed before The Washington Post in three out of four 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | The New York Times | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | The Wall Street Journal | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | The Washington Post | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | The Guardian | 4th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Financial Times | 5th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | The Times | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | The Telegraph | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about newspapers - Asked ChatGPT "Which newspaper should I buy?": 1. The Washington Post, 2. The New York Times, 3. The Wall Street Journal - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best newspaper brands?": 1. The New York Times, 2. The Wall Street Journal, 3. The Washington Post, 4. The Guardian, 5. Financial Times - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best newspaper for daily news?": 1. The New York Times, 2. The Wall Street Journal - Searched Google, AI Overview "newspapers": 1. The Wall Street Journal, 2. The New York Times, 3. The Washington Post - Searched Google, AI Overview "daily newspaper": named none of the brands we track Not named in any answer: The Times and The Telegraph. 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 newspapers worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, The Wall Street Journal lost share of searches among newspapers worldwide, from 14.9% to 14.3%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for The Washington Post worldwide fell 36.4% over 12 measured months, from 2.1M to 1.4M in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | The Washington Post estimated searches | The Washington Post Share of Search | The Washington Post rank | The Wall Street Journal estimated searches | The Wall Street Journal Share of Search | The Wall Street Journal rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 2.1M | 15% | 4 | 2.2M | 15.7% | 3 | | Nov 2025 | 1.8M | 13.1% | 4 | 2M | 14.6% | 3 | | Dec 2025 | 1.7M | 13.5% | 4 | 1.8M | 14.1% | 3 | | Jan 2026 | 2.7M | 15.1% | 3 | 2.4M | 13.7% | 4 | | Feb 2026 | 2.4M | 14.6% | 3 | 2.2M | 13.6% | 4 | | Mar 2026 | 2.8M | 13.6% | 4 | 3.3M | 16.2% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | 2.1M | 12.6% | 4 | 2.7M | 16.6% | 3 | | May 2026 | 1.4M | 10.6% | 4 | 2M | 15.3% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | 1.4M | 11.2% | 4 | 1.8M | 15% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | 1.4M | 11.1% | 4 | 1.8M | 14.9% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | 1.4M | 11.1% | 4 | 1.8M | 14.9% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | 1.4M | 10.6% | 4 | 1.8M | 14.3% | 3 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using The Washington Post’s and The Wall Street Journal’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. - **The Washington Post**: Measured on the search terms “the washington post” and “washington post”, summed into one figure. - **The Wall Street Journal**: Measured on the search terms “wall street journal” and “wsj”, summed into one figure. - [The Washington Post profile](/demand/global-en/brands/the-washington-post) - [The Wall Street Journal profile](/demand/global-en/brands/wall-street-journal) - [All newspapers worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/newspapers): The set both shares are measured inside, 7 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 The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal more popular in search? In September 2026, The Wall Street Journal had more branded searches than The Washington Post among newspapers worldwide. The Wall Street Journal had about 1.8 million branded searches, while The Washington Post had 1.4 million. The Wall Street Journal made up 14.3% of all newspaper searches we track, and The Washington Post accounted for 10.6%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "The Washington Post vs The Wall Street Journal: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/the-washington-post-vs-wall-street-journal This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/the-washington-post-vs-wall-street-journal. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.