--- title: "Tylenol vs Vicks: Which is searched more?" description: "Is Tylenol or Vicks more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Cold and flu 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/tylenol-vs-vicks" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Tylenol vs Vicks: Which is searched more? Is Tylenol or Vicks more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Cold and flu 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**: Tylenol and Vicks - **Competitive set**: Cold and flu brands - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Tylenol Share of Search**: 21.7% - **Vicks Share of Search**: 24.8% ## Is Tylenol or Vicks more popular in search? - In September 2026, Vicks had more branded searches than Tylenol among cold and flu brands worldwide. Vicks had about 1.1 million branded searches, while Tylenol had 1 million. Vicks made up 24.8% of all cold and flu brand searches we track, and Tylenol accounted for 21.7%. - The lead changed hands 5 times in the 12 months ending September 2026: Vicks took it in December 2025, Tylenol took it in April 2026, Vicks took it in May 2026, Tylenol took it in August 2026, Vicks took it in September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Tylenol’s share of searches among cold and flu brands worldwide moved from 28.9% to 21.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.5M to 1M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Vicks’ share of searches among cold and flu brands worldwide moved from 26.9% to 24.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.4M to 1.1M. ## Top cold and flu brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Tylenol was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Vicks was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Tylenol was listed before Vicks 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Mucinex | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | DayQuil | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | NyQuil | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Sudafed | 4th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Tylenol | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Vicks | 6th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Strepsils | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Difflam | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Coldrex | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about cold and flu brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which cold and flu brand should I buy?": 1. Vicks, 2. DayQuil, 3. Mucinex, 4. NyQuil - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best cold and flu brands?": 1. Mucinex, 2. DayQuil, 3. NyQuil, 4. Tylenol, 5. Sudafed - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best cold and flu brand for cold symptoms?": 1. Mucinex, 2. DayQuil, 3. NyQuil, 4. Tylenol, 5. Sudafed - Searched Google, AI Overview "best cold medicine": 1. Sudafed, 2. Mucinex, 3. Tylenol - Searched Google, AI Overview "sore throat relief": named none of the brands we track Not named in any answer: Strepsils, Difflam and Coldrex. 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 cold and flu brands worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, Tylenol lost share of searches among cold and flu brands worldwide, from 26.8% to 21.7%. - Vicks’ share of searches among cold and flu brands worldwide has lost ground for 3 months in a row, from 26.2% to 24.8% in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Tylenol estimated searches | Tylenol Share of Search | Tylenol rank | Vicks estimated searches | Vicks Share of Search | Vicks rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 1.5M | 28.9% | 1 | 1.4M | 26.9% | 2 | | Nov 2025 | 1.2M | 25.4% | 1 | 1.2M | 24.5% | 2 | | Dec 2025 | 1M | 18.6% | 2 | 1.4M | 26% | 1 | | Jan 2026 | 1.2M | 22.7% | 2 | 1.4M | 26% | 1 | | Feb 2026 | 1M | 22.1% | 2 | 1.1M | 25.3% | 1 | | Mar 2026 | 1M | 22.9% | 2 | 1.1M | 24.2% | 1 | | Apr 2026 | 1M | 25.9% | 1 | 863K | 22.3% | 2 | | May 2026 | 823K | 23.1% | 2 | 844K | 23.7% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | 823K | 25% | 2 | 863K | 26.2% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | 823K | 25% | 2 | 863K | 26.2% | 1 | | Aug 2026 | 1M | 26.8% | 1 | 933K | 25% | 2 | | Sep 2026 | 1M | 21.7% | 2 | 1.1M | 24.8% | 1 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Tylenol’s and Vicks’ 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. - **Tylenol**: Measured on the search term “tylenol”. - **Vicks**: Measured on the search terms “vicks”, “vicks cough”, “vicks inhaler” and “vicks vaporub”, summed into one figure. - [Tylenol profile](/demand/global-en/brands/tylenol) - [Vicks profile](/demand/global-en/brands/vicks) - [All cold and flu brands worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/cold-and-flu-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 9 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 Tylenol or Vicks more popular in search? In September 2026, Vicks had more branded searches than Tylenol among cold and flu brands worldwide. Vicks had about 1.1 million branded searches, while Tylenol had 1 million. Vicks made up 24.8% of all cold and flu brand searches we track, and Tylenol accounted for 21.7%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Tylenol vs Vicks: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/tylenol-vs-vicks This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/tylenol-vs-vicks. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.