--- title: "Valhalla DSP vs Waves: Which is more popular?" description: "Is Valhalla DSP or Waves more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Audio plugin 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/valhalla-dsp-vs-waves-audio" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Valhalla DSP vs Waves: Which is more popular? Is Valhalla DSP or Waves more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Audio plugin 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**: Valhalla DSP and Waves - **Competitive set**: Audio plugin brands - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Oct 2026 - **Valhalla DSP Share of Search**: 6.7% - **Waves Share of Search**: 5.5% ## Is Valhalla DSP or Waves more popular in search? - In October 2026, Valhalla DSP had more branded searches than Waves among audio plugin brands worldwide. Valhalla DSP had about 27,100 branded searches, while Waves had 22,200. Valhalla DSP made up 6.7% of all audio plugin brand searches we track, and Waves accounted for 5.5%. - Valhalla DSP was ahead of Waves in every measured month of the 12 months ending October 2026. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Valhalla DSP’s share of searches among audio plugin brands worldwide moved from 8.3% to 6.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 60.5K to 27.1K. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, Waves’ share of searches among audio plugin brands worldwide moved from 6.8% to 5.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 49.5K to 22.2K. ## Top audio plugin brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Waves was mentioned in three out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. Valhalla DSP was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Waves was listed before Valhalla DSP in two out of three answers that named either. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | FabFilter | 1st | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Waves | 2nd | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Soundtoys | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Universal Audio | 4th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | iZotope | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Native Instruments | 6th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Xfer Records | 7th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Plugin Alliance | 8th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Valhalla DSP | 9th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | u-he | 10th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Slate Digital | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Kilohearts | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Spectrasonics | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Output | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Eventide | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about audio plugin brands - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best VST plugins for mixing?": 1. FabFilter, 2. Soundtoys, 3. Universal Audio, 4. iZotope - Asked ChatGPT "Which companies make the best audio plugins?": 1. FabFilter, 2. Universal Audio, 3. iZotope, 4. Soundtoys, 5. Valhalla DSP, 6. Waves, 7. Plugin Alliance, 8. u-he - Asked ChatGPT "What plugins should I buy for music production?": 1. Xfer Records, 2. FabFilter, 3. Soundtoys, 4. Native Instruments - Searched Google, AI Overview "vst plugins": 1. Native Instruments, 2. Waves, 3. iZotope - Searched Google, AI Overview "audio plugins": 1. Waves, 2. Plugin Alliance Not named in any answer: Slate Digital, Kilohearts, Spectrasonics, Output and Eventide. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 27, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for audio plugin brands worldwide in October 2026? - In October 2026, Slate Digital overtook iZotope and 3 others to rank 3rd among audio plugin brands worldwide, with 15% of the searches. - In October 2026, Valhalla DSP lost share of searches among audio plugin brands worldwide, from 8.5% to 6.7%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Waves worldwide fell 55.2% over 12 measured months, from 49.5K to 22.2K in October 2026. ## How has branded search for Valhalla DSP and Waves changed worldwide over the last 12 months? | Month | Valhalla DSP estimated searches | Valhalla DSP Share of Search | Valhalla DSP rank | Waves estimated searches | Waves Share of Search | Waves rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Nov 2025 | 60.5K | 8.3% | 6 | 49.5K | 6.8% | 8 | | Dec 2025 | 40.5K | 5% | 7 | 27.1K | 3.3% | 9 | | Jan 2026 | 40.5K | 8.9% | 5 | 27.1K | 5.9% | 8 | | Feb 2026 | 33.1K | 9% | 4 | 22.2K | 6% | 8 | | Mar 2026 | 33.1K | 8.4% | 6 | 22.2K | 5.6% | 8 | | Apr 2026 | 33.1K | 8.2% | 6 | 22.2K | 5.5% | 9 | | May 2026 | 33.1K | 8.8% | 5 | 22.2K | 5.9% | 8 | | Jun 2026 | 27.1K | 7.9% | 7 | 18.1K | 5.3% | 9 | | Jul 2026 | 27.1K | 7.9% | 6 | 18.1K | 5.3% | 9 | | Aug 2026 | 27.1K | 8.3% | 6 | 18.1K | 5.6% | 8 | | Sep 2026 | 27.1K | 8.5% | 6 | 18.1K | 5.7% | 8 | | Oct 2026 | 27.1K | 6.7% | 7 | 22.2K | 5.5% | 8 | ## How are Valhalla DSP’s and Waves’ branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Valhalla DSP’s and Waves’ 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. - **Valhalla DSP**: Measured on the search term “valhalla dsp”. - **Waves**: Measured on the search term “waves plugins”. - [Valhalla DSP profile](/demand/global-en/brands/valhalla-dsp) - [Waves profile](/demand/global-en/brands/waves-audio) - [All audio plugin brands worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/audio-plugin-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 15 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 Valhalla DSP or Waves more popular in search? In October 2026, Valhalla DSP had more branded searches than Waves among audio plugin brands worldwide. Valhalla DSP had about 27,100 branded searches, while Waves had 22,200. Valhalla DSP made up 6.7% of all audio plugin brand searches we track, and Waves accounted for 5.5%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Valhalla DSP vs Waves: Which is more popular?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/valhalla-dsp-vs-waves-audio This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/valhalla-dsp-vs-waves-audio. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.