--- title: "Apple AirPods vs Sony: Which is searched more in New Zealand?" description: "Is Apple AirPods or Sony more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Bluetooth headphones brands set in New Zealand. 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/nz/categories/nz-bluetooth-headphones-brands/compare/airpods-vs-sony" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Apple AirPods vs Sony: Which is searched more in New Zealand? Is Apple AirPods or Sony more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Bluetooth headphones brands set in New Zealand. 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**: Apple AirPods and Sony - **Competitive set**: Bluetooth headphones brands - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Apple AirPods Share of Search**: 51.4% - **Sony Share of Search**: 10.5% ## Is Apple AirPods or Sony more popular in search? - In September 2026, Apple AirPods had more branded searches than Sony among bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand. Apple AirPods had about 83,700 branded searches, while Sony had 17,100. Apple AirPods made up 51.4% of all bluetooth headphones brand searches we track, and Sony accounted for 10.5%. - Apple AirPods was ahead of Sony in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Apple AirPods’ share of searches among bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand moved from 52.2% to 51.4%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 73.7K to 83.7K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Sony’s share of searches among bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand moved from 10.8% to 10.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 15.2K to 17.1K. ## Top bluetooth headphones brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Sony appeared in all five answers. Apple AirPods was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Sony was listed before Apple AirPods in every answer. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sony | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Bose | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Sennheiser | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | JBL | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Apple AirPods | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Skullcandy | 6th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Beats | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Samsung | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about bluetooth headphones brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which Bluetooth headphones brand should I buy in New Zealand?": 1. Sony, 2. Bose, 3. Sennheiser, 4. JBL, 5. Apple AirPods - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best Bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand?": 1. Sony, 2. Bose, 3. Sennheiser, 4. JBL, 5. Apple AirPods - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best Bluetooth headphones brand in New Zealand for everyday listening?": 1. Sony, 2. Bose, 3. Sennheiser, 4. JBL - Searched Google, AI Overview "wireless headphones nz": 1. Sony, 2. Apple AirPods, 3. Bose, 4. Sennheiser, 5. JBL, 6. Skullcandy - Searched Google, AI Overview "bluetooth headphones nz": 1. Sony, 2. JBL Not named in any answer: Beats and Samsung. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in New Zealand on October 19, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand bluetooth headphones brands in September 2026? - In September 2026, Sony gained share of searches among bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand, from 9.1% to 10.5%. - In September 2026, Apple AirPods lost share of searches among bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand, from 53.4% to 51.4%. ## Month by month | Month | Apple AirPods estimated searches | Apple AirPods Share of Search | Apple AirPods rank | Sony estimated searches | Sony Share of Search | Sony rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 73.7K | 52.2% | 1 | 15.2K | 10.8% | 3 | | Nov 2025 | 97.9K | 51.4% | 1 | 20.5K | 10.8% | 3 | | Dec 2025 | 94.8K | 46.1% | 1 | 19.2K | 9.3% | 3 | | Jan 2026 | 66K | 49.6% | 1 | 14.4K | 10.8% | 3 | | Feb 2026 | 66K | 55% | 1 | 12.8K | 10.7% | 3 | | Mar 2026 | 72K | 54.9% | 1 | 14.3K | 10.9% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | 66.8K | 50.6% | 1 | 14.3K | 10.8% | 3 | | May 2026 | 75.5K | 52.8% | 1 | 15.2K | 10.6% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | 77K | 52.5% | 1 | 15K | 10.2% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | 75.5K | 51.7% | 1 | 15.6K | 10.7% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | 84.5K | 53.4% | 1 | 14.4K | 9.1% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | 83.7K | 51.4% | 1 | 17.1K | 10.5% | 3 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Apple AirPods’ and Sony’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. - **Apple AirPods**: Measured on the search terms “airpods”, “airpods 2”, “airpods 3”, “airpods 3 pro”, “airpods 4”, “airpods max”, “airpods pro”, “apple airpods”, “apple airpods 4”, “apple airpods max”, “apple airpods pro” and “find mine airpods”, summed into one figure. - **Sony**: Measured on the search terms “sony”, “sony camara”, “sony cyber shot”, “sony wh 1000xm4”, “sony wh 1000xm5” and “sony wh 1000xm6”, summed into one figure. - [Apple AirPods profile](/demand/nz/brands/airpods) - [Sony profile](/demand/nz/brands/sony) - [All bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-bluetooth-headphones-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 8 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 Apple AirPods or Sony more popular in search? In September 2026, Apple AirPods had more branded searches than Sony among bluetooth headphones brands in New Zealand. Apple AirPods had about 83,700 branded searches, while Sony had 17,100. Apple AirPods made up 51.4% of all bluetooth headphones brand searches we track, and Sony accounted for 10.5%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Apple AirPods vs Sony: Which is searched more in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-bluetooth-headphones-brands/compare/airpods-vs-sony This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-bluetooth-headphones-brands/compare/airpods-vs-sony. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.