Brandwave

Fried chicken chains in New Zealand:Which brands are most popular in search?

In August 2026, KFC was the most searched among fried chicken chains in New Zealand, with an estimated 301K branded searches and 81% estimated Share of Search within this set.

Share of Search, August 2026
  1. KFC81%
  2. Popeyes11.1%
  3. Nando's7.8%
  4. Lord of the Fries0.12%

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Share of SearchLeaderboard

Compare the fried chicken chains New Zealanders order from. 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.

Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand, by month

Share of Search by month for KFC, Popeyes, Nando's. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of search table
MonthKFCPopeyesNando'sLord of the Fries
Oct 202585.7%8.9%5.4%0.11%
Nov 202583.7%10.2%6%0.13%
Dec 202583.6%10%6.2%0.15%
Jan 202680%12.3%7.5%0.16%
Feb 202682.1%10.8%6.9%0.2%
Mar 202681.4%10.6%7.8%0.17%
Apr 202680.5%11.3%8%0.14%
May 202680.7%10.8%8.4%0.13%
Jun 202681.4%10.7%7.7%0.11%
Jul 202681.4%10.3%8.2%0.11%
Aug 202681%11.1%7.8%0.12%
Sep 2026————

This month’s ranking, August 2026

  1. 1.KFC

    81%

    held 1st · 301K estimated branded searches · -4.2% vs prior month · -0.5 points

  2. 2.Popeyes

    11.1%

    held 2nd · 41.2K estimated branded searches · +4% vs prior month · +0.8 points

  3. 3.Nando's

    7.8%

    held 3rd · 29.2K estimated branded searches · -7.7% vs prior month · -0.4 points

  4. 4.Lord of the Fries

    0.12%

    held 4th · 430 estimated branded searches · +2.4% vs prior month · 0 points

Compare search popularity between leading brands

Which brand is most popular in search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand?

In August 2026, KFC was the most searched among fried chicken chains in New Zealand, with an estimated 301K branded searches and 81% estimated Share of Search within this set. Popeyes is in 2nd place, 69.9 percentage points behind at 11.1% Share of Search.

New Zealand fried chicken chains, last 12 months ending September 2026
BrandShare of SearchPeakLowRank
KFC85.7% → 81%85.7%Oct 202580%Jan 20261st
Popeyes8.9% → 11.1%12.3%Jan 20268.9%Oct 20252nd
Nando's5.4% → 7.8%8.4%May 20265.4%Oct 20253rd
Lord of the Fries0.11% → 0.12%0.2%Feb 20260.11%Oct 20254th

Each finding as a sentence

  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, KFC’s estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand decreased from 85.7% to 81%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Popeyes’ estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand increased from 8.9% to 11.1%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Nando's’ estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand increased from 5.4% to 7.8%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, KFC’s estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand peaked at 85.7% in October 2025 and was lowest at 80% in January 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Popeyes’ estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand peaked at 12.3% in January 2026 and was lowest at 8.9% in October 2025.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Nando's’ estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand peaked at 8.4% in May 2026 and was lowest at 5.4% in October 2025.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Lord of the Fries held steady: its estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

How did search popularity change for New Zealand fried chicken chains in August 2026?

  1. In August 2026, Popeyes gained estimated Share of Search among fried chicken chains in New Zealand, from 10.3% to 11.1%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for KFC in New Zealand fell 34.2% over 11 measured months, from 458K to 301K in August 2026.

  3. Estimated monthly branded searches for Lord of the Fries in New Zealand fell 25.9% over 11 measured months, from 580 to 430 in August 2026.

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