Brandwave

Chemist Warehouse vs Sephora:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Chemist Warehouse had more branded searches than Sephora among beauty retailers in New Zealand. Chemist Warehouse had about 702,000 branded searches, while Sephora had 23,600. Chemist Warehouse made up 80% of all beauty retailer searches we track, and Sephora accounted for 2.7%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about beauty retailers, Chemist Warehouse and Sephora each appeared in three of the four answers. Sephora was mentioned before Chemist Warehouse in two out of three answers.

Among beauty retailers in New Zealand in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Chemist Warehouse, about 30 searches for every 1 for Sephora

Chemist Warehouse 702K searchesSephora 23.6K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Both were mentioned in 3 of 4 answers.

Chemist Warehouse in 3 of 4Sephora in 3 of 4

Who does AI recommend more?

Sephora, named ahead of Chemist Warehouse in 2 of 3 answers

Sephora first in 2Chemist Warehouse first in 1

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Top beauty retailers in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and one Google AI Overview, Chemist Warehouse and Sephora were each mentioned in three out of four: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in the Google AI Overview. Sephora was listed before Chemist Warehouse in two out of three answers.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. MECCA1st
  2. Sephora2nd
  3. Chemist Warehouse3rd
  4. Hikoco4th
  5. Adore Beauty4th
  6. Stylevana–
  7. YesStyle–
  8. Beauty Bliss–
  9. Cult Beauty–
  10. Lookfantastic–

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • MECCA4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Chemist Warehouse3 of 4Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Sephora3 of 4Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Hikoco2 of 4Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Adore Beauty1 of 4Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • Stylevana0 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • YesStyle0 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • Beauty Bliss0 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • Cult Beauty0 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • Lookfantastic0 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers

See every answer about beauty retailers

4 answers

Not named in any answer:

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in New Zealand on October 19, 2026.

Is Chemist Warehouse or Sephora more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Chemist Warehouse and Sephora by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten beauty retailers we track, month by month, from searches in New Zealand.

Chemist Warehouse and Sephora among beauty retailers in New Zealand, by month

Share of searches by month for Chemist Warehouse, Sephora. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthChemist WarehouseMECCAHikocoSephoraStylevanaYesStyleAdore BeautyBeauty BlissCult BeautyLookfantastic
Oct 202581%8.8%5.6%3%0.37%0.46%0.46%0.13%0.13%0.06%
Nov 202579.3%10.2%5.4%3.5%0.37%0.37%0.55%0.2%0.11%0.04%
Dec 202575.8%14.1%5.3%3.3%0.34%0.41%0.51%0.12%0.07%0.05%
Jan 202680%9.9%5.6%2.8%0.52%0.42%0.42%0.15%0.08%0.04%
Feb 202678.2%12.1%5.6%2.9%0.34%0.43%0.34%0.12%0.06%0.04%
Mar 202680.5%8.4%6.4%2.8%0.52%0.52%0.52%0.15%0.06%0.04%
Apr 202678.5%9.8%7.3%2.8%0.42%0.51%0.42%0.15%0.07%0.04%
May 202680.5%8.4%6.4%2.9%0.43%0.52%0.52%0.15%0.05%0.04%
Jun 202680.9%8.4%6.2%2.9%0.53%0.53%0.43%0.16%0.05%0.04%
Jul 202679.1%10%6.3%2.8%0.51%0.51%0.42%0.15%0.05%0.05%
Aug 202679.4%10%6.1%2.8%0.52%0.52%0.42%0.19%0.06%0.05%
Sep 202680%9.6%6%2.7%0.5%0.5%0.41%0.18%0.07%0.04%

How has the Chemist Warehouse and Sephora comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for New Zealand beauty retailers in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Chemist Warehouse gained share of searches among beauty retailers in New Zealand, from 79.4% to 80%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Sephora in New Zealand fell 17.5% over 12 measured months, from 28.6K to 23.6K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

10 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Chemist Warehouse’s and Sephora’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.

Chemist Warehouse

6 branded search terms

  • Chemist Warehouse
  • chemist warehouse hours
  • chemist warehouse lynnmall
  • chemist warehouse nz
  • chemist warehouse westgate
  • the chemist warehouse

Sephora

4 branded search terms

  • sephora
  • sephora makeup
  • sephora skincare
  • sephora sylvia park

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among beauty retailers

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