--- title: "Icebreaker vs Smartwool: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?" description: "Which is more popular in search, Icebreaker or Smartwool? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Merino clothing 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/compare/icebreaker-vs-smartwool" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Icebreaker vs Smartwool: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand? Which is more popular in search, Icebreaker or Smartwool? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Merino clothing 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**: Icebreaker and Smartwool - **Competitive set**: Merino clothing brands - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Aug 2026 - **Icebreaker Share of Search**: 18.5% - **Smartwool Share of Search**: 6.5% ## Which is more popular in search, Icebreaker or Smartwool? - In August 2026, Icebreaker had more branded searches than Smartwool among merino clothing brands in New Zealand. Icebreaker was estimated to have 7.9K branded searches compared to Smartwool’s 2.8K, and held an 18.5% Share of Search versus Smartwool’s 6.5%. - Icebreaker was ahead of Smartwool in every measured month of the 11 months ending August 2026. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Icebreaker’s estimated Share of Search among merino clothing brands in New Zealand moved from 23% to 18.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 6.2K to 7.9K. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Smartwool’s estimated Share of Search among merino clothing brands in New Zealand moved from 3.9% to 6.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.1K to 2.8K. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand merino clothing brands in August 2026? - In August 2026, Smartwool lost estimated Share of Search among merino clothing brands in New Zealand, from 7.1% to 6.5%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Icebreaker in New Zealand rose 26.2% over 11 measured months, from 6.2K to 7.9K in August 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Icebreaker estimated searches | Icebreaker Share of Search | Icebreaker rank | Smartwool estimated searches | Smartwool Share of Search | Smartwool rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 6.2K | 23% | 3 | 1.1K | 3.9% | 4 | | Nov 2025 | 7.4K | 22.7% | 3 | 1.4K | 4.4% | 4 | | Dec 2025 | 6.2K | 19.7% | 3 | 1.3K | 4.1% | 4 | | Jan 2026 | 5.2K | 17.9% | 3 | 1.2K | 4.3% | 4 | | Feb 2026 | 5.2K | 17.3% | 3 | 1.2K | 4% | 4 | | Mar 2026 | 6.5K | 17.4% | 3 | 1.4K | 3.8% | 4 | | Apr 2026 | 7.8K | 19.6% | 3 | 1.9K | 4.8% | 4 | | May 2026 | 7.9K | 18.7% | 3 | 2.5K | 5.9% | 4 | | Jun 2026 | 7.9K | 20% | 3 | 2.3K | 5.9% | 4 | | Jul 2026 | 8.1K | 18.8% | 3 | 3K | 7.1% | 4 | | Aug 2026 | 7.9K | 18.5% | 3 | 2.8K | 6.5% | 4 | | Sep 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Icebreaker’s and Smartwool’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. - **Icebreaker**: Measured on the search terms “icebreaker base layer”, “icebreaker clothing”, “icebreaker clothing sale”, “icebreaker jacket”, “icebreaker merino”, “icebreaker merino 260”, “icebreaker merino beanie”, “icebreaker merino wool”, “icebreaker nz” and “icebreaker thermals”, summed into one figure. - **Smartwool**: Measured on the search terms “smartwool”, “smartwool base layer”, “smartwool classic thermal merino”, “smartwool classic thermal merino 1 4 zip”, “smartwool classic thermal merino base layer”, “smartwool classic thermal merino base layer crew”, “smartwool classic thermal merino crew”, “smartwool com”, “smartwool hiking socks”, “smartwool ladies socks”, “smartwool merino”, “smartwool merino base layer”, “smartwool merino socks”, “smartwool merino wool socks”, “smartwool near me”, “smartwool nz”, “smartwool online”, “smartwool running socks”, “smartwool socks”, “smartwool thermal merino balaclava”, “smartwool thermal merino reversible cuffed beanie” and “smartwool thermals”, summed into one figure. - [Icebreaker profile](/demand/nz/brands/icebreaker) - [Smartwool profile](/demand/nz/brands/smartwool) - [All merino clothing brands in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-merino-clothing-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 6 brands. ## Methodology - [How is branded search demand measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Which is more popular in search, Icebreaker or Smartwool? In August 2026, Icebreaker had more branded searches than Smartwool among merino clothing brands in New Zealand. Icebreaker was estimated to have 7.9K branded searches compared to Smartwool’s 2.8K, and held an 18.5% Share of Search versus Smartwool’s 6.5%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Icebreaker vs Smartwool: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/icebreaker-vs-smartwool This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/icebreaker-vs-smartwool. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.