--- title: "Instagram vs WhatsApp: Which is searched more in New Zealand?" description: "Is Instagram or WhatsApp more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Social media platforms 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/instagram-vs-whatsapp" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Instagram vs WhatsApp: Which is searched more in New Zealand? Is Instagram or WhatsApp more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Social media platforms 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**: Instagram and WhatsApp - **Competitive set**: Social media platforms - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Instagram Share of Search**: 7.1% - **WhatsApp Share of Search**: 2.3% ## Is Instagram or WhatsApp more popular in search? - In September 2026, Instagram had more branded searches than WhatsApp among social media platforms in New Zealand. Instagram had about 564,000 branded searches, while WhatsApp had 184,000. Instagram made up 7.1% of all social media platform searches we track, and WhatsApp accounted for 2.3%. - Instagram was ahead of WhatsApp in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Instagram’s share of searches among social media platforms in New Zealand moved from 8.7% to 7.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 689K to 564K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, WhatsApp’s share of searches among social media platforms in New Zealand moved from 2.1% to 2.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 165K to 184K. ## Top social media platforms in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Instagram appeared in all five answers. WhatsApp was mentioned in two out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in both Google AI Overviews. Instagram was listed before WhatsApp in four out of five answers. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Facebook | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Instagram | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | TikTok | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | YouTube | 4th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | WhatsApp | 5th | 0 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | LinkedIn | 6th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Reddit | 7th | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Snapchat | 8th | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Pinterest | 9th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Threads | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about social media platforms - Asked ChatGPT "Which social media platform should I use in New Zealand?": 1. Facebook, 2. Instagram, 3. TikTok, 4. LinkedIn, 5. Reddit - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best social media platforms in New Zealand?": 1. Facebook, 2. Instagram, 3. TikTok, 4. YouTube, 5. LinkedIn, 6. Reddit, 7. Snapchat, 8. Pinterest - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best social media platform in New Zealand for sharing and browsing?": 1. Facebook, 2. Instagram, 3. TikTok, 4. Reddit, 5. YouTube - Searched Google, AI Overview "social media platforms nz": 1. Facebook, 2. Instagram, 3. WhatsApp, 4. YouTube, 5. TikTok, 6. Pinterest, 7. LinkedIn, 8. Snapchat - Searched Google, AI Overview "popular social media apps": 1. Facebook, 2. YouTube, 3. WhatsApp, 4. Instagram, 5. TikTok, 6. Snapchat, 7. Reddit Not named in any answer: Threads. 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 social media platforms in September 2026? - In September 2026, WhatsApp rose from 8th to 7th among social media platforms in New Zealand. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Instagram in New Zealand fell 18.1% over 12 measured months, from 689K to 564K in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Instagram estimated searches | Instagram Share of Search | Instagram rank | WhatsApp estimated searches | WhatsApp Share of Search | WhatsApp rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 689K | 8.7% | 3 | 165K | 2.1% | 8 | | Nov 2025 | 565K | 7.3% | 3 | 151K | 1.9% | 8 | | Dec 2025 | 566K | 7.4% | 3 | 124K | 1.6% | 8 | | Jan 2026 | 567K | 7.3% | 3 | 151K | 2% | 8 | | Feb 2026 | 564K | 7.2% | 3 | 151K | 1.9% | 8 | | Mar 2026 | 688K | 7.7% | 3 | 184K | 2% | 8 | | Apr 2026 | 564K | 7.1% | 3 | 165K | 2.1% | 8 | | May 2026 | 689K | 8.4% | 3 | 184K | 2.3% | 7 | | Jun 2026 | 565K | 7% | 3 | 184K | 2.3% | 7 | | Jul 2026 | 565K | 7.2% | 3 | 165K | 2.1% | 8 | | Aug 2026 | 564K | 7% | 3 | 184K | 2.3% | 8 | | Sep 2026 | 564K | 7.1% | 3 | 184K | 2.3% | 7 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Instagram’s and WhatsApp’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. - **Instagram**: Measured on the search terms “instagram”, “instagram advertising”, “instagram app”, “instagram c”, “instagram followers”, “instagram followers tracker”, “instagram hacked”, “instagram kim kardashian”, “instagram lite”, “instagram plus”, “instagram search”, “instagram social media”, “instagram view” and “snap instagram”, summed into one figure. - **WhatsApp**: Measured on the search terms “jibi whatsapp”, “my whatsapp”, “whatsapp”, “whatsapp web” and “whatsapp windows”, summed into one figure. - [Instagram profile](/demand/nz/brands/instagram) - [WhatsApp profile](/demand/nz/brands/whatsapp) - [All social media platforms in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-social-media-platforms): The set both shares are measured inside, 10 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 Instagram or WhatsApp more popular in search? In September 2026, Instagram had more branded searches than WhatsApp among social media platforms in New Zealand. Instagram had about 564,000 branded searches, while WhatsApp had 184,000. Instagram made up 7.1% of all social media platform searches we track, and WhatsApp accounted for 2.3%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Instagram vs WhatsApp: Which is searched more in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/instagram-vs-whatsapp This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/instagram-vs-whatsapp. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.