--- title: "iStock vs Unsplash: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?" description: "Which is more popular in search, iStock or Unsplash? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Stock image sites 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/istock-vs-unsplash" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # iStock vs Unsplash: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand? Which is more popular in search, iStock or Unsplash? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Stock image sites 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**: iStock and Unsplash - **Competitive set**: Stock image sites - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Aug 2026 - **iStock Share of Search**: 6.4% - **Unsplash Share of Search**: 34.3% ## Which is more popular in search, iStock or Unsplash? - In August 2026, Unsplash had more branded searches than iStock among stock image sites in New Zealand. Unsplash was estimated to have 12.3K branded searches compared to iStock’s 2.3K, and held a 34.3% Share of Search versus iStock’s 6.4%. - Unsplash was ahead of iStock in every measured month of the 11 months ending August 2026. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, iStock’s estimated Share of Search among stock image sites in New Zealand moved from 7.1% to 6.4%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 3K to 2.3K. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Unsplash’s estimated Share of Search among stock image sites in New Zealand moved from 26.8% to 34.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 11.2K to 12.3K. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand stock image sites in August 2026? - In August 2026, Unsplash gained estimated Share of Search among stock image sites in New Zealand, from 31.8% to 34.3%. - In August 2026, iStock lost estimated Share of Search among stock image sites in New Zealand, from 7% to 6.4%. ## Month by month | Month | iStock estimated searches | iStock Share of Search | iStock rank | Unsplash estimated searches | Unsplash Share of Search | Unsplash rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 3K | 7.1% | 6 | 11.2K | 26.8% | 2 | | Nov 2025 | 3K | 7.6% | 6 | 9.3K | 23.5% | 2 | | Dec 2025 | 2.1K | 7.6% | 6 | 6.3K | 22.8% | 2 | | Jan 2026 | 2.3K | 7.4% | 6 | 7.6K | 25% | 2 | | Feb 2026 | 3.1K | 8.9% | 6 | 9.3K | 26.1% | 2 | | Mar 2026 | 4K | 9.2% | 6 | 11.4K | 25.9% | 2 | | Apr 2026 | 2.7K | 7.8% | 6 | 9.4K | 27% | 2 | | May 2026 | 3.3K | 8.2% | 6 | 11.7K | 29.7% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | 3K | 7.6% | 6 | 12.4K | 30.7% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | 2.3K | 7% | 6 | 10.6K | 31.8% | 1 | | Aug 2026 | 2.3K | 6.4% | 6 | 12.3K | 34.3% | 1 | | Sep 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using iStock’s and Unsplash’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. - **iStock**: Measured on the search terms “istock”, “istock free”, “istock i”, “istock images”, “istock near me”, “istock nz”, “istock pictures” and “istockphoto com”, summed into one figure. - **Unsplash**: Measured on the search terms “images free unsplash”, “images unsplash”, “royalty free images unsplash”, “unsplash”, “unsplash com”, “unsplash free”, “unsplash free images”, “unsplash near me”, “unsplash new zealand”, “unsplash nz”, “unsplash online”, “unsplash photos” and “unsplash video”, summed into one figure. - [iStock profile](/demand/nz/brands/istock) - [Unsplash profile](/demand/nz/brands/unsplash) - [All stock image sites in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-stock-image-sites): 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, iStock or Unsplash? In August 2026, Unsplash had more branded searches than iStock among stock image sites in New Zealand. Unsplash was estimated to have 12.3K branded searches compared to iStock’s 2.3K, and held a 34.3% Share of Search versus iStock’s 6.4%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "iStock vs Unsplash: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/istock-vs-unsplash This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/istock-vs-unsplash. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.