--- title: "Kathmandu vs Lee: Which is searched more in New Zealand?" description: "Is Kathmandu or Lee more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Cargo shorts 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/kathmandu-vs-lee-jeans" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Kathmandu vs Lee: Which is searched more in New Zealand? Is Kathmandu or Lee more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Cargo shorts 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**: Kathmandu and Lee - **Competitive set**: Cargo shorts brands - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Kathmandu Share of Search**: 16.6% - **Lee Share of Search**: 0.09% ## Is Kathmandu or Lee more popular in search? - In September 2026, Kathmandu had more branded searches than Lee among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand. Kathmandu had about 57,600 branded searches, while Lee had 320. Kathmandu made up 16.6% of all cargo shorts brand searches we track, and Lee accounted for 0.09%. - Kathmandu was ahead of Lee in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Kathmandu’s share of searches among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand moved from 16.4% to 16.6%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 57.4K to 57.6K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Lee’s share of searches among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand moved from 0.11% to 0.09%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 390 to 320. ## Top cargo shorts brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Kathmandu was mentioned in two out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Lee did not appear in any of the 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Mountain Warehouse | 1st | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Hard Yakka | 2nd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Kathmandu | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Stoney Creek | 4th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Cotton On | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | AS Colour | 6th | 0 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Helly Hansen | 7th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Lee | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Wrangler | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Dickies | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about cargo shorts brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which cargo shorts brand should I buy in New Zealand?": 1. Hard Yakka, 2. Mountain Warehouse, 3. Helly Hansen, 4. Cotton On - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best cargo shorts brands in New Zealand?": 1. Hard Yakka, 2. Stoney Creek, 3. Kathmandu, 4. Cotton On, 5. Helly Hansen - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best cargo shorts brand in New Zealand for hot weather wear?": 1. Kathmandu, 2. Stoney Creek, 3. Mountain Warehouse - Searched Google, AI Overview "cargo shorts nz": 1. Mountain Warehouse, 2. Cotton On, 3. AS Colour, 4. Hard Yakka - Searched Google, AI Overview "mens cargo shorts": 1. Mountain Warehouse, 2. AS Colour Not named in any answer: Lee, Wrangler and Dickies. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in New Zealand on October 20, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand cargo shorts brands in September 2026? - In September 2026, Kathmandu lost share of searches among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand, from 17.7% to 16.6%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Lee in New Zealand fell 17.9% over 12 measured months, from 390 to 320 in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Kathmandu estimated searches | Kathmandu Share of Search | Kathmandu rank | Lee estimated searches | Lee Share of Search | Lee rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 57.4K | 16.4% | 2 | 390 | 0.11% | 8 | | Nov 2025 | 84.7K | 16.8% | 2 | 390 | 0.08% | 8 | | Dec 2025 | 89.6K | 17.7% | 2 | 260 | 0.05% | 8 | | Jan 2026 | 74.2K | 19.9% | 2 | 320 | 0.09% | 8 | | Feb 2026 | 59K | 17.2% | 2 | 390 | 0.11% | 8 | | Mar 2026 | 70.3K | 16.9% | 2 | 390 | 0.09% | 8 | | Apr 2026 | 84.9K | 19.6% | 2 | 390 | 0.09% | 8 | | May 2026 | 72.2K | 17.1% | 2 | 480 | 0.11% | 8 | | Jun 2026 | 86.5K | 21.7% | 2 | 480 | 0.12% | 8 | | Jul 2026 | 87.7K | 21% | 3 | 480 | 0.11% | 8 | | Aug 2026 | 69.9K | 17.7% | 3 | 480 | 0.12% | 8 | | Sep 2026 | 57.6K | 16.6% | 2 | 320 | 0.09% | 8 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Kathmandu’s and Lee’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. - **Kathmandu**: Measured on the search terms “Kathmandu”, “kathmandu bayfair”, “kathmandu beach shelter”, “kathmandu beach trolley”, “kathmandu botany”, “kathmandu gloves”, “kathmandu lyall bay”, “kathmandu northland”, “kathmandu outlet”, “kathmandu retreat 280”, “kathmandu retreat 80”, “kathmandu socks”, “kathmandu st lukes”, “kathmandu sylvia park”, “kathmandu tower junction”, “kathmandu trolley”, “kathmandu vest”, “kathmandu waitakere” and “kathmandu westgate”, summed into one figure. - **Lee**: Measured on the search term “lee jeans”. - [Kathmandu profile](/demand/nz/brands/kathmandu) - [Lee profile](/demand/nz/brands/lee-jeans) - [All cargo shorts brands in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-cargo-shorts-brands): 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 Kathmandu or Lee more popular in search? In September 2026, Kathmandu had more branded searches than Lee among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand. Kathmandu had about 57,600 branded searches, while Lee had 320. Kathmandu made up 16.6% of all cargo shorts brand searches we track, and Lee accounted for 0.09%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Kathmandu vs Lee: Which is searched more in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/kathmandu-vs-lee-jeans This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/kathmandu-vs-lee-jeans. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.