Brandwave

Lee vs Mountain Warehouse:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Mountain Warehouse had more branded searches than Lee among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand. Mountain Warehouse had about 49,500 branded searches, while Lee had 320. Mountain Warehouse made up 14.3% of all cargo shorts brand searches we track, and Lee accounted for 0.09%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about cargo shorts brands, Mountain Warehouse appeared in four of the five answers and Lee in none.

Among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Mountain Warehouse, about 155 searches for every 1 for Lee

Mountain Warehouse 49.5K searchesLee 320 searches

Who does AI mention more?

Mountain Warehouse, mentioned in 4 of 5 answers, Lee in 0

Mountain Warehouse in 4 of 5Lee in 0 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Mountain Warehouse, the only one of the two named

Mountain Warehouse first in 4Lee never named

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Top cargo shorts brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Mountain Warehouse was mentioned in four out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. Lee did not appear in any of the five answers.

Most recommended by AI

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

  1. Mountain Warehouse1st
  2. Hard Yakka2nd
  3. Kathmandu3rd
  4. Stoney Creek4th
  5. Cotton On5th
  6. AS Colour6th
  7. Helly Hansen7th
  8. Lee–
  9. Wrangler–
  10. Dickies–

Mentioned by AI

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

  • Mountain Warehouse4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Cotton On3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Hard Yakka3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Kathmandu2 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • AS Colour2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Stoney Creek2 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Helly Hansen2 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Lee0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Wrangler0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Dickies0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about cargo shorts brands

5 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 20, 2026.

Is Lee or Mountain Warehouse more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Lee and Mountain Warehouse by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten cargo shorts brands we track, month by month, from searches in New Zealand.

Lee and Mountain Warehouse among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand, by month

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

View monthly share of searches table
MonthCotton OnKathmanduMountain WarehouseAS ColourStoney CreekHard YakkaHelly HansenLeeWranglerDickies
Oct 202554.6%16.4%14.1%11.5%2.3%0.61%0.37%0.11%0.02%0.01%
Nov 202556.1%16.8%12%12%2.4%0.4%0.32%0.08%0.01%<0.01%
Dec 202555.2%17.7%14.6%9.8%2%0.31%0.47%0.05%0.01%<0.01%
Jan 202651.6%19.9%16.2%8.9%2.2%0.56%0.51%0.09%<0.01%<0.01%
Feb 202655.3%17.2%14.4%9.6%2.4%0.6%0.38%0.11%0.01%<0.01%
Mar 202655.1%16.9%14.5%9.7%2.9%0.52%0.31%0.09%0.01%<0.01%
Apr 202652.7%19.6%13.9%9.3%3.4%0.54%0.37%0.09%0.02%<0.01%
May 202654.3%17.1%14.3%9.6%3.5%0.61%0.38%0.11%0.02%<0.01%
Jun 202647.1%21.7%15.2%10.2%4.5%0.72%0.4%0.12%0.02%<0.01%
Jul 202644.9%21%21.6%7.9%3.5%0.62%0.38%0.11%0.02%<0.01%
Aug 202648.9%17.7%18.8%10.3%3.1%0.58%0.48%0.12%0.02%<0.01%
Sep 202655.7%16.6%14.3%9.5%2.9%0.6%0.37%0.09%0.02%0.01%

How has the Lee and Mountain Warehouse comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for New Zealand cargo shorts brands in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Mountain Warehouse lost share of searches among cargo shorts brands in New Zealand, from 18.8% to 14.3%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Lee in New Zealand fell 17.9% over 12 measured months, from 390 to 320 in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Lee’s and Mountain Warehouse’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.

Lee

1 branded search term

  • lee jeans

Mountain Warehouse

1 branded search term

  • mountain warehouse

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among cargo shorts brands

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