Brandwave

Lion Red vs Monteith's:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Lion Red and Monteith's were level in searches among beer brands in New Zealand, with an estimated 1.4K versus 1.5K branded searches, at 3% and 3.1% of the total. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about beer brands, Monteith's appeared in two of the five answers and Lion Red in one. Lion Red and Monteith's were each mentioned first in one of the two answers that named either.

Among beer brands in New Zealand in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Monteith's and Lion Red are searched for about as often as each other.

Monteith's 1.5K searchesLion Red 1.4K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Monteith's, mentioned in 2 of 5 answers, Lion Red in 1

Monteith's in 2 of 5Lion Red in 1 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Each is named first in 1 of 2 answers.

Lion Red first in 1Monteith's first in 1

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Top beer brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Monteith's was mentioned in two out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in both Google AI Overviews. Lion Red was mentioned in one out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Lion Red and Monteith's were each listed first in one of the two answers that named either.

Most recommended by AI

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

  1. Steinlager1st
  2. Speight's2nd
  3. Garage Project3rd
  4. Panhead4th
  5. Tui5th
  6. Monteith's6th
  7. Parrotdog7th
  8. Lion Red8th
  9. Export Gold9th
  10. Heineken–
  11. +3 more

Mentioned by AI

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

  • Steinlager5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Speight's4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Garage Project4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Panhead4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Tui4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Parrotdog3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Monteith's2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Export Gold1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Lion Red1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Heineken0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

+3 more

See every answer about beer 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 Lion Red or Monteith's more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Lion Red and Monteith's by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all 13 beer brands we track, month by month, from searches in New Zealand.

Lion Red and Monteith's among beer brands in New Zealand, by month

Share of searches by month for Monteith's, Lion Red. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthSpeight'sSteinlagerHeinekenGarage ProjectCoronaPanheadParrotdogTuiExport GoldMonteith'sLion RedDB ExportMac's
Oct 202520.3%12.5%11.7%11.6%7%6.5%11.1%6.4%4%3.5%2.8%1.4%1.5%
Nov 202520.8%13.8%11.1%10.9%6.4%6%12.6%5.4%3.7%3.3%3.4%1.2%1.3%
Dec 202523.3%13.4%10.6%10.3%7.4%6.3%9.9%5%4.3%3.7%3.2%1.2%1.2%
Jan 202624%13.4%10.4%9.7%5.8%6.9%9.4%5.9%4.1%5.2%2.9%1.1%1.3%
Feb 202626.9%13.3%11.3%10.3%6.2%6.8%6.6%5.6%3.6%4.3%3%0.85%1.1%
Mar 202624.5%15.6%11.3%10.1%5.9%6.5%6.6%6.1%4.2%4.3%3.1%0.91%0.97%
Apr 202623.7%13%12.3%9.9%6.8%6.2%7.7%6.4%4.2%4.3%3.4%0.97%1.1%
May 202622%12.7%12.6%9.7%6.7%6.1%9.3%6.5%4.1%5%3.2%0.9%0.93%
Jun 202621.7%13.8%13.9%10.9%6.2%6.1%8.3%5.5%4.5%3.7%3.4%0.83%1.2%
Jul 202622%14.3%12.5%9.5%7.6%6.1%7.7%7%4.8%3.4%2.9%0.79%1.4%
Aug 202620.3%15.2%12%10.7%7.5%7.2%8.6%5.8%4.4%3.1%3.1%0.92%1.1%
Sep 202621.7%14.9%13.4%10.5%7.4%6.9%6.8%5.6%4.2%3.1%3%1.3%1.2%

How has the Lion Red and Monteith's comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings
  • The lead changed hands 2 times in the 12 months ending September 2026: Lion Red took it in November 2025, Monteith's took it in December 2025.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Lion Red’s share of searches among beer brands in New Zealand moved from 2.8% to 3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 1.4K.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Monteith's’ share of searches among beer brands in New Zealand moved from 3.5% to 3.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.8K to 1.5K.

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

1 change

  1. Estimated monthly branded searches for Monteith's in New Zealand fell 16.9% over 12 measured months, from 1.8K to 1.5K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

8 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Lion Red’s and Monteith'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.

Lion Red

4 branded search terms

  • lion red
  • lion red beer
  • lion red singlet
  • lionred

Monteith's

4 branded search terms

  • monteiths
  • monteiths bar
  • monteiths brewing company
  • monteiths golden lager

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among beer brands

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