--- title: "Minecraft vs Xbox Game Pass: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?" description: "Which is more popular in search, Minecraft or Xbox Game Pass? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Online game 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/minecraft-vs-xbox-game-pass" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Minecraft vs Xbox Game Pass: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand? Which is more popular in search, Minecraft or Xbox Game Pass? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Online game 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**: Minecraft and Xbox Game Pass - **Competitive set**: Online game platforms - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Aug 2026 - **Minecraft Share of Search**: 32% - **Xbox Game Pass Share of Search**: 2.1% ## Which is more popular in search, Minecraft or Xbox Game Pass? - In August 2026, Minecraft had more branded searches than Xbox Game Pass among online game platforms in New Zealand. Minecraft was estimated to have 138K branded searches compared to Xbox Game Pass’ 9.3K, and held a 32% Share of Search versus Xbox Game Pass’ 2.1%. - Minecraft was ahead of Xbox Game Pass in every measured month of the 11 months ending August 2026. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Minecraft’s estimated Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand moved from 22.1% to 32%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 115K to 138K. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Xbox Game Pass’ estimated Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand moved from 4.7% to 2.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 24.6K to 9.3K. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand online game platforms in August 2026? - In August 2026, Minecraft gained estimated Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand, from 26.3% to 32%. - In August 2026, Xbox Game Pass rose from 5th to 4th among online game platforms in New Zealand. ## Month by month | Month | Minecraft estimated searches | Minecraft Share of Search | Minecraft rank | Xbox Game Pass estimated searches | Xbox Game Pass Share of Search | Xbox Game Pass rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 115K | 22.1% | 2 | 24.6K | 4.7% | 4 | | Nov 2025 | 123K | 26.6% | 2 | 11.9K | 2.6% | 4 | | Dec 2025 | 113K | 22.4% | 2 | 12.3K | 2.4% | 4 | | Jan 2026 | 79.8K | 19% | 2 | 10.2K | 2.4% | 4 | | Feb 2026 | 110K | 25.2% | 2 | 8.3K | 1.9% | 4 | | Mar 2026 | 155K | 31.6% | 2 | 9.7K | 2% | 4 | | Apr 2026 | 109K | 24.7% | 2 | 13.6K | 3.1% | 4 | | May 2026 | 136K | 30.4% | 2 | 22.7K | 5.1% | 4 | | Jun 2026 | 159K | 33.5% | 2 | 11.2K | 2.4% | 5 | | Jul 2026 | 114K | 26.3% | 2 | 10.9K | 2.5% | 5 | | Aug 2026 | 138K | 32% | 2 | 9.3K | 2.1% | 4 | | Sep 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Minecraft’s and Xbox Game Pass’ 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. - **Minecraft**: Measured on the search terms “minecraft”, “minecraft bedrock”, “minecraft building”, “minecraft character”, “minecraft classic”, “minecraft download”, “minecraft dungeons”, “minecraft education”, “minecraft free”, “minecraft games”, “minecraft hosting”, “minecraft java”, “minecraft java edition”, “minecraft movie”, “minecraft near me”, “minecraft net”, “minecraft nz”, “minecraft online”, “minecraft pocket edition”, “minecraft server”, “minecraft story mode”, “planet minecraft”, “seedfinder minecraft” and “steve minecraft”, summed into one figure. - **Xbox Game Pass**: Measured on the search terms “game pass”, “game pass game”, “game pass games”, “game pass ultimate”, “game pass xbox pc”, “microsoft game pass”, “pc game pass”, “xbox game pass”, “xbox game pass cost”, “xbox game pass download”, “xbox game pass near me”, “xbox game pass new zealand”, “xbox game pass nz”, “xbox game pass online”, “xbox game pass ultimate” and “xboxgamepass”, summed into one figure. - [Minecraft profile](/demand/nz/brands/minecraft) - [Xbox Game Pass profile](/demand/nz/brands/xbox-game-pass) - [All online game platforms in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-online-game-platforms): 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, Minecraft or Xbox Game Pass? In August 2026, Minecraft had more branded searches than Xbox Game Pass among online game platforms in New Zealand. Minecraft was estimated to have 138K branded searches compared to Xbox Game Pass’ 9.3K, and held a 32% Share of Search versus Xbox Game Pass’ 2.1%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Minecraft vs Xbox Game Pass: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/minecraft-vs-xbox-game-pass This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/minecraft-vs-xbox-game-pass. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.