Brandwave

Nelson Arts Festival vs WOMAD Aotearoa:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, WOMAD Aotearoa had more branded searches than Nelson Arts Festival among arts and culture festivals in New Zealand. WOMAD Aotearoa had about 1,990 branded searches, while Nelson Arts Festival had 480. WOMAD Aotearoa made up 9% of all arts and culture festival searches we track, and Nelson Arts Festival accounted for 2.2%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about arts and culture festivals, WOMAD Aotearoa appeared in three of the five answers and Nelson Arts Festival in two. WOMAD Aotearoa was mentioned before Nelson Arts Festival in every answer that named either.

Among arts and culture festivals in New Zealand in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

WOMAD Aotearoa, about 4 searches for every 1 for Nelson Arts Festival

WOMAD Aotearoa 2K searchesNelson Arts Festival 480 searches

Who does AI mention more?

WOMAD Aotearoa, mentioned in 3 of 5 answers, Nelson Arts Festival in 2

WOMAD Aotearoa in 3 of 5Nelson Arts Festival in 2 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

WOMAD Aotearoa, named ahead of Nelson Arts Festival in 3 of 3 answers

WOMAD Aotearoa first in 3Nelson Arts Festival never first

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Top arts and culture festivals in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, WOMAD Aotearoa was mentioned in three out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Nelson Arts Festival was mentioned in two out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. WOMAD Aotearoa was listed before Nelson Arts Festival in every answer that named either.

Mentioned by AI

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

See every answer about arts and culture festivals

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 Nelson Arts Festival or WOMAD Aotearoa more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Nelson Arts Festival and WOMAD Aotearoa by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten arts and culture festivals we track, month by month, from searches in New Zealand.

Nelson Arts Festival and WOMAD Aotearoa among arts and culture festivals in New Zealand, by month

Share of searches by month for WOMAD Aotearoa, Nelson Arts Festival. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthWorld of WearableArtWOMAD AotearoaPasifika FestivalTe MatatiniWhānau Mārama NZ International Film FestivalNelson Arts FestivalCubaDupaAuckland Arts FestivalAuckland Writers FestivalAotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts
Oct 202531.3%4.8%21.8%9.1%7.3%11.8%4.5%5.5%3.6%0.27%
Nov 202515.8%6.4%25%17.1%7.9%1.4%9.7%10%5.3%1.4%
Dec 202516.4%11.6%17.8%12.8%8.4%0.71%13%13.7%4.8%0.89%
Jan 202615.7%7.8%15.6%8.6%6.3%0.88%24%13.4%6.3%1.4%
Feb 202615.2%3.7%19.4%8.6%3.4%0.48%29.5%13.5%5.2%0.91%
Mar 20265.7%1.9%22.9%3.7%1.7%0.22%42.4%10.5%10.9%0.14%
Apr 202622.6%3.9%11.1%13.2%7.4%0.62%4.3%4.4%32.3%0.21%
May 202618.9%3.8%9.4%9.4%10.8%0.45%2%2%43.1%0.1%
Jun 202624.5%5.4%14.8%12.5%32.7%1.3%2.6%2.6%3.6%0.08%
Jul 202613.1%8.2%5.2%3.3%66.2%1%0.89%1.1%0.95%0.03%
Aug 202617.5%5.7%6.6%6.6%57.6%2.5%1.4%0.94%1%0.03%
Sep 202665.3%9%8.6%7.3%3.5%2.2%1.5%1.2%1.2%0.09%

How has the Nelson Arts Festival and WOMAD Aotearoa comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for New Zealand arts and culture festivals in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, WOMAD Aotearoa overtook Whānau Mārama NZ International Film Festival and 2 others to rank 2nd among arts and culture festivals in New Zealand, with 9% of the searches.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Nelson Arts Festival in New Zealand fell 63.1% over 12 measured months, from 1.3K to 480 in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

3 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Nelson Arts Festival’s and WOMAD Aotearoa’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.

Nelson Arts Festival

1 branded search term

  • nelson arts festival

WOMAD Aotearoa

2 branded search terms

  • womad
  • womad nz

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among arts and culture festivals

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