--- title: "RNZ vs Spotify: Which is searched more in New Zealand?" description: "Is RNZ or Spotify more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Podcast and radio apps 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/rnz-vs-spotify" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # RNZ vs Spotify: Which is searched more in New Zealand? Is RNZ or Spotify more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Podcast and radio apps 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**: RNZ and Spotify - **Competitive set**: Podcast and radio apps - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **RNZ Share of Search**: 52.3% - **Spotify Share of Search**: 44% ## Is RNZ or Spotify more popular in search? - In September 2026, RNZ had more branded searches than Spotify among podcast and radio apps in New Zealand. RNZ had about 368,000 branded searches, while Spotify had 310,000. RNZ made up 52.3% of all podcast and radio app searches we track, and Spotify accounted for 44%. - The lead changed hands 6 times in the 12 months ending September 2026: Spotify took it in November 2025, RNZ took it in December 2025, Spotify took it in February 2026, RNZ took it in April 2026, Spotify took it in May 2026, RNZ took it in July 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, RNZ’s share of searches among podcast and radio apps in New Zealand moved from 52.1% to 52.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 368K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Spotify’s share of searches among podcast and radio apps in New Zealand moved from 43.8% to 44%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 310K. ## Top podcast and radio apps in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, RNZ and Spotify were each mentioned in four out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. RNZ was listed before Spotify in four out of 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | RNZ | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Spotify | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | rova | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Pocket Casts | 4th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | iHeartRadio | 5th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Apple Podcasts | 6th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Overcast | 7th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about podcast and radio apps - Asked ChatGPT "Which podcast or radio app should I use in New Zealand?": 1. RNZ, 2. Spotify, 3. Pocket Casts, 4. iHeartRadio - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best podcast and radio apps in New Zealand?": 1. RNZ, 2. iHeartRadio, 3. Spotify, 4. Apple Podcasts, 5. Pocket Casts, 6. rova - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best podcast or radio app in New Zealand for listening on the go?": 1. RNZ, 2. rova, 3. Spotify, 4. Apple Podcasts - Searched Google, AI Overview "best podcast app": 1. Pocket Casts, 2. Overcast, 3. Apple Podcasts, 4. Spotify - Searched Google, AI Overview "radio apps nz": 1. rova, 2. RNZ, 3. iHeartRadio Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in New Zealand on October 21, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand podcast and radio apps in September 2026? Neither RNZ nor Spotify moved beyond provider rounding among podcast and radio apps in Sep 2026. ## Month by month | Month | RNZ estimated searches | RNZ Share of Search | RNZ rank | Spotify estimated searches | Spotify Share of Search | Spotify rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 368K | 52.1% | 1 | 310K | 43.8% | 2 | | Nov 2025 | 301K | 47.1% | 2 | 309K | 48.4% | 1 | | Dec 2025 | 301K | 51.6% | 1 | 256K | 43.9% | 2 | | Jan 2026 | 368K | 60.8% | 1 | 211K | 34.9% | 2 | | Feb 2026 | 301K | 47.2% | 2 | 311K | 48.7% | 1 | | Mar 2026 | 368K | 47.5% | 2 | 379K | 48.9% | 1 | | Apr 2026 | 368K | 56.5% | 1 | 256K | 39.3% | 2 | | May 2026 | 368K | 47.3% | 2 | 383K | 49.2% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | 301K | 42.3% | 2 | 385K | 54% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | 368K | 56.1% | 1 | 262K | 39.9% | 2 | | Aug 2026 | 368K | 52% | 1 | 313K | 44.2% | 2 | | Sep 2026 | 368K | 52.3% | 1 | 310K | 44% | 2 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using RNZ’s and Spotify’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. - **RNZ**: Measured on the search term “RNZ”. - **Spotify**: Measured on the search terms “michael jackson spotify”, “play spotify web”, “spotify”, “spotify dl”, “spotify family”, “spotify gift card”, “spotify playlist downloader” and “spotify podcast”, summed into one figure. - [RNZ profile](/demand/nz/brands/rnz) - [Spotify profile](/demand/nz/brands/spotify) - [All podcast and radio apps in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-podcast-apps): The set both shares are measured inside, 7 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 RNZ or Spotify more popular in search? In September 2026, RNZ had more branded searches than Spotify among podcast and radio apps in New Zealand. RNZ had about 368,000 branded searches, while Spotify had 310,000. RNZ made up 52.3% of all podcast and radio app searches we track, and Spotify accounted for 44%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "RNZ vs Spotify: Which is searched more in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/rnz-vs-spotify This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/rnz-vs-spotify. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.