--- title: "Steam vs Xbox Game Pass: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?" description: "Which is more popular in search, Steam 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/steam-vs-xbox-game-pass" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Steam vs Xbox Game Pass: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand? Which is more popular in search, Steam 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**: Steam and Xbox Game Pass - **Competitive set**: Online game platforms - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Aug 2026 - **Steam Share of Search**: 2% - **Xbox Game Pass Share of Search**: 2.1% ## Which is more popular in search, Steam or Xbox Game Pass? - In August 2026, Steam and Xbox Game Pass were level on Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand, with an estimated 8.8K versus 9.3K branded searches, at 2% and 2.1% estimated Share of Search. - The lead changed hands 2 times in the 11 months ending August 2026: Steam took it in June 2026, Xbox Game Pass took it in August 2026. - Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Steam’s estimated Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand moved from 1.2% to 2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 6.4K to 8.8K. - 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, Steam lost estimated Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand, from 4.8% to 2%. - In August 2026, Xbox Game Pass rose from 5th to 4th among online game platforms in New Zealand. ## Month by month | Month | Steam estimated searches | Steam Share of Search | Steam rank | Xbox Game Pass estimated searches | Xbox Game Pass Share of Search | Xbox Game Pass rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 6.4K | 1.2% | 6 | 24.6K | 4.7% | 4 | | Nov 2025 | 7.1K | 1.5% | 5 | 11.9K | 2.6% | 4 | | Dec 2025 | 10K | 2% | 5 | 12.3K | 2.4% | 4 | | Jan 2026 | 8.2K | 1.9% | 5 | 10.2K | 2.4% | 4 | | Feb 2026 | 7.5K | 1.7% | 5 | 8.3K | 1.9% | 4 | | Mar 2026 | 8.1K | 1.7% | 5 | 9.7K | 2% | 4 | | Apr 2026 | 8.1K | 1.8% | 5 | 13.6K | 3.1% | 4 | | May 2026 | 8.7K | 1.9% | 5 | 22.7K | 5.1% | 4 | | Jun 2026 | 16K | 3.4% | 4 | 11.2K | 2.4% | 5 | | Jul 2026 | 20.8K | 4.8% | 4 | 10.9K | 2.5% | 5 | | Aug 2026 | 8.8K | 2% | 5 | 9.3K | 2.1% | 4 | | Sep 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Steam’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. - **Steam**: Measured on the search terms “best free games on steam”, “best mac games on steam”, “best steam games”, “cheap steam games”, “download steam for windows”, “free games on steam”, “most played games on steam”, “steam download”, “steam download mac”, “steam download pc”, “steam games”, “steam games for mac”, “steam games on sale”, “steam horror games”, “steam indie games”, “steam multiplayer games”, “steam online games”, “steam pc games”, “steam store”, “steam vr games” and “top steam games”, 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. - [Steam profile](/demand/nz/brands/steam) - [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, Steam or Xbox Game Pass? In August 2026, Steam and Xbox Game Pass were level on Share of Search among online game platforms in New Zealand, with an estimated 8.8K versus 9.3K branded searches, at 2% and 2.1% estimated Share of Search. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Steam vs Xbox Game Pass: Which is more popular by branded search in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/steam-vs-xbox-game-pass This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/steam-vs-xbox-game-pass. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.