Brandwave

NZ Herald, RNZ and 1News:Which are most popular?

In September 2026, NZ Herald drew 63.9% of estimated branded searches across these three brands in New Zealand, ahead of RNZ at 21%. When we checked with ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews, RNZ and 1News were mentioned most often, in four of the five answers. Of all 11 brands we track in news publishers, RNZ was the most recommended, NZ Herald was third and 1News was fourth.

All three are news publishers in New Zealand. See all news publishers

Brands in this comparisonAny 10 or fewer published brands in New Zealand
  • NZ Herald
  • RNZ
  • 1News

Follow NZ Herald, RNZ and 1News and get free monthly updates on what changed

By continuing you'll get index updates and occasional product news from Brandwave. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy

Track your brand in New Zealand →

NZ Herald, RNZ and 1News in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, RNZ and 1News were mentioned most often, in four of the five answers. Of all 11 brands we track in news publishers, RNZ was the most recommended, NZ Herald was third and 1News was fourth.

Most recommended by AI

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

  1. RNZ1st
  2. Stuff2nd
  3. NZ Herald3rd
  4. 1News4th
  5. The Spinoff5th
  6. Newsroom6th
  7. The Press7th
  8. BusinessDesk8th
  9. interest.co.nz9th
  10. Otago Daily Times10th
  11. +1 more

Mentioned by AI

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

  • 1News4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • RNZ4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Stuff4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • NZ Herald3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • The Spinoff3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Newsroom2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • BusinessDesk2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • interest.co.nz1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Otago Daily Times1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • The Press1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

+1 more

See every answer about news publishers

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 19, 2026.

How these brands compare month by month

Share of Search here is each brand's branded searches divided by the total for the brands in this comparison. Add or remove a brand and every share is worked out again.

  • NZ Herald
  • RNZ
  • 1News
NZ Herald, RNZ and 1News in New Zealand, by month

Share of searches by month for NZ Herald, RNZ, 1News. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthNZ HeraldRNZ1News
Oct 202568.2%18.5%13.3%
Nov 202569.4%16.9%13.7%
Dec 202569.4%16.9%13.7%
Jan 202665.5%19%15.5%
Feb 202665.6%19%15.4%
Mar 202665.4%19.1%15.5%
Apr 202665.3%19.1%15.6%
May 202664%21%15.1%
Jun 202665.5%19%15.5%
Jul 202667.8%18.7%13.5%
Aug 202667.5%18.5%14%
Sep 202663.9%21%15.1%

  1. 1.NZ Herald

    63.9%

    Held 1st. 1.7M estimated branded searches, -16.4% vs prior month. Share -3.5 points.

  2. 2.RNZ

    21%

    Held 2nd. 573K estimated branded searches, -0.19% vs prior month. Share +2.4 points.

  3. 3.1News

    15.1%

    Held 3rd. 412K estimated branded searches, -4.7% vs prior month. Share +1.1 points.

How the Brand Demand Index is measured