--- title: "Freely: search popularity in the United Kingdom" description: "Freely is a free TV service that streams live channels over broadband through a smart TV. 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/uk/brands/freely" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Freely: search popularity in the United Kingdom Freely is a free TV service that streams live channels over broadband through a smart TV. 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 - **Brand**: Freely - **Market**: United Kingdom - **Measured month**: Sep 2026 - **Share of Search among TV providers**: 3.1% ## Where the brand sits | Competitive set | Rank | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | TV providers | 4 | 3.1% | 27.1K | - [TV providers in the UK](/demand/uk/categories/uk-tv-providers) ## Top TV providers in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Freely was mentioned in two out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Freely is the sixth most recommended of the seven. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sky | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Virgin Media | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | EE | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | NOW | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | BT | 5th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Freely | 6th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Freeview | 7th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about TV providers - Asked ChatGPT "Which TV provider should I choose in the UK?": 1. Sky, 2. NOW, 3. Freely, 4. Virgin Media, 5. EE, 6. BT - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best TV providers in the UK?": 1. Sky, 2. Virgin Media, 3. EE, 4. NOW, 5. Freely, 6. Freeview, 7. BT - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best value TV and broadband package in the UK?": 1. Virgin Media, 2. EE, 3. Sky, 4. NOW - Searched Google, AI Overview "tv packages": 1. Sky, 2. Virgin Media, 3. EE, 4. BT, 5. Freeview, 6. NOW - Searched Google, AI Overview "broadband and tv": 1. Sky, 2. Virgin Media, 3. EE, 4. BT, 5. NOW Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United Kingdom on October 22, 2026. ## How has branded search demand for Freely changed in the United Kingdom over the last 12 months? - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, estimated monthly branded searches for Freely in the United Kingdom fell from 74K to 27.1K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Freely’s share of searches among TV providers in the United Kingdom decreased from 7.2% to 3.1%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Freely’s share of searches among TV providers in the United Kingdom peaked at 8.2% in December 2025 and was lowest at 2.6% in April 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United Kingdom TV providers in September 2026? - In September 2026, Freeview gained share of searches among TV providers in the United Kingdom, from 9% to 12.4%. - In September 2026, Sky gained share of searches among TV providers in the United Kingdom, from 15.6% to 17.1%. - In September 2026, NOW lost share of searches among TV providers in the United Kingdom, from 67.2% to 62.2%. - Freely’s share of searches among TV providers in the United Kingdom has lost ground for 3 months in a row, from 7.5% to 3.1% in September 2026. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Virgin Media in the United Kingdom fell 75.4% over 12 measured months, from 69.5K to 17.1K in September 2026. - Estimated monthly branded searches for BT in the United Kingdom fell 33.3% over 12 measured months, from 9.9K to 6.6K in September 2026. ## Historical estimated branded-search demand | Month | Competitive set | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | TV providers | 74K | 7.2% | 4 | | Nov 2025 | TV providers | 74K | 6.3% | 4 | | Dec 2025 | TV providers | 90.5K | 8.2% | 4 | | Jan 2026 | TV providers | 40.5K | 3.8% | 4 | | Feb 2026 | TV providers | 33.1K | 3.2% | 5 | | Mar 2026 | TV providers | 27.1K | 2.6% | 5 | | Apr 2026 | TV providers | 27.1K | 2.6% | 4 | | May 2026 | TV providers | 60.5K | 5.7% | 4 | | Jun 2026 | TV providers | 60.5K | 7.5% | 4 | | Jul 2026 | TV providers | 33.1K | 3.8% | 4 | | Aug 2026 | TV providers | 33.1K | 3.3% | 4 | | Sep 2026 | TV providers | 27.1K | 3.1% | 4 | ## How are Freely’s branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Freely’s name. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for this branded term can be used to understand whether interest in the brand is growing, holding steady, or fading. - “freely tv” ## Which TV providers compete with Freely? - [NOW](/demand/uk/brands/now-tv): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/freely-vs-now-tv - [Sky](/demand/uk/brands/sky-uk): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/freely-vs-sky-uk - [Freeview](/demand/uk/brands/freeview): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/freely-vs-freeview - [EE](/demand/uk/brands/ee-uk): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/ee-uk-vs-freely - [Virgin Media](/demand/uk/brands/virgin-media): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/freely-vs-virgin-media - [BT](/demand/uk/brands/bt-uk) ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Freely: search popularity in the United Kingdom". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/brands/freely This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/brands/freely. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.