--- title: "Ulta Beauty: search popularity in the United States" description: "Ulta Beauty is a beauty retailer. 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/us/brands/ulta-beauty" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Ulta Beauty: search popularity in the United States Ulta Beauty is a beauty retailer. 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**: Ulta Beauty - **Market**: United States - **Measured month**: Sep 2026 - **Share of Search among beauty retailers**: 40.8% ## Where the brand sits | Competitive set | Rank | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Beauty retailers | 1 | 40.8% | 8.2M | - [Beauty retailers in the US](/demand/us/categories/us-beauty-retailers) ## Top beauty retailers in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions, Ulta Beauty appeared in all three answers. Ulta Beauty is the second most recommended of the five. 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 | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sephora | 1st | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Ulta Beauty | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Bluemercury | 3rd | 1 of 3 | 1 of 3 | | Bath & Body Works | 4th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 3 | | Sally Beauty | 5th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 3 | ## Every AI answer about beauty retailers - Asked ChatGPT "Where should I buy makeup and skincare in the US?": 1. Sephora, 2. Ulta Beauty - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best beauty stores in the US?": 1. Sephora, 2. Ulta Beauty, 3. Bluemercury, 4. Sally Beauty, 5. Bath & Body Works - Asked ChatGPT "Which beauty store in the US has the best rewards program?": 1. Ulta Beauty, 2. Sephora, 3. Bath & Body Works Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 22, 2026. ## How has branded search demand for Ulta Beauty changed in the United States over the last 12 months? - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, estimated monthly branded searches for Ulta Beauty in the United States held steady at 8.2M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Ulta Beauty’s share of searches among beauty retailers in the United States increased from 39.4% to 40.8%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Ulta Beauty’s share of searches among beauty retailers in the United States peaked at 41.6% in January 2026 and was lowest at 34.9% in November 2025. ## How did search popularity change for United States beauty retailers in September 2026? - In September 2026, Ulta Beauty gained share of searches among beauty retailers in the United States, from 39.4% to 40.8%. - In September 2026, Sephora gained share of searches among beauty retailers in the United States, from 29.5% to 30.5%. - In September 2026, Bath & Body Works lost share of searches among beauty retailers in the United States, from 19.7% to 16.7%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Bluemercury in the United States rose 22.2% over 12 measured months, from 135K to 165K in September 2026. ## Historical estimated branded-search demand | Month | Competitive set | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | Beauty retailers | 8.2M | 39.4% | 1 | | Nov 2025 | Beauty retailers | 10.2M | 34.9% | 1 | | Dec 2025 | Beauty retailers | 13.6M | 35.6% | 1 | | Jan 2026 | Beauty retailers | 8.2M | 41.6% | 1 | | Feb 2026 | Beauty retailers | 6.7M | 39.4% | 1 | | Mar 2026 | Beauty retailers | 8.2M | 40.8% | 1 | | Apr 2026 | Beauty retailers | 7.4M | 37.9% | 2 | | May 2026 | Beauty retailers | 8.2M | 40.8% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | Beauty retailers | 6.7M | 36.8% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | Beauty retailers | 7.4M | 38.6% | 1 | | Aug 2026 | Beauty retailers | 8.2M | 39.4% | 1 | | Sep 2026 | Beauty retailers | 8.2M | 40.8% | 1 | ## How are Ulta Beauty’s branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Ulta Beauty’s name. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brand is growing, holding steady, or fading. - “ulta” - “ulta beauty” ## Which beauty retailers compete with Ulta Beauty? - [Sephora](/demand/us/brands/sephora): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/sephora-vs-ulta-beauty - [Bath & Body Works](/demand/us/brands/bath-body-works): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/bath-body-works-vs-ulta-beauty - [Sally Beauty](/demand/us/brands/sally-beauty): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/sally-beauty-vs-ulta-beauty - [Bluemercury](/demand/us/brands/bluemercury): Head-to-head: /demand/us/compare/bluemercury-vs-ulta-beauty ## 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. "Ulta Beauty: search popularity in the United States". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/brands/ulta-beauty This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/brands/ulta-beauty. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.