Brandwave

Blue Buffalo vs Hill's:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Blue Buffalo had more branded searches than Hill's among cat food brands in the United States. Blue Buffalo had about 18,100 branded searches, while Hill's had 8,100. Blue Buffalo made up 6.3% of all cat food brand searches we track, and Hill's accounted for 2.8%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about cat food brands, Hill's appeared in four of the five answers and Blue Buffalo in one. Hill's was mentioned before Blue Buffalo in every answer.

Among cat food brands in the United States in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Blue Buffalo, about 2 searches for every 1 for Hill's

Blue Buffalo 18.1K searchesHill's 8.1K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Hill's, mentioned in 4 of 5 answers, Blue Buffalo in 1

Hill's in 4 of 5Blue Buffalo in 1 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Hill's, named ahead of Blue Buffalo in every answer

Hill's first in 4Blue Buffalo never first

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Top cat food brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Hill's was mentioned in four out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. Blue Buffalo was mentioned in one out of five: not in any of the three ChatGPT answers, but in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Hill's was listed before Blue Buffalo in every answer.

Most recommended by AI

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

  1. Hill's1st
  2. Purina Pro Plan2nd
  3. Royal Canin3rd
  4. Smalls4th
  5. Fancy Feast4th
  6. Purina ONE6th
  7. Weruva7th
  8. Blue Buffalo8th
  9. Iams9th
  10. Meow Mix9th
  11. +5 more

Mentioned by AI

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

  • Royal Canin4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Purina Pro Plan4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Hill's4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Purina ONE2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Smalls1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Fancy Feast1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Iams1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Meow Mix1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Blue Buffalo1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Weruva1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers

+5 more

See every answer about cat food brands

5 answers

Not named in any answer:

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in United States on October 27, 2026.

Is Blue Buffalo or Hill's more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Blue Buffalo and Hill's by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all 15 cat food brands we track, month by month, from searches in United States.

Blue Buffalo and Hill's among cat food brands in the United States, by month

Share of searches by month for Blue Buffalo, Hill's. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthSmallsFriskiesFancy FeastIamsMeow MixPurina ONERoyal CaninShebaBlue BuffaloPurina Pro PlanTiki CatHill'sWellnessWeruva9Lives
Oct 202521.4%7.9%6.4%6.4%6.4%6.4%11.7%5.2%6.4%11.7%3.5%0.84%2.3%2.3%0.84%
Nov 202518.3%6.7%5.5%6.7%6.7%6.7%12.2%5.5%6.7%15%3.7%0.88%2.4%2.4%0.73%
Dec 202519%7%5.7%7%5.7%7%12.7%5.7%7%12.7%3.8%0.91%2.8%2.5%0.75%
Jan 202619.7%7.2%5.9%5.9%5.9%5.9%10.8%5.9%5.9%16.1%3.9%0.96%2.6%2.6%0.77%
Feb 202619.9%7.3%6%7.3%6%6%10.9%6%7.3%13.3%3.3%1.2%2.4%2.2%0.96%
Mar 202621.8%8%5.3%6.6%5.3%6.6%8%5.3%6.6%14.6%3.6%2.4%3.1%1.9%0.86%
Apr 202623.1%8.5%5.7%5.7%5.7%5.7%6.9%5.7%5.7%15.5%3.8%2.5%2.1%2.5%1.1%
May 202622.2%8.1%5.4%5.4%5.4%6.7%8.1%6.7%5.4%14.9%3.6%2.4%2%2.4%1.1%
Jun 202616.9%7.6%6.2%7.6%6.2%9.2%9.2%7.6%6.2%11.3%4.1%2.8%2.3%2.2%0.82%
Jul 202616.3%7.3%6%7.3%6%8.9%10.9%7.3%6%10.9%4%3.3%2.4%2.7%0.79%
Aug 202616.1%8.8%7.2%7.2%7.2%8.8%7.2%7.2%5.9%10.7%4.8%3.2%2.4%2.6%0.78%
Sep 202617.3%9.5%7.8%7.8%7.8%7.8%7.8%7.8%6.3%6.3%5.2%2.8%2.6%2.3%1%

How has the Blue Buffalo and Hill's comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for United States cat food brands in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Blue Buffalo rose from 10th to 9th among cat food brands in the United States.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Hill's in the United States rose 179.3% over 12 measured months, from 2.9K to 8.1K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Blue Buffalo’s and Hill'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.

Blue Buffalo

1 branded search term

  • blue buffalo cat food

Hill's

1 branded search term

  • hills science diet cat food

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among cat food brands

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