--- title: "A&W Root Beer vs IBC Root Beer: Which is searched more in the United States?" description: "Is A&W Root Beer or IBC Root Beer more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Root beer brands set in the United States. 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/compare/a-and-w-root-beer-vs-ibc-root-beer" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # A&W Root Beer vs IBC Root Beer: Which is searched more in the United States? Is A&W Root Beer or IBC Root Beer more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Root beer brands set in the United States. 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**: A&W Root Beer and IBC Root Beer - **Competitive set**: Root beer brands - **Market**: United States - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **A&W Root Beer Share of Search**: 23.2% - **IBC Root Beer Share of Search**: 8.5% ## Is A&W Root Beer or IBC Root Beer more popular in search? - In September 2026, A&W Root Beer had more branded searches than IBC Root Beer among root beer brands in the United States. A&W Root Beer had about 40,500 branded searches, while IBC Root Beer had 14,800. A&W Root Beer made up 23.2% of all root beer brand searches we track, and IBC Root Beer accounted for 8.5%. - A&W Root Beer was ahead of IBC Root Beer in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, A&W Root Beer’s share of searches among root beer brands in the United States moved from 26.7% to 23.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 40.5K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, IBC Root Beer’s share of searches among root beer brands in the United States moved from 8% to 8.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 12.1K to 14.8K. ## Top root beer brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, A&W Root Beer was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. IBC Root Beer was mentioned in three out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers and in both Google AI Overviews. A&W Root Beer and IBC Root Beer were each listed first in two of the four answers. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Barq's | 1st | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | A&W Root Beer | 2nd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Mug Root Beer | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Sprecher | 4th | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Stewart's | 4th | 0 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | IBC Root Beer | 6th | 1 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Dad's Root Beer | 7th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Virgil's | 7th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | OLIPOP | 9th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Zevia | 10th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about root beer brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which root beer should I buy?": 1. Sprecher, 2. Mug Root Beer, 3. IBC Root Beer, 4. A&W Root Beer - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best root beer brands?": 1. A&W Root Beer, 2. Barq's, 3. Mug Root Beer, 4. Virgil's, 5. Sprecher - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best craft root beer?": 1. Sprecher - Searched Google, AI Overview "root beer brands": 1. A&W Root Beer, 2. Barq's, 3. Mug Root Beer, 4. Dad's Root Beer, 5. Stewart's, 6. IBC Root Beer, 7. Sprecher, 8. Virgil's, 9. OLIPOP, 10. Zevia - Searched Google, AI Overview "best root beer": 1. Stewart's, 2. Barq's, 3. IBC Root Beer Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 25, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United States root beer brands in September 2026? - In September 2026, Barq's overtook A&W Root Beer to become the leader among root beer brands in the United States, with 28.3% of the searches. - In September 2026, IBC Root Beer gained share of searches among root beer brands in the United States, from 7.7% to 8.5%. - In September 2026, A&W Root Beer lost share of searches among root beer brands in the United States, from 25.7% to 23.2%. ## Month by month | Month | A&W Root Beer estimated searches | A&W Root Beer Share of Search | A&W Root Beer rank | IBC Root Beer estimated searches | IBC Root Beer Share of Search | IBC Root Beer rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 40.5K | 26.7% | 1 | 12.1K | 8% | 4 | | Nov 2025 | 40.5K | 26.9% | 1 | 12.1K | 8% | 4 | | Dec 2025 | 40.5K | 25.7% | 1 | 12.1K | 7.7% | 5 | | Jan 2026 | 49.5K | 30.4% | 1 | 12.1K | 7.4% | 5 | | Feb 2026 | 60.5K | 34.5% | 1 | 12.1K | 6.9% | 5 | | Mar 2026 | 110K | 45.3% | 1 | 14.8K | 6.1% | 5 | | Apr 2026 | 60.5K | 30.6% | 1 | 14.8K | 7.5% | 5 | | May 2026 | 60.5K | 28.9% | 1 | 14.8K | 7.1% | 6 | | Jun 2026 | 60.5K | 27.4% | 1 | 14.8K | 6.7% | 6 | | Jul 2026 | 49.5K | 25.4% | 1 | 14.8K | 7.6% | 5 | | Aug 2026 | 49.5K | 25.7% | 1 | 14.8K | 7.7% | 5 | | Sep 2026 | 40.5K | 23.2% | 2 | 14.8K | 8.5% | 5 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using A&W Root Beer’s and IBC Root Beer’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. - **A&W Root Beer**: Measured on the search term “a&w root beer”. - **IBC Root Beer**: Measured on the search term “ibc root beer”. - [A&W Root Beer profile](/demand/us/brands/a-and-w-root-beer) - [IBC Root Beer profile](/demand/us/brands/ibc-root-beer) - [All root beer brands in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-root-beer-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 10 brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is A&W Root Beer or IBC Root Beer more popular in search? In September 2026, A&W Root Beer had more branded searches than IBC Root Beer among root beer brands in the United States. A&W Root Beer had about 40,500 branded searches, while IBC Root Beer had 14,800. A&W Root Beer made up 23.2% of all root beer brand searches we track, and IBC Root Beer accounted for 8.5%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "A&W Root Beer vs IBC Root Beer: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/a-and-w-root-beer-vs-ibc-root-beer This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/a-and-w-root-beer-vs-ibc-root-beer. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.