--- title: "Captain D's vs Joe's Crab Shack: Which is searched more in the United States?" description: "Is Captain D's or Joe's Crab Shack more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Seafood chains 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/captain-ds-vs-joes-crab-shack" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Captain D's vs Joe's Crab Shack: Which is searched more in the United States? Is Captain D's or Joe's Crab Shack more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Seafood chains 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**: Captain D's and Joe's Crab Shack - **Competitive set**: Seafood chains - **Market**: United States - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Captain D's Share of Search**: 0.05% - **Joe's Crab Shack Share of Search**: 0.1% ## Is Captain D's or Joe's Crab Shack more popular in search? - In September 2026, Joe's Crab Shack had more branded searches than Captain D's among seafood chains in the United States. Joe's Crab Shack had about 3,600 branded searches, while Captain D's had 1,900. Joe's Crab Shack made up 0.1% of all seafood chain searches we track, and Captain D's accounted for 0.05%. - Joe's Crab Shack was ahead of Captain D's in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Captain D's’ share of searches among seafood chains in the United States moved from 0.03% to 0.05%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1K to 1.9K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Joe's Crab Shack’s share of searches among seafood chains in the United States moved from 0.07% to 0.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 2.4K to 3.6K. ## Top seafood chains in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Captain D's and Joe's Crab Shack were each mentioned in two out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Captain D's was listed before Joe's Crab Shack in every answer that named either. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Captain D's | 1st | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Red Lobster | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Bonefish Grill | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Long John Silver's | 4th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen | 5th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Legal Sea Foods | 6th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Joe's Crab Shack | 7th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about seafood chains - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best seafood restaurant chain in the US?": 1. Bonefish Grill, 2. Legal Sea Foods, 3. Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, 4. Red Lobster - Asked ChatGPT "Which seafood chain in the US has the best value?": 1. Captain D's, 2. Long John Silver's, 3. Red Lobster, 4. Joe's Crab Shack - Asked ChatGPT "What are the most popular seafood chains in the US?": 1. Red Lobster, 2. Captain D's, 3. Long John Silver's, 4. Bonefish Grill, 5. Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, 6. Joe's Crab Shack, 7. Legal Sea Foods - Searched Google, AI Overview "seafood restaurants": named none of the brands we track - Searched Google, AI Overview "fish and chips": named none of the brands we track Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 23, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United States seafood chains in September 2026? - Estimated monthly branded searches for Captain D's in the United States rose 90% over 12 measured months, from 1K to 1.9K in September 2026. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Joe's Crab Shack in the United States rose 50% over 12 measured months, from 2.4K to 3.6K in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Captain D's estimated searches | Captain D's Share of Search | Captain D's rank | Joe's Crab Shack estimated searches | Joe's Crab Shack Share of Search | Joe's Crab Shack rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 1K | 0.03% | 7 | 2.4K | 0.07% | 6 | | Nov 2025 | 880 | 0.03% | 7 | 1.6K | 0.05% | 6 | | Dec 2025 | 880 | 0.03% | 7 | 2.4K | 0.07% | 6 | | Jan 2026 | 880 | 0.03% | 7 | 2.4K | 0.07% | 6 | | Feb 2026 | 1K | 0.02% | 7 | 3.6K | 0.09% | 6 | | Mar 2026 | 1.3K | 0.03% | 7 | 3.6K | 0.09% | 6 | | Apr 2026 | 1.3K | 0.03% | 7 | 3.6K | 0.09% | 6 | | May 2026 | 1.3K | 0.03% | 7 | 4.4K | 0.1% | 6 | | Jun 2026 | 1.6K | 0.04% | 7 | 5.4K | 0.14% | 6 | | Jul 2026 | 1.9K | 0.05% | 7 | 5.4K | 0.15% | 6 | | Aug 2026 | 1.9K | 0.06% | 7 | 4.4K | 0.13% | 6 | | Sep 2026 | 1.9K | 0.05% | 7 | 3.6K | 0.1% | 6 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Captain D's’ and Joe's Crab Shack’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. - **Captain D's**: Measured on the search term “captain ds”. - **Joe's Crab Shack**: Measured on the search term “joes crab shack”. - [Captain D's profile](/demand/us/brands/captain-ds) - [Joe's Crab Shack profile](/demand/us/brands/joes-crab-shack) - [All seafood chains in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-seafood-chains): The set both shares are measured inside, 7 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 Captain D's or Joe's Crab Shack more popular in search? In September 2026, Joe's Crab Shack had more branded searches than Captain D's among seafood chains in the United States. Joe's Crab Shack had about 3,600 branded searches, while Captain D's had 1,900. Joe's Crab Shack made up 0.1% of all seafood chain searches we track, and Captain D's accounted for 0.05%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Captain D's vs Joe's Crab Shack: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/captain-ds-vs-joes-crab-shack This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/captain-ds-vs-joes-crab-shack. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.