--- title: "Chili's vs Cracker Barrel: Which is searched more in the United States?" description: "Is Chili's or Cracker Barrel more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Casual dining 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/chilis-vs-cracker-barrel" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Chili's vs Cracker Barrel: Which is searched more in the United States? Is Chili's or Cracker Barrel more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Casual dining 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**: Chili's and Cracker Barrel - **Competitive set**: Casual dining chains - **Market**: United States - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Chili's Share of Search**: 17.6% - **Cracker Barrel Share of Search**: 4.8% ## Is Chili's or Cracker Barrel more popular in search? - In September 2026, Chili's had more branded searches than Cracker Barrel among casual dining chains in the United States. Chili's had about 6.7 million branded searches, while Cracker Barrel had 1.8 million. Chili's made up 17.6% of all casual dining chain searches we track, and Cracker Barrel accounted for 4.8%. - Chili's was ahead of Cracker Barrel in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Chili's’ share of searches among casual dining chains in the United States moved from 18.4% to 17.6%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 8.2M to 6.7M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Cracker Barrel’s share of searches among casual dining chains in the United States moved from 5% to 4.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 2.2M to 1.8M. ## Top casual dining chains in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions, Chili's appeared in all three answers. Cracker Barrel was mentioned in two out of three: in two of the three ChatGPT answers. Chili's was listed before Cracker Barrel in two out of three 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 | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | The Cheesecake Factory | 1st | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Texas Roadhouse | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Olive Garden | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Chili's | 4th | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | LongHorn Steakhouse | 5th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 3 | | Cracker Barrel | 6th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 3 | | Buffalo Wild Wings | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 3 | | Applebee's | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 3 | | Red Lobster | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 3 | | TGI Fridays | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 3 | ## Every AI answer about casual dining chains - Asked ChatGPT "Which casual dining chain is the best in the US?": 1. Texas Roadhouse, 2. The Cheesecake Factory, 3. Olive Garden, 4. Chili's, 5. LongHorn Steakhouse - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best sit-down restaurant chains in the US?": 1. The Cheesecake Factory, 2. Texas Roadhouse, 3. Olive Garden, 4. LongHorn Steakhouse, 5. Chili's, 6. Cracker Barrel - Asked ChatGPT "Which restaurant chain in the US is best for a family dinner?": 1. The Cheesecake Factory, 2. Olive Garden, 3. Texas Roadhouse, 4. Cracker Barrel, 5. Chili's Not named in any answer: Buffalo Wild Wings, Applebee's, Red Lobster and TGI Fridays. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 22, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United States casual dining chains in September 2026? - In September 2026, Chili's gained share of searches among casual dining chains in the United States, from 16.6% to 17.6%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Cracker Barrel in the United States fell 18.3% over 12 measured months, from 2.2M to 1.8M in September 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Chili's estimated searches | Chili's Share of Search | Chili's rank | Cracker Barrel estimated searches | Cracker Barrel Share of Search | Cracker Barrel rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 8.2M | 18.4% | 2 | 2.2M | 5% | 8 | | Nov 2025 | 10M | 20.5% | 2 | 2.7M | 5.6% | 7 | | Dec 2025 | 8.2M | 17.4% | 2 | 2.2M | 4.8% | 8 | | Jan 2026 | 8.2M | 17.6% | 2 | 1.8M | 3.9% | 8 | | Feb 2026 | 8.2M | 17.5% | 2 | 1.8M | 3.9% | 9 | | Mar 2026 | 8.2M | 17.8% | 2 | 1.8M | 4% | 9 | | Apr 2026 | 6.7M | 16.6% | 2 | 1.8M | 4.5% | 9 | | May 2026 | 8.2M | 17.5% | 2 | 1.8M | 3.9% | 9 | | Jun 2026 | 6.7M | 16.6% | 2 | 1.8M | 4.5% | 9 | | Jul 2026 | 6.7M | 16.6% | 2 | 1.8M | 4.5% | 8 | | Aug 2026 | 6.7M | 16.6% | 2 | 1.8M | 4.5% | 8 | | Sep 2026 | 6.7M | 17.6% | 2 | 1.8M | 4.8% | 8 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Chili's’ and Cracker Barrel’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. - **Chili's**: Measured on the search terms “chili's” and “chilis”, summed into one figure. - **Cracker Barrel**: Measured on the search term “cracker barrel”. - [Chili's profile](/demand/us/brands/chilis) - [Cracker Barrel profile](/demand/us/brands/cracker-barrel) - [All casual dining chains in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-casual-dining-chains): 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 Chili's or Cracker Barrel more popular in search? In September 2026, Chili's had more branded searches than Cracker Barrel among casual dining chains in the United States. Chili's had about 6.7 million branded searches, while Cracker Barrel had 1.8 million. Chili's made up 17.6% of all casual dining chain searches we track, and Cracker Barrel accounted for 4.8%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Chili's vs Cracker Barrel: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/chilis-vs-cracker-barrel This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/chilis-vs-cracker-barrel. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.