---
title: "CVS Pharmacy vs Walgreens: Which is searched more in the United States?"
description: "Is CVS Pharmacy or Walgreens more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Pharmacies 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/cvs-pharmacy-vs-walgreens"
publisher: "Brandwave"
---

# CVS Pharmacy vs Walgreens: Which is searched more in the United States?

Is CVS Pharmacy or Walgreens more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Pharmacies 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**: CVS Pharmacy and Walgreens
- **Competitive set**: Pharmacies
- **Market**: United States
- **Month measured**: Sep 2026
- **CVS Pharmacy Share of Search**: 52.3%
- **Walgreens Share of Search**: 40.2%

## Is CVS Pharmacy or Walgreens more popular in search?

- In September 2026, CVS Pharmacy had more branded searches than Walgreens among pharmacies in the United States. CVS Pharmacy had about 26.5 million branded searches, while Walgreens had 20.4 million. CVS Pharmacy made up 52.3% of all pharmacy searches we track, and Walgreens accounted for 40.2%.
- CVS Pharmacy was ahead of Walgreens in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, CVS Pharmacy’s share of searches among pharmacies in the United States moved from 52.4% to 52.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 26.5M.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Walgreens’ share of searches among pharmacies in the United States moved from 40.3% to 40.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 20.4M.

## Top pharmacies in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions, both CVS Pharmacy and Walgreens showed up in all three answers. CVS Pharmacy was listed before Walgreens in every answer.

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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Costco | 1st | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 |
| CVS Pharmacy | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 |
| Walmart Pharmacy | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 2 of 3 |
| Walgreens | 4th | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 |
| Amazon Pharmacy | 5th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 3 |

## Every AI answer about pharmacies

- Asked ChatGPT "Which pharmacy should I use for prescriptions in the US?": 1. CVS Pharmacy, 2. Walgreens, 3. Costco, 4. Amazon Pharmacy
- Asked ChatGPT "What are the best pharmacy chains in the US?": 1. Costco, 2. Walmart Pharmacy, 3. CVS Pharmacy, 4. Walgreens, 5. Amazon Pharmacy
- Asked ChatGPT "What's the cheapest pharmacy for prescriptions without insurance in the US?": 1. Costco, 2. Walmart Pharmacy, 3. CVS Pharmacy, 4. Walgreens

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 pharmacies in September 2026?

Neither CVS Pharmacy nor Walgreens moved beyond provider rounding among pharmacies in Sep 2026.

## Month by month

| Month | CVS Pharmacy estimated searches | CVS Pharmacy Share of Search | CVS Pharmacy rank | Walgreens estimated searches | Walgreens Share of Search | Walgreens rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oct 2025 | 26.5M | 52.4% | 1 | 20.4M | 40.3% | 2 |
| Nov 2025 | 21.6M | 47.8% | 1 | 20.4M | 45.1% | 2 |
| Dec 2025 | 26.5M | 48.1% | 1 | 24.9M | 45.2% | 2 |
| Jan 2026 | 21.6M | 47.6% | 1 | 20.4M | 45% | 2 |
| Feb 2026 | 21.6M | 52.3% | 1 | 16.6M | 40.2% | 2 |
| Mar 2026 | 26.5M | 53% | 1 | 20.4M | 40.8% | 2 |
| Apr 2026 | 22.7M | 48.5% | 1 | 20.4M | 43.5% | 2 |
| May 2026 | 26.5M | 52.3% | 1 | 20.4M | 40.2% | 2 |
| Jun 2026 | 22.7M | 48.5% | 1 | 20.4M | 43.5% | 2 |
| Jul 2026 | 22.7M | 48.5% | 1 | 20.4M | 43.5% | 2 |
| Aug 2026 | 26.5M | 52.1% | 1 | 20.4M | 40.1% | 2 |
| Sep 2026 | 26.5M | 52.3% | 1 | 20.4M | 40.2% | 2 |

## How each brand is measured

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using CVS Pharmacy’s and Walgreens’ 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.

- **CVS Pharmacy**: Measured on the search terms “cvs” and “cvs pharmacy”, summed into one figure.
- **Walgreens**: Measured on the search term “walgreens”.

- [CVS Pharmacy profile](/demand/us/brands/cvs-pharmacy)
- [Walgreens profile](/demand/us/brands/walgreens)
- [All pharmacies in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-pharmacies): The set both shares are measured inside, 5 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 CVS Pharmacy or Walgreens more popular in search?

In September 2026, CVS Pharmacy had more branded searches than Walgreens among pharmacies in the United States. CVS Pharmacy had about 26.5 million branded searches, while Walgreens had 20.4 million. CVS Pharmacy made up 52.3% of all pharmacy searches we track, and Walgreens accounted for 40.2%.

## Cite this page

Brandwave. "CVS Pharmacy vs Walgreens: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/cvs-pharmacy-vs-walgreens

This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/cvs-pharmacy-vs-walgreens. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.
