Brandwave

Hill's vs Royal Canin:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Royal Canin had more branded searches than Hill's among dog food brands in the United States. Royal Canin had about 60,500 branded searches, while Hill's had 33,100. Royal Canin made up 9.7% of all dog food brand searches we track, and Hill's accounted for 5.3%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about dog food brands, Royal Canin appeared in four of the five answers and Hill's in three. Hill's was mentioned before Royal Canin in three out of four answers that named either.

Among dog food brands in the United States in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Royal Canin, about 83% more searches than Hill's

Royal Canin 60.5K searchesHill's 33.1K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Royal Canin, mentioned in 4 of 5 answers, Hill's in 3

Royal Canin in 4 of 5Hill's in 3 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Hill's, named ahead of Royal Canin in 3 of 4 answers

Hill's first in 3Royal Canin first in 1

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Top dog food brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Royal Canin was mentioned in four out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Hill's was mentioned in three out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Hill's was listed before Royal Canin in three out of four answers that named either.

Most recommended by AI

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

  1. Purina1st
  2. Hill's2nd
  3. Royal Canin3rd
  4. Pedigree4th
  5. The Farmer's Dog5th
  6. Open Farm5th
  7. Blue Buffalo–
  8. Ollie–
  9. Spot & Tango–
  10. Orijen–
  11. +5 more

Mentioned by AI

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

  • Purina5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Royal Canin4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Hill's3 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • The Farmer's Dog1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Open Farm1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Pedigree1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Blue Buffalo0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Ollie0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Spot & Tango0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Orijen0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

+5 more

See every answer about dog 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 26, 2026.

Is Hill's or Royal Canin more popular in search?

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

Hill's and Royal Canin among dog food brands in the United States, by month

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

View monthly share of searches table
MonthPurinaThe Farmer's DogOpen FarmRoyal CaninBlue BuffaloOllieSpot & TangoHill'sPedigreeOrijenAcanaStella & Chewy’sMerrickTaste of the WildFarmina
Oct 202522.2%18.2%6.7%8.1%12.2%8.1%4.5%1.3%3.6%3.6%3%3%2.4%1.6%1.3%
Nov 202522.7%18.5%6.8%6.8%12.4%8.3%4.5%1.4%3.7%3.7%3%3%2%1.7%1.4%
Dec 202522.5%15%6.7%10.1%12.3%8.2%3.7%1.6%3.7%4.5%3%3%2.5%1.6%1.3%
Jan 202620.7%16.9%6.2%9.3%11.4%9.3%6.2%1.5%3.4%4.2%2.8%2.8%2.3%1.9%1.2%
Feb 202620.2%16.5%7.4%9.1%11.1%9.1%6.1%2.7%3.3%4.1%2.7%2.7%2.2%1.5%1.5%
Mar 202618.9%15.4%8.5%10.4%8.5%8.5%6.9%4.6%3.8%4.6%2.5%2.5%2.1%1.4%1.4%
Apr 202618.3%14.9%8.2%12.3%10.1%6.7%6.7%3.7%3%6.7%2.5%2.5%1.6%1.6%1.1%
May 202618.5%15.1%8.3%10.1%10.1%6.8%5.5%4.5%3.7%6.8%3%2.5%1.7%1.4%2%
Jun 202620.1%16.4%7.4%11%9%7.4%6%4.9%4%4%2.7%2.2%1.8%1.5%1.5%
Jul 202619.9%16.2%8.9%10.9%8.9%7.3%6%4.9%4%3.3%2.7%2.2%1.8%1.5%1.5%
Aug 202622.8%15.2%8.4%10.2%8.4%6.9%6.9%4.6%3.8%3.1%2.5%2.5%2%1.4%1.4%
Sep 202621.7%14.5%9.7%9.7%8%6.5%6.5%5.3%4.4%3.6%2.9%2.4%1.9%1.6%1.3%

How has the Hill's and Royal Canin comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

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

3 changes

  1. In September 2026, Open Farm overtook Royal Canin and Blue Buffalo to rank 3rd among dog food brands in the United States, with 9.7% of the searches.

  2. In September 2026, Hill's gained share of searches among dog food brands in the United States, from 4.6% to 5.3%.

  3. In September 2026, Royal Canin lost share of searches among dog food brands in the United States, from 10.2% to 9.7%.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

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

Hill's

1 branded search term

  • hills science diet

Royal Canin

1 branded search term

  • royal canin dog food

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among dog food brands

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