--- title: "Krispy Kreme vs Tim Hortons: Which is searched more in the United States?" description: "Is Krispy Kreme or Tim Hortons more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Donut 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/krispy-kreme-vs-tim-hortons" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Krispy Kreme vs Tim Hortons: Which is searched more in the United States? Is Krispy Kreme or Tim Hortons more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Donut 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**: Krispy Kreme and Tim Hortons - **Competitive set**: Donut chains - **Market**: United States - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Krispy Kreme Share of Search**: 15.3% - **Tim Hortons Share of Search**: 6.8% ## Is Krispy Kreme or Tim Hortons more popular in search? - In September 2026, Krispy Kreme had more branded searches than Tim Hortons among donut chains in the United States. Krispy Kreme had about 2.2 million branded searches, while Tim Hortons had 1 million. Krispy Kreme made up 15.3% of all donut chain searches we track, and Tim Hortons accounted for 6.8%. - Krispy Kreme was ahead of Tim Hortons in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Krispy Kreme’s share of searches among donut chains in the United States moved from 13.6% to 15.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 2.2M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Tim Hortons’ share of searches among donut chains in the United States moved from 6.1% to 6.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 1M. ## Top donut chains in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions, Krispy Kreme appeared in all three answers. Tim Hortons did not appear in any of the 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Krispy Kreme | 1st | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Duck Donuts | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Shipley Do-Nuts | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Dunkin' | 4th | 3 of 3 | 3 of 3 | | Tim Hortons | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 3 | ## Every AI answer about donut chains - Asked ChatGPT "Which donut chain has the best donuts in the US?": 1. Krispy Kreme, 2. Duck Donuts, 3. Shipley Do-Nuts, 4. Dunkin' - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best donut chains in the US?": 1. Krispy Kreme, 2. Duck Donuts, 3. Shipley Do-Nuts, 4. Dunkin' - Asked ChatGPT "Where can I get the best glazed donut from a chain in the US?": 1. Krispy Kreme, 2. Shipley Do-Nuts, 3. Duck Donuts, 4. Dunkin' Not named in any answer: Tim Hortons. 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 donut chains in September 2026? Neither Krispy Kreme nor Tim Hortons moved beyond provider rounding among donut chains in Sep 2026. ## Month by month | Month | Krispy Kreme estimated searches | Krispy Kreme Share of Search | Krispy Kreme rank | Tim Hortons estimated searches | Tim Hortons Share of Search | Tim Hortons rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 2.2M | 13.6% | 2 | 1M | 6.1% | 3 | | Nov 2025 | 2.7M | 16.2% | 2 | 1M | 5.9% | 3 | | Dec 2025 | 2.7M | 16.2% | 2 | 1M | 5.9% | 3 | | Jan 2026 | 2.2M | 15.8% | 2 | 1M | 7% | 3 | | Feb 2026 | 2.2M | 16.1% | 2 | 823K | 5.9% | 3 | | Mar 2026 | 2.7M | 17.1% | 2 | 1M | 6.2% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | 2.2M | 15.1% | 2 | 1M | 6.8% | 3 | | May 2026 | 2.2M | 13.6% | 2 | 1M | 6.1% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | 2.2M | 13.5% | 2 | 1M | 6% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | 2.2M | 13.5% | 2 | 1M | 6% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | 2.7M | 15.3% | 2 | 1.2M | 6.8% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | 2.2M | 15.3% | 2 | 1M | 6.8% | 3 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Krispy Kreme’s and Tim Hortons’ 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. - **Krispy Kreme**: Measured on the search term “krispy kreme”. - **Tim Hortons**: Measured on the search term “tim hortons”. - [Krispy Kreme profile](/demand/us/brands/krispy-kreme) - [Tim Hortons profile](/demand/us/brands/tim-hortons) - [All donut chains in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-donut-chains): 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 Krispy Kreme or Tim Hortons more popular in search? In September 2026, Krispy Kreme had more branded searches than Tim Hortons among donut chains in the United States. Krispy Kreme had about 2.2 million branded searches, while Tim Hortons had 1 million. Krispy Kreme made up 15.3% of all donut chain searches we track, and Tim Hortons accounted for 6.8%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Krispy Kreme vs Tim Hortons: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/krispy-kreme-vs-tim-hortons This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/krispy-kreme-vs-tim-hortons. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.