Which is more popular, Instagram or TikTok?
Instagram. Over the last five years (September 2021 to September 2026), the world Googled Instagram 2.3 times as often as TikTok: about 268 million searches a month against 117 million, by our estimate from Google Trends.
Think you can call the next one? Two names, one hidden curve: pick the one the world Googled more.
Play the Internet gameWhich was Googled more each year?
Instagram was ahead in all 4 full years.
| Year | TikTok | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021* | 271 million | 105 million |
| 2022 | 278 million | 112 million |
| 2023 | 299 million | 119 million |
| 2024 | 259 million | 106 million |
| 2025 | 251 million | 123 million |
| 2026* | 248 million | 130 million |
Average searches a month, estimated. Partial years: the data starts in September 2021 and ends in September 2026.
Which is more popular right now?
Instagram still leads over the last 12 months, with 1.9 times as many searches: 250 million a month against 129 million.
When was each one searched the most?
- Instagram: the week of December 24, 2023, 1.3 times a usual week.
- TikTok: the week of January 19, 2025, 1.7 times a usual week.
How often did the lead change?
Instagram out-searched TikTok in 262 of 262 weeks. On a four-week average, the lead never changed hands.
What are they?
- Photo and video social network owned by Meta
- TikTok
- Short-video social platform owned by ByteDance
How is this measured?
Each curve is Google Trends interest, worldwide, one point per week from September 26, 2021 to September 27, 2026. Trends only gives relative numbers, so every name is put on one scale against a shared anchor and turned into estimated searches. The ratios between two names are the solid part; the absolute counts are estimates. Both names are measured as Google Trends topics, which group every spelling and language. Not affiliated with Google.