Study · October 16, 2026 · October 2025–September 2026 · US
AI Shopping Search Trends (2026)
Google searches for AI assistants, AI shopping tools and retailers' own AI assistants, against a year earlier. These are searches for the tools, not shopping done inside them.
Google searches about shopping with AI in a year, while searches for AI assistants rose 62%.
Google searches for “chatgpt” in a year. “claude ai” up 346%, “copilot” up 88%, “perplexity” up 22%.
searches for retailers' own AI assistants: Walmart's Sparky +311%, Amazon's Rufus −9%.
searches for “chatgpt shopping” (13,340 a year); “ai shopping” +67% (15,360). Fast growth from small numbers.
These are Google searches for AI tools, not shopping done inside them.
Using these figures
Free to use. A mention of Sauron and a link back is appreciated.
Source: Sauron analysis of Google search volumes, https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends
- Keyword table (CSV)
- Themes by state (CSV)
- Charts (PNG and embed code)
- All headline figures and the chart pack
Laurence Tuchin, founder
press@sauron.so
Need a category, a state or a different cut? Email us.
Searches by theme
Searches for AI assistants were up 62% in a year. Searches about shopping with AI were up 3.5%.
Change in US Google searches about AI, by theme
October 2025–September 2026 vs October 2024–September 2025
Show the numbers
| Item | Change |
|---|---|
| General AI assistants | +61.8% |
| Retailer AI assistants | +21.9% |
| AI gift ideas | +8.1% |
| Shopping with AI | +3.5% |
Download or embed this chart
Download PNG (1600px) Free to use. A link back to this page is appreciated.
<a href="https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends"><img src="https://sauron.so/research/charts/ai-themes-change.png" alt="Bar chart of the change in searches per theme, October 2025–September 2026 against the 12 months before: general AI assistants +61.8%, retailer AI assistants +21.9%, AI gift ideas +8.1%, and shopping with AI only +3.5%." width="800" style="max-width:100%;height:auto"></a>
<p>Chart: <a href="https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends">Sauron Research</a></p>We grouped 35 searches into 4 themes. Interest in AI assistants grew fast (up 62%); searches about using AI to shop barely moved (up 3.5%). That small rise includes “chatgpt shopping research”, a phrase with no searches a year earlier (4,460 this year); without it, the theme was about level.
Show the table
| Theme | Searches, October 2025–September 2026 | October 2024–September 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| General AI assistants chatgpt, google ai mode, perplexity, gemini, claude ai, copilot, alexa plus | 1,805,353,900 | 1,115,585,910 | +61.8% |
| Shopping with AI chatgpt shopping, ai shopping assistant, perplexity shopping, best ai for shopping, ai product recommendations, chatgpt shopping research, chatgpt product recommendations, ai shopping, ai shopping app, ai personal shopper, ai stylist, ai outfit generator, ai deal finder, ai price comparison, google shopping ai, google ai shopping, shop with ai, perplexity buy with pro, ai product finder, ai recommendation engine | 106,840 | 103,250 | +3.5% |
| Retailer AI assistants amazon rufus, amazon ai shopping assistant, walmart ai, sparky walmart | 179,120 | 146,880 | +21.9% |
| AI gift ideas ai gift ideas, ai gift finder, ai gift generator, ai christmas gift ideas | 7,700 | 7,120 | +8.1% |
US, October 2025–September 2026, compared with the same months a year earlier. Each theme adds up the searches listed under it.
Searches for AI shopping tools
Walmart's Sparky grew fastest (up 311%); Amazon's Rufus fell (down 9%).
Change in US Google searches for AI shopping tools
October 2025–September 2026 vs October 2024–September 2025
Show the numbers
| Item | Change |
|---|---|
| sparky walmart | +311% |
| best ai for shopping | +206.1% |
| walmart ai | +80.5% |
| chatgpt shopping | +79.1% |
| ai shopping | +66.6% |
| ai price comparison | +28.3% |
| ai stylist | +2.7% |
| ai shopping assistant | -7.3% |
| amazon rufus | -8.9% |
| ai outfit generator | -18.7% |
| ai deal finder | -43.6% |
| perplexity shopping | -50.5% |
| ai recommendation engine | -56.5% |
| ai product recommendations | -58.3% |
Download or embed this chart
Download PNG (1600px) Free to use. A link back to this page is appreciated.
<a href="https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends"><img src="https://sauron.so/research/charts/ai-shopping-keywords-change.png" alt="Bar chart of the change in searches for AI shopping tools and retailers' AI assistants, October 2025–September 2026 against the 12 months before. Searches with at least 10,000 a year: “sparky walmart” +311%, “walmart ai” +80.5%, “chatgpt shopping” +79.1%, “ai shopping” +66.6%, “ai shopping assistant” -7.3%, “amazon rufus” -8.9%, “ai outfit generator” -18.7%." width="800" style="max-width:100%;height:auto"></a>
<p>Chart: <a href="https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends">Sauron Research</a></p>The shopping searches that grew: “ai shopping” (15,360, up 67%), “chatgpt shopping” (13,340, up 79%). Others fell: “ai shopping assistant” (14,460, down 7%), “ai outfit generator” (18,300, down 19%).
Several smaller searches fell too, including “ai deal finder”, “ai product recommendations” and “ai recommendation engine”. Each had under 10,000 searches a year, so we list them in the table rather than quote them.
Among retailers' own assistants, Walmart's grew and Amazon's didn't: “sparky walmart” (42,500, up 311%), “walmart ai” (21,700, up 81%), “amazon rufus” (112,600, down 9%).
Related research
What this means for small stores
Most product searches still start on Google, and online sales keep growing (see our US ecommerce statistics). If shoppers do start asking AI assistants what to buy, those assistants read the same store pages Google does. Sauron writes Shopify store pages so search engines and AI assistants can find and cite them.
More from this study
What these searches show
These are Google searches for AI tools and AI shopping features, not shopping done inside them. People who already use an assistant don't need to search for it, so these numbers can't tell you how many people shop with AI. What they do show is how many people go looking for AI help with shopping, and whether that is growing faster than interest in AI in general.
Searches for AI assistants
The assistants' own names are searched far more often, mostly by people looking for the assistant itself, for any reason: “chatgpt” (1,442,000,000, up 53%), “claude ai” (41,500,000, up 346%), “copilot” (46,590,000, up 88%), “perplexity” (17,603,000, up 22%). They are here for scale, on their own chart, because the numbers are thousands of times bigger than the shopping searches.
Change in US Google searches for AI assistants
October 2025–September 2026 vs October 2024–September 2025
Show the numbers
| Item | Change |
|---|---|
| claude ai | +346.1% |
| gemini | +107.7% |
| copilot | +88% |
| chatgpt | +52.6% |
| perplexity | +21.6% |
Download or embed this chart
Download PNG (1600px) Free to use. A link back to this page is appreciated.
<a href="https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends"><img src="https://sauron.so/research/charts/ai-assistants-change.png" alt="Bar chart of the change in searches for AI assistants by name, October 2025–September 2026 against the 12 months before: “claude ai” +346.1%, “copilot” +88%, “chatgpt” +52.6%, “perplexity” +21.6%." width="800" style="max-width:100%;height:auto"></a>
<p>Chart: <a href="https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends">Sauron Research</a></p>Every search in the study
| Search | Searches, October 2025–September 2026 | October 2024–September 2025 | Change | Peak month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| chatgpt | 1,442,000,000 | 944,700,000 | +52.6% | September 2026 |
| gemini | 252,600,000 | 121,640,000 | +107.7% | July 2025 |
| copilot | 46,590,000 | 24,780,000 | +88% | April 2026 |
| claude ai | 41,500,000 | 9,303,000 | +346.1% | April 2026 |
| perplexity | 17,603,000 | 14,473,000 | +21.6% | October 2025 |
| google ai mode | 4,806,500 | 503,300 | +855% | September 2026 |
| alexa plus | 254,400 | 186,610 | +36.3% | December 2025 |
| amazon rufus | 112,600 | 123,600 | -8.9% | September 2024 |
| sparky walmart | 42,500 | 10,340 | +311% | September 2026 |
| walmart ai | 21,700 | 12,020 | +80.5% | October 2025 |
| ai outfit generator | 18,300 | 22,500 | -18.7% | April 2025 |
| ai shopping | 15,360 | 9,220 | +66.6% | December 2025 |
| ai shopping assistant | 14,460 | 15,600 | -7.3% | December 2025 |
| chatgpt shopping | 13,340 | 7,450 | +79.1% | October 2025 |
| ai stylist | 9,870 | 9,610 | +2.7% | April 2026 |
| perplexity shopping | 5,640 | 11,400 | -50.5% | November 2024 |
| chatgpt shopping research | 4,460 | 0 | n/a | November 2025 |
| google shopping ai | 4,440 | 4,600 | -3.5% | May 2025 |
| google ai shopping | 4,430 | 4,090 | +8.3% | May 2025 |
| best ai for shopping | 4,010 | 1,310 | +206.1% | August 2026 |
| ai gift ideas | 3,840 | 1,710 | +124.6% | November 2025 |
| ai price comparison | 2,950 | 2,300 | +28.3% | September 2026 |
| ai gift finder | 2,600 | 3,810 | -31.8% | December 2024 |
| amazon ai shopping assistant | 2,320 | 920 | +152.2% | November 2025 |
| ai shopping app | 1,930 | 1,570 | +22.9% | November 2025 |
| ai deal finder | 1,450 | 2,570 | -43.6% | March 2025 |
| ai recommendation engine | 1,400 | 3,220 | -56.5% | May 2025 |
| ai personal shopper | 1,390 | 1,480 | -6.1% | March 2026 |
| ai product finder | 1,260 | 1,710 | -26.3% | March 2026 |
| ai gift generator | 1,080 | 1,350 | -20% | December 2024 |
| ai product recommendations | 860 | 2,060 | -58.3% | March 2026 |
| perplexity buy with pro | 650 | 1,190 | -45.4% | December 2024 |
| shop with ai | 460 | 950 | -51.6% | January 2025 |
| chatgpt product recommendations | 180 | 420 | -57.1% | June 2025 |
| ai christmas gift ideas | 180 | 250 | -28% | December 2024 |
US, October 2025–September 2026, compared with the same months a year earlier. Close variants Google counts as the same search are counted once. n/a: fewer than 100 searches in one of the years, too few to compare.
How we did it
Monthly Google search volumes for 35 searches about AI tools, US only, October 2025–September 2026 against the 12 months before. These are searches for the tools, not shopping done inside them. Searches under 10,000 a year are listed but not quoted.
Using these figures
Free to use. If you cite these figures, a mention of Sauron and a link back to this page is appreciated.
Suggested credit
Source: Sauron analysis of Google search volumes, https://sauron.so/research/ai-shopping-search-trends
Download the data Keyword table (CSV) Themes by state (CSV)
Full method
- Search data: Google Ads search volume data (monthly Google searches, US), national only (state figures are too small to report). Window: October 2025–September 2026, compared with October 2024–September 2025.
- What this shows: searches for AI tools and AI shopping features, not shopping done inside them.
- Themes: each theme adds up the searches listed under it. A search with no full year to compare is left out of its theme's totals.
- Small numbers: we list searches under 10,000 a year but don't quote them in the text, and we don't report a change when either year has fewer than 100 searches. “chatgpt shopping research” had no searches a year earlier, so it has no change figure.
- Left out: “ask chatgpt what to buy” had no measurable search volume.
- Full data: CSV download in the “Using these figures” box above.
Questions (3)
Are more people searching for ways to shop with AI?
Barely. Google searches about shopping with AI were up 3.5% in October 2025–September 2026 on the 12 months before, while searches for AI assistants were up 62% (Sauron analysis of Google search volumes).
How many people search for ChatGPT shopping?
There were 13,340 US Google searches for “chatgpt shopping” in October 2025–September 2026, up 79% on the 12 months before.
Do these numbers show how many people shop with AI?
No. They count Google searches for AI tools and AI shopping features, not shopping done inside ChatGPT, Rufus, Sparky or any other assistant.