Like many of us this time of year, the folks at Google take a look back over the past 12 months. But rather than simply reminiscing, they do so to learn about the occurrences, individuals and trends that people around the world wanted to know more about.
What Is Google's Year in Search 2022?
Google's Year in Search is a report created using data collected over the past year that reflects trending topics based on what people searched for. The top trends were those that saw a significant traffic increase over a sustained period compared to the year before.
The interactive report allows you to view the year in search by country or region. It breaks down results by categories, with expected topics such as News, Passings and Sports Teams. But it also includes many other interesting categories, like pronunciations and recipes.
Wordle: Study Reveals Cheating Tripled Since NYT Acquired Game
Research also reveals New Hampshire had more Wordle cheaters looking up answers online than any other state.
Top Trends for the Year
Some searches that made the top 10 in the U.S. were also on the list of global trends. For instance, the once-viral word game "Wordle" was the top trending search across the country and worldwide. In addition, "Queen Elizabeth," "Ukraine" and "Jeffrey Dahmer" also made both the global and national top 10, which follows.
2022 TOP 10 SEARCHES IN THE U.S.
- Wordle
- Election results
- Betty White
- Queen Elizabeth
- Bob Sager
- Ukraine
- Mega Millions
- Powerball numbers
- Anne Heche
- Jeffrey Dahmer
Many people searched for tickets to various locations and events, from Disneyland and Phillies games to Bad Bunny, Taylor Swift and Blink 182. Sugo, a traditional Italian tomato sauce, was the number one recipe in the nation, and "Everybody" by the Backstreet Boys topped the list of searches using Google's "Hum to Search" feature.
Merriam-Webster's 2022 Word Of The Year Is 'Gaslighting'
Merriam-Webster announced its most-searched words of 2022 today. 'Gaslighting' was named the top word over 'endemic,' 'omicron' and 'queen consort.'
New to Google's Year in Search: Local Trends
This year, Google launched a local hub revealing interesting trends from all over the U.S. For instance, the Dallas area was the only place in the country with "halal food" in its top trending Near Me searches; "Cadillac margarita" only made the top trending recipe in Tucson, Arizona; and the Chicago area was the only place in the U.S. that searched for "house music" more than classical.
You can view all of the top 10 lists on Google's Year in Search and check out trends for your area on Google's Local Year in Search.
