About and methodology
Google Trends provides a unique look at what the world is searching for, and what it seeks to better understand. The Google Trends Time Capsule outlines the top five “most searched” in a category each year from 1999 to 2023.
The “most searched” designation means a person or property was searched more than any other in a specific category1 globally since 1999.
The experience has highlighted individuals and properties based on both cultural influence and it's important to note that this experience is not exhaustive of every person or property who fits the criteria of “most searched.”
Using internal Google Trends tools, the “most searched” in each category1 is calculated using anonymous and aggregated Google Search data2 samples from two sources:
- Google Search archive from January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2003
- Google Trends data from January 1, 2004 to November 27, 2023, worldwide
How “most searched” is calculated:
- When a “most searched” category is represented by a Topic4, the Topic4 with the most search interest in (Topic4 + Topic4) is calculated3.
1 Category is a reference to a career title, an action, event, or achievement.
2 Data is dated back to January 1, 2004, the date Google Trends started analyzing Search data.
3 Calculations of search interest are quantified using Google’s proprietary internal tools.
4 Topic is a group of terms that share the same concept in different languages, referring to a person, moment or movement.
