As 2023 comes to an end, we took a look at the top and rising Google Trends from the US territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. These provided important insights as to the top interests of the residents of the territories as the year progressed.
Trends data is an unbiased sample of Google search data. It’s anonymized (no one is personally identified), categorized (determining the topic for a search query), and aggregated (grouped together). Each month we’ll embed the direct data tables from Google so you can dig in deeper and learn more about each topic and the levels of interest over time. We will also mention the top rising queries, which are those with the biggest increase in search frequency since the last time period.
Puerto Rico
Search topics
Rising
- pega3: One of the local lottery games in the territory.
- Video recording: Searches for videos of events were common.
- 2024: Interest in vehicles for the next model year rose through 2023.
- Woman: The issue of domestic violence and International Women’s Day.
- 2023: Locals often searched for events and dates.
Top
- Puerto Rico: Residents of the territory often searched for local calendars, dates, and events related to Puerto Rico.
- Translation: Translation remained one of the top search topics throughout the year.
- Spanish language: Puerto Rico residents often searched for Spanish versions of shows and software.
- 2023: This topic gathered searches for events throughout the year.
- Lottery: Who won the lottery? Locals found out online.
Search queries
Rising
Guam
Search topics
Rising
- Job: 2023 was seemingly a big year for job searches in Guam.
- Typhoon: Typhoon Mawar caused a spike in searches for tropical cyclone information.
- 2023: Important deadlines and events were among the rising searches this year.
- Meaning: Google was often used as a dictionary.
- Docomo Pacific: Guam’s telecom and entertainment services provider. Customer service issues?
Top
- Guam: Searches often included local events or organizations.
- Time: Guamanians were often searching for times in different time zones across the world.
- 2023: Google was the go-to for dates in 2023.
- Number: In Guam, locals often used Google as a phone directory.
- YouTube: Rather than directly typing URLs, it seems many use Google as their entry point to sites like YouTube.
Search queries
US Virgin Islands
Search topics
Rising
- Job: US Virgin Islanders spent a lot of time searching for jobs, especially in the second half of the year.
- 2023: Even though the USVI does not observe Daylight Saving Time, it was one of the top-rising searches of the year.
- NOAA: With the start of the hurricane season, locals had a rising interest in the federal agency that tracks these weather systems.
- FirstBank: The San Juan, Puerto Rico-based bank has a presence in the USVI and was a popular search for islanders.
- American Airlines: With tourism being a popular industry in the territory, it is no surprise that airlines are among the top searches.
Top
- US Virgin Islands: Finding local entities was top of mind this year.
- Saint Croix: Local businesses on the island were amongst the top searches year-round.
- Saint Thomas: Same as above.
- Lottery: Like in neighboring Puerto Rico, residents of the territory showed a strong interest in the lottery.
- 2023: Tennis events in 2023 registered top interest this year.
Search queries
American Samoa
Search topics
Rising
- American Samoa Power Authority: American Samoans searched in spikes, usually at the end of the month, for the local power utility company.
- ASTCA: Similarly, paying for a phone bill led to a lot of searches for the local telecommunications provider.
- Job: Fall was a big time for job searching in American Samoa.
- 2023: There was strong interest in sports events in 2023, particularly rugby and the Super Bowl.
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: The LDS Conference led to a spike in interest in this topic in September.
Top
- YouTube: Like in Guam, locals seem to prefer accessing YouTube by going to Google first.
- American Samoa: Finding local businesses was a top priority this year.
- Instagram: Like YouTube, Instagram is accessed through Google.
- Facebook: And so with Facebook.
- Meaning: Lots of dictionary searches in 2023.
Search queries
Northern Mariana Islands
Search topics
Rising
- ChatGPT: The breakout online phenomenon took over search interest in the CNMI after June.
- Job: The second half of 2023 meant job changes for Northern Mariana Islanders.
- 2024: Next year’s calendar and car models were of rising interest as 2023 went on.
- 2023: Holidays and sports events were being searched for a lot.
- First Hawaiian Bank: Customer service inquiries for this bank made it one of the territory’s main topics in search.
Top
- Saipan: As the territory’s most populous island, finding businesses meant this island was the top topic.
- Northern Mariana Islands: Searches for CNMI government institutions made this the second most searched topic.
- Marianas Variety: Locals had a strong interest in news from their main local news outlet.
- Time: The local times of cities across the world were of particular interest in this US territory.
- Google: Searching for Google on Google? Very meta.
Search queries
From sports to holidays and international events, the year—Google’s 25th—had many different topics and queries each US territory focused on. Yet, despite their unique circumstances, there was one topic that appeared at or near the top for all five territories: ChatGPT. This is in line with national and global Google Trends as well, suggesting that the territories are paying close attention to the latest advances in artificial intelligence technology along with everyone else. This, despite being excluded by technology companies like Google itself from certain services: Cities from the territories are excluded from Google’s special feature of local search in 2023.
As we ring in 2024, what do you think will be next year’s top searches from the US territories?
Editor’s note: From now until December 31, 2023, all donations up to $1,000 will be double-matched, which means they have triple the impact on our efforts to cover the US territories. Will you help us continue covering the context of islands in 2024? Donate now >
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