Google’s annual Year in Search is out for 2021 and we have some insight into what Canadians searched for over the past year. As expected, sports, COVID, the federal election, stocks, and Bitcoin were all in the top 10 for Canadian Google searches.
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
“Google’s Year in Search is an annual look at what mattered most to Canadians over the year. 2021 was a year of recovery, and we saw Canadians search for ways to come back stronger. We searched for where to get vaccinated, and looked to educate ourselves on the history of Residential Schools. We were engaged citizens, searching for ‘Federal Election’ and ‘How to register to vote in Canada.’. And from the US Open to the Tokyo Olympics, we searched, chegered and celebrated our Canadian athletes and sports heroes.”
Hibaq Ali, Google Canada’s Trends expert
Without further ado, let’s check out the top 10 searches from Google’s Year in Search for Canadians in 2021 across a number of categories.
Top Searches
- NBA
- NHL
- COVID vaccine near me
- Euro 2021
- AMC Stock
- GME Stock
- Bitcoin price
- Gabby Petito
- DMX
- Squid Game
Top Canadian News Searches
- COVID vaccine near me
- Federal Election
- Severe thunderstorm warning
- Afghanistan
- Lockdown
- Vaccine passport
- BC Wildfires
- Tokyo Olympics
- Lytton fire
- Residential Schools
Why…
- Why did Prime Minister Trudeau call an election?
- Why were Residential Schools created?
- Why is it so hot in British Columbia?
- Why is lumber so expensive?
- Why did Simone Biles withdraw?
- Why did Taylor Swift re-record her music?
- Why was Prince Philip not king?
- Why is Bernie Sanders a meme?
- Why did Daft Punk break up?
- Why is Squid Game so popular?
How to…
- How to get a vaccine passport
- How to buy Dogecoin
- How to make money from home
- How to book a COVID vaccine
- How to register to vote in Canada
- How to watch the Oprah interview
- How to get a QR code for COVID vaccination
- How to make hot chocolate bombs
- How to apply for CERB
- How to get rid of a stuffy nose
Entertainment
Movies, TV shows, and music offer up an escape, especially these past couple of years. On that front, Marvel took the top three movie search results, there was an interesting mix of TV shows searched, and Olivia Rodrigo appeared three times in the top songs Canadians searched in Google’s Year of Search lists.
“This year, the top-trending searched movie Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, stars Mississauga’s Simu Liu, who first gained fame in the CBC comedy Kim’s Convenience. Beloved Vancouver native Ryan Reynolds earned top trending search recognition a few times this year, starring in Red Notice and Free Guy. And, unsurprisingly, Squid Game was top of mind for Canadians this year as the top trending TV show in Canada, with searchers even asking, ‘why is Squid Game so popular?'”
Google
Top movies
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
- Black Widow
- Eternals
- Dune
- Red Notice
- Army of the Dead
- Halloween Kills
- Godzilla vs. Kong
- The Suicide Squad
- Free Guy
Top TV Shows
- Squid Game
- Bridgerton
- Ginny and Georgia
- Yellowstone
- Manifest
- Outer Banks
- Cecil Hotel
- Loki
- Maid
- Lupin
Top Musicians
- Travis Scott
- Adele
- Morgan Wallen
- Daft Punk
- Marilyn Manson
- Dr. Dre
- Olivia Rodrigo
- Britney Spears
- Lil Nas X
- Travis Barker
Top Songs
- “Drivers License” – Olivia Rodrigo
- “All Too Well” – Taylor Swift
- “Deja Vu” – Olivia Rodrigo
- “Easy on Me” – Adele
- “Montero” – Lil Nax X
- “Good 4 U” – Olivia Rodrigo
- “Wants and Needs” – Drake ft. Lil Baby
- “Peaches” – Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon
- “Happier Than Ever” – Billie Eilish
- “Industry Baby” – Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow
Sports
And let’s not forget about sports. Considering the NBA and NHL were the top two search results overall (with Euro 2021 sneaking in at fourth spot), it’s interesting that only one hockey player cracked the top three. It is no surprise, however, that 19-year old tennis star Leylah Fernandez was the top searched Canadian athlete given her performance at the U.S. Open this past year.
Top Canadian Athletes
- Leylah Fernandez
- Andre De Grasse
- John Tavares
- Carey Price
- Penny Oleksiak
- Jake Evans
- Bianca Andreescu
- Felix Auger-Aliassime
- Denis Shapovalov
- Damian Warner
Top Athletes
- Tiger Woods
- Leylah Fernandez
- Andre De Grasse
- Simone Biles
- John Tavares
- Kyle Beach
- Emma Raducanu
- Carey Price
- Aaron Rodgers
- Penny Oleksiak
If you’re interested in more Google Year in Search results, including how other countries stacked up, check out Google’s website.
What do you think about Google’s Year in Search for Canadians? Did you search any of the popular searches over the past year? Let us know on social media by using the buttons below.
