Google has launched its 2022 ‘Year in Search’ overview, which provides a snapshot of the key interests and trends throughout the year, based on Google Search activity.

And it certainly provides a quick dose of recent nostalgia.

As per Google:

“Wordle was the top trending search globally, as guessing five-letter words every day became a way of life. We also saw pop culture continue to leave its mark as we searched for “how to become a fighter pilot” thanks to “Top Gun: Maverick,” and how to learn new languages, specifically Minion, High Valyrian and Klingon. Most of us also couldn’t seem to get songs from hit TV shows out of our head, with Ali Sethi’s “Pasoori” becoming the top global Hum to Search song.”

Google’s Year in Search mini-site provides a full overview of the top search terms by topic category, each of which you can expand out to the top 10, while you can also tap through on any trend to get more information, based on Google Trends data.

So what were the top trends of the year in the US?

As noted, Wordle was the most searched term, followed by various top news topics.

Though interestingly, the top ‘People’ searches don’t include the same names, so not exactly sure how Google separates out people from overall trends.

Google’s also listed the top movies and musicians:

And the top recipes:

Also, people apparently can’t pronounce ‘puzzle’?

As noted, it’s an interesting overview of the year that was, which also offers a wealth of insight for market research, and pinpointing the topics that drive the most interest, which could help to guide your promotional strategies for 2023.

You can also filter the listings by region, giving you more specific, localized insights. And for the first time, you can also hone in on more specific trends for US states via Google’s new Local Hub element.

The Local Hub provides an overview of the top trends and searches in each region, while you can also scan through local trends across the US via a map.

Again, it’s a handy overview of the year, which could also provide more insight for your planning, while you could also supplement this data with more specific, niche and industry insights from Google Trends.

What are the key topics of interest in your niche? What are the key trends that people are using to find your website? Conduct a search of these in Trends, note down the details, and you can also build your own, custom industry trends list, based on Google Search, for the year.

You can check out Google’s ‘Year in Search’ mini-site here.