In our continuing series of examining Google Search Trends to gain insights into the most queried keyword phrases in the USA, we present our findings from December 2024.
For every day of the month, we collect three keyword phrases with the highest search volume reported by Google Trends – Trending Now (US Only). Google’s Trending Now tool provides the date when each phrase started to trend or when the phrase started to be “searched more than usual.” Each keyword phrase has an estimated query volume attached to it, which we also record. After the conclusion of the month, we review the entire list of phrases along with their volumes to understand what motivated people to enter those queries. Our series of reports gives a snapshot of the most important topics on the populace’s minds, sometimes with some year-over-year growth or decline analysis.
Looking Back At December 2024
As December 2024 came to a close, Google’s search trends provided a fascinating glimpse into the topics capturing public interest. From the highly anticipated Kendrick Lamar tour and Hollywood’s latest blockbusters to heated college football rivalries and holiday-related queries, the spectrum of searches reveals much about our collective mindset. Can we tell what films are highly anticipated based on the search volume of the newly released trailer? Is “Spotify Wrapped” gaining in popularity or declining? By exploring the top keyword phrases from Google trends, we can better understand what topics shaped the final month of the year and resonated with the US public.
December Holiday Queries
We all look to the end of the year when we can celebrate the holidays with family and loved ones. Here’s how the 2024 holiday season was defined by the top Google search queries.
- restaurants open christmas day – 12/21/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- norad santa tracker – 12/22/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- merry christmas – 12/23/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- walgreens – 12/23/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- stores open on christmas – 12/24/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
- walmart – 12/24/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- happy new year 2025 images – 12/30/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- happy new year – 12/30/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- new year’s day – 12/31/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
The focus on business-related queries is clear with Walgreens and Walmart making the list. Understanding what restaurants and stores were open on Christmas was also top of mind. A key takeaway for marketers is to make sure your business profiles are up to date with your holiday hours.
Celebrity Names
It was a mix bag for entertainers who made our list in December 2024.
- kendrick lamar tour – 12/03/2024 – 500,000+ queries
- jay z – 12/08/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- benny blanco – 12/11/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- justin baldoni – 12/21/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- beyonce – 12/25/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
Let’s start with the positives. To start off, Kendrick Lamar and SZA announced their 2025 tour dates. Selena Gomez announced her engagement to Benny Blanco on Instagram on December 11, 2024. Then, Beyonce performed in the NFL’s Christmas Day halftime show. The performance was called “Beyoncé Bowl” and was available to stream on Netflix.
The other two names on this list are attached to lawsuits. On December 8th, A civil suit filed in New York federal court accuses Jay-Z of joining Sean Combs in raping a 13-year-old girl. Lastly, Justin Baldoni was sued by his It Ends with Us co-star Blake Lively for sexual harassment.
Searchers Thought These Movies Are Worth Seeing
Is there anticipation for a film? Search data could help us understand. Here is the list of all the popular movie releases and trailers that made our list last month.
- 28 weeks later – 12/10/2024 – 500,000+ queries
- carry on movie – 12/12/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- superman 2025 – 12/18/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- sonic 3 – 12/18/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- nosferatu – 12/23/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
Well, sometimes film names are hard. The trailer for 28 Years Later, set to be playing in theaters in June 2025, dropped on the 10th. Searchers used the title of the previous film in the series to find the trailer. Carry On, a film starring Taron Egerton, was released on Netflix on the 13th. The trailer for the next Superman film premiered on YouTube on the 19th. To wrap up, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was released in the US on the 20th and Nosferatu made its way into US theaters on the 25th.
Gaming Keywords
It doesn’t happen every month, but gaming topics get searched for in large volumes. Last month, we saw two phrases make our list.
- fortnite refund – 12/09/2024 – 500,000+ queries
- astro bot – 12/12/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
On the 9th, FTC sends payments to Fortnite gamers who were charged for unwanted items. The Playstation game Astro Bot had a ‘Winter Wonder’ update that launched on December 12.
Big News Stories
These keywords are related to news stories that drove people to search Google for more information. Here’s our rundown of the most queried phrases from last month.
- united healthcare ceo – 12/04/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
- luigi mangione – 12/09/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
On the 4th, Brian Thompson was shot to death in Manhattan. Later on that week, Luigi Mangione was arrested and then was charged in New York with murder as an act of terrorism.
The next big news item was related to drones in the sky.
- drones – 12/12/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
There were reports of drone sightings across various parts of New Jersey, including coastal areas and near a major reservoir. There were many theories about who or what was controlling these drones, leading people to search Google.
Lastly, a school shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin made headlines.
- natalie rupnow – 12/16/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
A 15-year-old student carried out a tragic shooting at the school, resulting in the deaths of a teacher and a fellow student and injuring six others.
Politics Rundown
After a busy month in November, we had a lighter list of keyword phrases in December related to politics.
- hunter biden – 12/01/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- south korea – 12/03/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- assad – 12/06/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- government shutdown – 12/16/2024 – 500,000+ queries
- jimmy carter – 12/29/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
On December 1, 2024, President Joe Biden issued a “Full and Unconditional Pardon” for his son, Hunter Biden. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law, accusing the opposition Democratic Party of anti-state activities on the 3rd. In Syria, the government collapsed as rebels seized control of the capital Damascus and deposed President Bashar al-Assad was granted asylum by Russia. The US Congress avoided a government shutdown last month and sadly, former US President Jimmy Carter passed away on the 29th at age 100.
The Most Popular US Sports League
People were keeping a close eye on the NFL season in December.
- trevor lawrence injury – 12/01/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- browns vs broncos – 12/01/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- bengals vs cowboys – 12/08/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- rams vs 49ers – 12/11/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- packers vs lions – 12/05/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- bills vs lions – 12/14/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- patrick mahomes injury – 12/15/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- bears vs vikings – 12/15/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- broncos vs chargers – 12/18/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- steelers vs ravens – 12/20/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- tank dell – 12/21/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- jalen hurts injury – 12/22/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- buccaneers vs cowboys – 12/22/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- chiefs vs steelers – 12/24/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- seahawks vs bears – 12/25/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- nfl games today – 12/25/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- packers vs vikings – 12/28/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- broncos vs bengals – 12/28/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- lions vs 49ers – 12/29/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- falcons vs commanders – 12/29/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
College football is very popular too.
- georgia vs texas – 12/06/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- penn state vs oregon – 12/06/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- college football playoff – 12/07/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- army navy game – 12/13/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- army navy game 2024 – 12/13/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- travis hunter dad – 12/14/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- tennessee vs ohio state – 12/20/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- byu vs colorado – 12/28/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- penn state vs boise state – 12/30/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
- ohio state vs oregon – 12/31/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
- notre dame vs georgia – 12/31/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
Next month, Bowl games and the NFL playoffs will drive query volumes to new heights.
MLB Notables
There were a couple of Major League Baseball keywords in our list last month.
- juan soto contract – 12/08/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
- rickey henderson – 12/20/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
Ex-New York Yankees signed with the New York Mets for $765 million.This sum represents the biggest contract in MLB history. On the 20th, All-Star Rickey Henderson died at age 65.
Tech Topics
Along with the holidays, people can count on their Spotify Wrapped
- spotify wrapped – 12/03/2024 – 2,000,000+ queries
This marketing campaign from the audio streamer has been an annual release for many years now. Are people more interested in the personalized recap of their listening habits this year as compared to past years? Let’s see!
According to Google Trends, listeners of Spotify were more interested than ever to see their Wrapped results.
On the 11th, there was a ChatGPT outage.
- chatgpt – 12/11/2024 – 1,000,000+ queries
We’re ok though. The LLM was back online before the end of the day.
California
We captured these keywords related to events in California that had a large number of queries in December 2024.
- california earthquake – 12/05/2024 – 5,000,000+ queries
- malibu fire – 12/10/2024 – 500,000+ queries
- scotts valley tornado – 12/14/2024 – 500,000+ queries
On December 5, 2024, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurred off the coast of northern California near Cape Mendocino. “Malibu fire” became a trending search term, likely in response to The Franklin Fire, which began on December 9, 2024, in Malibu.Finally, a rare and unexpected EF1 tornado touched down in Scotts Valley, which was unusual for the coastal region.
Here’s to a better 2025!Thanks for reading. If you liked this article, we utilize search trends data for all our clients, and we invite you to learn more about our SEO services.
