Here's to an epic 25 years: Exploring the most searched trends of all time

This year, Google celebrated our 25th birthday — so we're marking this occasion by looking back on the trends that have piqued our collective curiosity over the years. Today, we're kicking off our 25 Years in Search celebration by highlighting the most searched people, places and things of all time.

25 years of Search has given us a lot to look back on, including nearly two decades of Trends data. And as we discovered, our searches revealed a shared curiosity — around the world, we're often inspired by the same moments and seek the same answers.

Soccer, the world's most-searched sport, and Cristiano Ronaldo, its most-searched athlete, demonstrate a love for the game that transcends borders. Taylor Swift's status as the most-searched songwriter highlights the profound connection people feel with her music, and by extension, with each other. We also see shared humanity in the most-searched "how to help" query: how to help people. And the heart emoji, the most-searched emoji, reveals yet another universal theme: our shared need for love and understanding.

In addition to a Year in Search film unlike ever before, we're launching even more ways for the world to experience and explore insights from the last 25 years. We’re releasing our annual 2023 Trends Global and Local Lists featuring top trending searches across 210 U.S. regions, a Most Searched Time Capsule highlighting most searched things from each year, and the Most Searched Playground, an interactive game and Doodle launching tomorrow that features 25 of the most-searched trends, from everyday to iconic.

Over the years, Google Trends have made us laugh, inspired us to dream, and challenged us to see the world differently. More importantly, however, they’ve reflected the magic of human curiosity, the power of information and have proven to us again and again that a search for answers is a promise of progress. If the last 25 years have taught us anything, it’s that the next 25 will change everything.

To watch the film and see all the trends that defined the last 25 years and 2023, check out our Year in Search website.