Google’s Year in Search was as bleak as 2020
It's no secret 2020 was an awful year.
The gruesome pandemic, the maddening isolation, and, in the U.S., a presidential election that dragged on while the loser (outgoing President Donald Trump) stubbornly refused to concede despite the fact that he lost handily. Not to mention raging wildfires, tragic celebrity deaths, and mass protests against racial injustice.
But in case you needed more proof how bleak this year was, Google's Year in Search could provide that data. Google released the data on the top trending searches for the year in the United States — meaning queries that had a high spike in traffic over a sustained period in 2020 compared with 2019.
The top trending searches were pretty bleak. They were pretty much all related to election, the pandemic, or celebrities who died. Well, those things and the PS5. According to Google, the Top 10 trending searches were:
Election results
Coronavirus
Coronavirus update
Coronavirus symptoms
Zoom
Who is winning the election
PlayStation 5
Top trending searches in the news category featured more of the same, with election results, coronavirus, stimulus checks, and unemployment leading all queries. Or consider the top trending "near me" searches: Covid testing near me, early voting near me, fires near me, voting near me, protests near me.
Obviously, people were concerned about tragedy in their area, whether it be deadly illness, catastrophic wildfires, or protests combatting social injustices.
The "how to help" section was pretty similar. Here it is:
How to help Australia fires
How to help Black Lives Matter
How to help during coronavirus
How to help Yemen
How to help acid reflux
How to help Beirut
How to help someone having a panic attack
How to help period cramps
How to help heartburn
How to help nausea
"How to donate" was more of the same, with folks wondering how they could give to Black Lives Matter, or donate N95 masks, or give to relief efforts for the Australian wildfires.
It was definitely a dark year and, yes, Google searches showed that. But at the very least, searches also showed people wanted to help one another get through it all.
Topics Google
Tim Marcin is an Associate Editor on the culture team at Mashable, where he mostly digs into the weird parts of the internet. You'll also see some coverage of memes, tech, sports, trends, and the occasional hot take. You can find him on Bluesky (sometimes), Instagram (infrequently), or eating Buffalo wings (as often as possible).
