Marvel Is More Popular Than DC According To New Study - Screen Rant

A new study has provided an answer to the question of the world's favorite superhero universe, as it's been revealed Marvel is more popular than DC in terms of search traffic. However, just because those whose search data was used in the study listed the Marvel Universe as their top preference, it doesn't mean DC's Universe didn't get high marks as well, as both universes have proven to be wildly popular across the globe.

Earlier this month, Game.co.uk released its findings of a survey that analyzed the Google Search results across the entire planet in an effort to find out the most popular universes, heroes, supervillains. The data not only shows the most searched universes and characters by country but also took a closer look at the most popular universe by the U.S. states, as well as which characters are most searched from every individual country. While some of the answers are less than surprising, others are particularly interesting and show how much the MCU and DCEU have impacted which characters are being searched the most. Let's break down some of the most interesting points coming from the data.

Continue scrolling to keep reading Click the button below to start this article in quick view.

The Most Popular Universe By Country

In data in over 60 countries, Marvel was the most searched in 51 of them - dominating North America. It's important to note these results are likely related to recently released projects from Marvel and DC - as the MCU has rolled out WandaVision and The Falcon and Winter Soldier over the past few months, while the DCEU has only released Wonder Woman 1984.

Leading the charge was the United States, having more than 300,000 monthly searches for Marvel. Rounding out the biggest fans in terms of searches was India with 110,000 searches, Brazil with 110,000 searches, the United Kingdom with 90, 500 searches, and France with more than 90,000 searches. With more than 85% of the countries searching Marvel over DC, it was an overwhelming victory for the Marvel side.

DC Comics actually did extremely well in Europe and Asia. South Korea accounted for more than 200,000 monthly searches - the second most on the list. Meanwhile, the United States had 165,000 searches (more than 140,000 less than Marvel), India had 110,000 (the same as Marvel), Brazil had 60,500, and Turkey had 60,500 as well. The search data shows DC is more popular than Marvel in some overseas markets, but even still, Marvel has statistically done better in the box office in those locations.

The Most Popular Universe By U.S. State

In the United States, Marvel properties and characters were searched more in 28 of 50 states, leading DC to nab 22 of the most popular states.

In this case, the data reveals California has the most Marvel searches, with more than 50,000, while Texas is the biggest DC fans with more than 40,000 search queries. While DC has much more searches in New York, North Carolina, and Indiana, Marvel has received more searches in the Mountain States and captured more searches overall in states all across the United States.

The World's Most Popular Heroes

Here's where the data gets particularly interesting.

Across the planet, the most searched hero overall was Spider-Man by a wide margin. The web-slinger ranked atop 57 different countries' most searched heroes, which accounted for nearly 50% of the study's share percentage. Spider-Man was the most searched hero in the United States and Sweden but also was popular across a number of smaller countries including Mongolia, Kazahkstan, Algeria, and Madagasgar.

Checking in second among the most-searched heroes is DC's Wonder Woman. Diana receiving a 12.8 share in the study, which might be slightly higher than usual with Wonder Woman 1984's release. Wonder Woman was Russia's most-searched heroes while being atop 15 different countries lists in total, including Egypt and Belarus.

Completing the top three was Batman, who ranked atop searches in 11 different countries, earning 9.2% of the share in the study. Iron Man just ranked below him with 10 countries and an 8.5% share. Noteworthy data includes Captain America, the patriotic U.S. hero, being the most searched in Canada and Australia, despite only ranking atop four total countries. Meanwhile, Groot was a top hero in search results in just one country, Turkey.

The World's Most Popular Villains

This might be the most surprising data on the list, not because of who ranks at the top, but because a couple of comic book-only characters made the list - with one ranking atop searches in 11 countries.

Unsurprisingly, Thanos the Mad Titan, the big villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, ranks as the most-searched villain in 66 countries, grabbing more than 55% of the total share in the study. Thanos dominated across the globe while being the most searched in Canada and Australia. Meanwhile, Joker ranked second and was the most searched in 21 countries capturing nearly 18% of the total shares among villains, being the most searched in the United States. Ranking in third was Venom, who captured 13.6% of the shares in the study, leading in 16 countries including Russia and Brazil.

The fourth-ranked supervillain is the most surprising name on this list, Emplate. Marius St. Croix is the brother of Monet St. Croix and has been a villain in the comics. With diamond skin and the ability to take energy from the bones of mutants, the monstrous mutant has been an antagonist of the X-Men for more than 15 years - with his most notable arc coming from his time in Generation X, a still popular X-Men run to this day. He was recently invited to the mutant nation of Krakoa and has been featured in the X-Men's current reboot. But, for a character who's never appeared in any live-action projects, the fact Emplate ranked atop 11 countries lists (getting more than 9.6% of the study's shares) is a complete surprise. Apparently, Emplate is huge overseas.

The rest of the list is rounded out by Ultron (2 countries), Catwoman (2 countries), and another surprising face, Daken - the son of Wolverine. Daken, who also has never appeared in a live-action project for Marvel, was the most popular villain in terms of total searches in Germany. It's likely Daken ranked at the top because a handful of his stories are set in Berlin. Compared to some of the names expected to make this list that didn't, such as Marvel's Kilmonger, Loki, or Mysterio, or DC's Lex Luthor, Darkseid, or Scarecrow, Daken is certainly an outside-the-box choice. If you'd like to check out the study, you can find it here.

Next: Phase 4 Is Introducing Another Hero Strong Enough To Defeat Thanos Alone

Source: Game.Co.Uk

Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men Dominate Marvel's LGBTQ+ Pride Art

Related Topics

About The Author

Liam McGuire (1154 Articles Published)

Liam McGuire is a comics editor for Screen Rant. He has worked for numerous publications including Cineplex Canada, MLB.com, Vice, CBR.com, and more. You can reach out to him directly at liam.m@screenrant.com