How to Find Trending Topics on Youtube in 2026
To find trending topics on YouTube in 2026, creators and brands must look beyond basic viral hits and utilize a combination of official platform dashboards, advanced research tools, and external cross-platform analysis.
- Official YouTube Research Tools
- YouTube Trending Tab: Accessible from the YouTube homepage or “Explore” section, this page is updated roughly every 15 minutes to show popular videos in categories like music, gaming, and movies for your specific region.
- YouTube Analytics “Trends” Tab: Located in the YouTube Studio app under “Analytics,” this tab reveals what your specific audience is searching for. It also identifies “Content Gaps”—topics where viewers are searching for videos but not finding high-quality results.
- YouTube Autocomplete: Start typing broad keywords related to your niche into the YouTube search bar to see real-time suggestions based on current popular searches.
- YouTube Culture & Trends Hub: The official YouTube Trends site provides deeper data-driven reports on cultural shifts and emerging global phenomena.
- External Data & Keyword Tools
- Google Trends for YouTube: Visit Google Trends and filter the search type to “YouTube Search” to see the relative popularity of topics over time and discover “Rising” related queries.
- Outlier Detection Tools: In 2026, specialized platforms like OutlierKit are popular for identifying “outlier” videos—content that performs 5-10x better than a channel’s average views. This helps pinpoint specific topics that are currently breaking through the algorithm.
- Keyword Analysis Platforms: Tools like vidIQ and TubeBuddy offer browser extensions that display search volume, competition scores, and real-time trend alerts directly on YouTube.
- Cross-Platform Trend Spotting
- TikTok Creative Center: Since many YouTube trends originate on TikTok, use the TikTok Creative Center to monitor trending hashtags, songs, and video formats that are likely to migrate to YouTube Shorts.
- X (formerly Twitter): Follow niche-specific topics to see real-time discussions. Trends appearing on X often translate into high-demand “commentary” or “explainer” video topics on YouTube.
- Exploding Topics: Use Exploding Topics to find rapidly growing trends across the internet before they become saturated on YouTube.
