Black Friday AI Search Study 2026
How AI search is changing where Australians shop
Black Friday shopping now starts weeks early, AI tools keep sending shoppers to the same big chains, and most smaller retailers aren't ready. We audited 100 Australian retailers, asked ChatGPT and Google AI Mode 50 Black Friday shopping questions, and tracked nine years of search data to find out who gets found.
- retailers audited
- 100
- retailers audited
- AI shopping questions
- 50
- AI shopping questions
- AI tools compared
- 2
- AI tools compared
- years of search data
- 9
- years of search data
By Tom Galland, Founder of SEO Growth·Published 10 November 2026·Data collected 5 to 6 November 2026Key findings
Each stat has its own link. Use Copy stat to grab it with the source included.
of Australian Black Friday searches in 2025 happened before Black Friday week, up from 14% in 2017.
Australian online retailers had a 2026 Black Friday page live three weeks before the day.
of small independent retailers had a page live, compared with 50% of large retailers.
ChatGPT and Google AI Mode both put Myer, Amazon, The Good Guys, JB Hi-Fi and The Iconic at the top.
AI shopping answers named at least one of Australia's 10 biggest retail chains.
small businesses appeared on both tools' lists when asked which small Australian businesses to shop.
Black Friday now starts weeks before the day
In 2017, only 14% of Australian Black Friday searches happened before Black Friday week. In 2025 it was 69%, almost five times as much. Black Friday has gone from one weekend to a month of shopping, and most people have picked where they'll buy before the sales even start.
2026 is running slightly ahead again. Four weeks out, search interest was 17 on the Google Trends index, compared with 14 at the same point last year.
Share of Black Friday searches made before Black Friday week
“Seven in ten Black Friday searches now happen before Black Friday week. If your sale page goes up the week of, most of your customers have already made up their minds.”
Most retailers weren't ready three weeks out
On 6 November, three weeks before Black Friday, we checked 100 Australian online retailers for a 2026 Black Friday page. Only 36 had one. Half of the large chains were ready, but only 3 of 21 small independent stores were.
Retailers with a 2026 Black Friday page live, by size
- Large retailers50% (23 of 46)
- Mid-size brands30% (10 of 33)
- Small independents14% (3 of 21)
live pages were teasers with no prices yet
retailers showed last year's page or a page with no year on it
retailers had nothing at all: no page and no homepage link
Why it matters: shoppers start searching weeks before the day, and AI tools build their answers from pages that already exist. A retailer with no page has nothing for a search engine or AI tool to find.
AI shopping tools send Australians to the same five stores
We asked ChatGPT and Google AI Mode the same 50 Black Friday shopping questions, from TVs and air fryers to swimwear and golf clubs. Both tools put the same five retailers at the top, and about three in four answers named at least one of Australia's 10 biggest chains.
Most recommended retailers for Black Friday
- Myer2116
- Amazon1717
- The Good Guys1415
- JB Hi-Fi1414
- The Iconic1111
Big chains own the broad questions
“Which Australian retailers have the best Black Friday sales?” returned only national chains and Amazon on both tools.
Brand strength beats being early
Amazon was named in 17 answers on each tool, even though it hadn't published its Black Friday dates yet. Established brands get recommended on reputation alone.
The tools mostly disagree
For the same question, ChatGPT and Google AI Mode shared about four retailers on average and named different ones for the rest.
Specialists win the niches
Golf, fishing, bikes, gym gear and trampolines mostly surfaced specialist stores. Of the 230 retailers Google AI Mode named, 178 came up only once.
Small businesses are a lottery
We asked both tools: “What are the best small Australian businesses to shop on Black Friday?” ChatGPT named 18 businesses. Google AI Mode named 6. Not one appeared on both lists.
- Auguste The Label
- Obus
- Peony
- Outland Denim
- Clothing The Gaps
- Sage x Clare
- Maison Balzac
- Marloe Marloe
- I Love Linen
- Go-To Skincare
- Flavedo & Albedo
- Eco Modern Essentials
- Kakadu Plum Co
- Delilah's Deli
- Chambers Botanical
- Koh Living
- frank green
- Sheet Society
- St. Agni
- Bassike
- Dissh
- Paire
- Hommey
- Routine Beauty
Who AI recommends in each category
Pick a category to see which retailers and brands ChatGPT and Google AI Mode named most often for Black Friday shopping questions.
- JB Hi-Fi7/86/8
- The Good Guys6/86/8
- Amazon6/85/8
- Harvey Norman3/84/8
- Officeworks2/84/8
Electronics is a closed shop. The same three or four chains show up in almost every answer.
News and deal sites shape what AI recommends
AI answers lean heavily on the media. Google AI Mode cited News.com.au in 22 of 49 Black Friday answers, almost half. A retailer featured in these roundups is far more likely to turn up in an AI answer.
Most cited media sources in Google AI Mode
- News.com.au22
- Mamamia9
- ShopBack6
- 7NEWS4
- Broadsheet4
- Lifehacker3
- OzBargain3
10 ways to get found by Google and AI this Black Friday
The good news for smaller retailers: none of this needs a big-chain budget. It comes down to being findable early, across Google search, Google Ads and AI tools.
- 1
Get your Black Friday page live now
Seven in ten Black Friday searches happen before Black Friday week. A teaser with your sale dates and the categories on sale is better than nothing. Search engines and AI tools need time to find and trust a page.
- 2
Use the same URL every year
Keep one address like /black-friday and update the content each year instead of making a new page. Links and authority build up year after year. Just make sure the title and dates say 2026, not last year.
- 3
Give AI tools something to quote
Put real details on the page: start and end dates, discount ranges, the brands and categories on sale, delivery cut-offs for Christmas and your returns policy. AI answers are built from specifics. A page that only says 'coming soon' gives them nothing to work with.
- 4
Link to it from your homepage and menu
58 of the 100 retailers we checked had no Black Friday page and no homepage link at all. A clear homepage link tells Google, AI crawlers and shoppers that this page matters right now.
- 5
Get into the deal roundups AI reads
Google AI Mode cited News.com.au in 22 of 49 answers, with Mamamia, ShopBack and OzBargain close behind. Pitch your offers to deal writers, list on cashback and deal sites, and make it easy for editors to include you.
Digital PR and link building - 6
Win your niche, not the whole market
Broad questions went to the big chains. Specific ones like golf clubs, fishing gear and trampolines went to specialist stores. Build category pages for the exact things you sell, like 'Black Friday hiking boots', where you can genuinely be the best answer.
- 7
Add product and offer markup
Use structured data for products, prices, sale end dates and stock, and keep your Google Merchant Center feed accurate. This helps your sale prices show in Google Shopping, AI Overviews and AI Mode.
Technical SEO - 8
Answer the questions shoppers ask AI
Add a short FAQ to your Black Friday page: when the sale starts, whether you price match, and if orders arrive before Christmas. These are the exact questions people type into ChatGPT and Google AI Mode.
- 9
Start Google Ads before Black Friday week
Most shoppers are researching weeks out, so campaigns that launch the week of the sale miss the decision stage. Start brand and category campaigns early, add sale prices to Shopping ads, and protect your brand name from competitors bidding on it.
Google Ads management - 10
Check what AI says about you
Ask ChatGPT and Google AI Mode the questions your customers would ask, and note who gets named. If it isn't you, look at what the named retailers have that you don't. Our free AI visibility check below is a quick place to start.
AI search optimisation
“The fix isn't expensive. Get a Black Friday page live now, keep the URL the same every year, and get mentioned on the deal sites and news lists AI tools read.”
About SEO Growth
SEO Growth is an Australian search agency. We help businesses get found wherever their customers search, whether that's Google, Google Ads or AI tools like ChatGPT and Google AI Mode. This study is part of our ongoing research into how AI is changing search in Australia.
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Methodology
All three data sets were collected by SEO Growth on 5 and 6 November 2026.
Search timing
Google Trends weekly search interest for 'black friday' in Australia, pulled 5 November 2026. Each year is lined up by weeks before Black Friday week (the Sunday to Saturday week containing Black Friday). 2017 to 2021 come from a separate Trends window to 2022 to 2026, so we compare the share of searches made before Black Friday week rather than raw index values.
Retailer audit
100 Australian online retailers (46 large national chains and marketplaces, 33 established online brands, 21 small independents) checked on 6 November 2026. We checked each homepage for Black Friday links and tested common Black Friday URLs. Pages at unusual addresses may have been missed, so the true number of live pages could be slightly higher. Results are reported as totals.
AI shopping study
50 Black Friday shopping questions across seven categories, asked in ChatGPT (logged out, temporary chat) and Google AI Mode (logged out) on 6 November 2026. We counted the retailers and brands named in each answer. Ads were excluded and media sites were counted separately. One Google AI Mode answer wasn't captured, so comparisons use the 49 questions answered on both tools. AI answers change between runs, so these figures are a snapshot.
Media and citations
You're welcome to use any figure or chart from this study. All we ask is a credit link to this page. Every chart above has a download button and embed code.
Media enquiries
Tom Galland is available for interview and comment on Black Friday, AI search and retail SEO.
hello@seogrowth.com.auCite this study
SEO Growth Black Friday AI Search Study 2026. SEO Growth, November 2026. https://www.seogrowth.com.au/black-friday-ai-search-study<a href="https://www.seogrowth.com.au/black-friday-ai-search-study">SEO Growth Black Friday AI Search Study 2026</a>SEO Growth. (2026, November 10). Black Friday AI search study 2026: How AI search is changing where Australians shop. https://www.seogrowth.com.au/black-friday-ai-search-studyFrequently asked questions
When do Australians start searching for Black Friday deals?
Earlier every year. In 2025, 69% of Australian Black Friday searches happened before Black Friday week, up from 14% in 2017. Search interest now builds through most of November, so shoppers are comparing retailers weeks before the sales start.
Which retailers do ChatGPT and Google AI Mode recommend for Black Friday?
Across 49 Black Friday shopping questions, both tools named the same five retailers most often: Myer, Amazon, The Good Guys, JB Hi-Fi and The Iconic. About three in four answers named at least one of Australia's 10 biggest retail chains.
How can a small retailer get recommended by AI shopping tools?
AI tools can only recommend retailers they can find. Publish a Black Friday page early on a URL you reuse every year, put real dates and offers on it, link to it from your homepage, and get your offers into the deal roundups and news lists that AI tools cite.
How was the study carried out?
SEO Growth collected three data sets on 5 and 6 November 2026: Google Trends search timing for 'black friday' in Australia from 2017 to 2026, an audit of 100 Australian online retailers' Black Friday pages, and 50 Black Friday shopping questions asked in ChatGPT and Google AI Mode while logged out.
Can I use the charts and figures from this study?
Yes. Journalists, bloggers and researchers are welcome to use the figures and charts with a credit link to this page. Each chart has a download button and embed code, and media enquiries can go to hello@seogrowth.com.au.
Work with SEO Growth
We help Australian retailers get found on Google, in Google Ads and in AI answers. Talk to us about your next sale period.
SEO Growth Black Friday AI Search Study 2026