Party planners at large organizations typically don’t have the budget to throw a party for every major holiday, so it’s good to know which ones rank as the most popular. A new survey lists the most popular U.S. holidays, including the most popular in all 50 states.
The survey, done for jewelers Shane Co, used Google Trends search volume from 2004 through 2021 to determine the most popular holidays in the U.S., as well as the most searched holidays in each state.
Spoiler alert: Christmas still rules. But the list provides a great place to start for party planners looking to get a head start on developing company party ideas and event management.
Search Volume Shows Most Popular U.S. Holidays
Keep in mind that the following are based on Google Trends on searches, not a survey of people. However, it covers millions upon millions of searches over almost two decades, so it’s interesting to see what holidays proved most popular, and where. The following holidays ranked as the Top 5 most searched holidays in the country, along with the states where the holiday ranked No. 1 in searches.
Christmas
If the holidays faced off in a sports competition, Christmas would be the New York Yankees of holidays. Christmas ranks No.1 in the nation, and is the most searched holiday in 10 states: Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. A Christmas-themed party plenty of winter-themed decor and games is a sure winner.
Thanksgiving
People do a lot of searching about Thanksgiving across the whole country. It’s a holiday that puts a focus on food, family and close friends, so it’s not surprising to see the November holiday ranked only behind Christmas. It ranked No. 1 in nine states: Alaska, Kansas, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Oregon, and South Carolina.
Independence Day
The nation’s birthday remains a big holiday across the U.S., with searches on the July 4th event ranking only behind the two big holiday seasons days. In seven states, people searched for Independence Day more than any other holiday: Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wyoming.
St. Patrick’s Day
Almost 32 million people claim Irish descent in the United States, which is why St. Patrick’s Day ranks highly among all U.S. holidays. Maybe it’s time to think about having an office party in March with green-colored decor and plenty of Irish music. The holiday ranked as the top-searched holiday in three states: Illinois, Montana, and South Dakota.
Lunar New Year
The Asian population in America continues to increase, and the results of the search trend data analysis shows it. The Lunar New Year, which begins in late January, marks the start of the new year where the months are based on lunar cycles. It is celebrated across Asia, including Japan, Korea, China and Vietnam. It ranked as the fifth most popular holiday in terms of searches, and as No. 1 in three states: California, Hawaii, and Washington.
Other holidays that ranked high on the list include New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, Easter Sunday, Father’s Day and Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day and Halloween.
