Cricket, AI and soup — what Pakistanis searched for on Google in 2025

Google's Year in Search report paints an interesting picture of Pakistanis through their searches on the platform.

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Pakistan’s Year in Search report was dominated by cricket, with dramas coming in second place when it came to entertainment. People were also fascinated by the boom we saw in artificial intelligence tools last year. PHOTO: AFP

December 9, 2025

ISLAMABAD – Keeping with their yearly tradition, Google has released its Year in Search report outlining what people wanted to know in 2025. The annual report offers a reflective look back at the trends people followed, the celebrities people wanted to know about and the news that kept people looking at their phones and refreshing the search page.

Pakistan’s Year in Search report was dominated by cricket, with dramas coming in second place when it came to entertainment. People were also fascinated by the boom we saw in artificial intelligence tools last year.

People learnt how to cook new meals, invest their money and take care of things like insurance and finding a lawyer. Students, anxious for their results, logged a lot of searches after matriculation and intermediate exams.

Here’s what Pakistan’s Year in Search looked like.

Cricket dominates sports

When it came to sports, Pakistanis were clear in showing cricket was their favourite. The most searched clashes were between Pakistan and South Africa, while the most searched tournament was the Pakistan Super League — perhaps thanks to Ali Tareen?

The Asia Cup, which ended in controversy with champions India refusing to take the trophy from Asian Cricket Council Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, was the third most-searched cricket topic in Pakistan and the second-most searched sporting event globally.

All 10 of the most searched for athletes mentioned in the report were cricketers, most being green shirts. The top spot, however, went to Indian batsmen Abhishek Sharma and Bangladesh’s Saif Hassan came in at number nine. Hassan Nawaz, Irfan Niazi and Sahibzada Farhan were the top three searched for Pakistani athletes this year.

Most searched for — Cricket

  1. Pakistan vs South Africa
  2. Pakistan Super League
  3. Asia Cup
  4. Pakistan vs India
  5. Pakistan vs New Zealand
  6. India vs England
  7. Pakistan vs West Indies
  8. India vs Australia
  9. ICC Champions Trophy
  10. Pakistan vs United Arab Emirates

Most searched for — Athletes

  1. Abhishek Sharma
  2. Hassan Nawaz
  3. Irfan Khan Niazi
  4. Sahibzada Farhan
  5. Muhammad Abbas
  6. Saim Ayub
  7. Yasir Khan
  8. Kashif Ali
  9. Saif Hassan
  10. Abdul Samad

Dramas galore

The second most popular category for searches in entertainment were dramas — everyone knows how much dedicated fans love their 9pm serials.

Pakistanis had an appetite for action-packed thrillers this year, with dramas Sher, Mohra, Dayan and Dunyapur making it onto the top 10 most searched for dramas.

Most searched for — Dramas

  1. Sher
  2. Judwaa
  3. Aas Paas
  4. Naqaab
  5. Mohra
  6. Iqtidar
  7. Parwarish
  8. Meri Zindagi Hai Tu
  9. Dayan
  10. Dunyapur

The news: A year in anxiety

The news this year was a reflection of all the things people were worried about this year. Starting with the devastating floods that hit the country after this year’s monsoon rains, flooding in Karachi and in the Chenab River were the second and fifth most searched for topics.

Students were especially anxious after their board exams, with searches for results from the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE), grade 10 and grade 9 landing on sixth, seventh and 10th places.

Most searched for — Local News

  1. Punjab Socio-Economic Registry
  2. Karachi Floods
  3. Iran
  4. Asaan Karobar Card
  5. Flood Situation Near Chenab River
  6. FBISE Results
  7. 10th Class Examination Results
  8. Prime Minister’s Laptop Scheme 2025
  9. Gold Rates in Pakistan
  10. 9th Class Result

Artificial intelligence leading tech

Searches for technology were directed towards the various artificial intelligence tools that made their way into our lives this year. Gemini, Deepseek, On4t, Google AI Studio, Claude, and Grok all made it into the top 10.

Two more places were taken up by streaming services Tamasha and myco — our guess is their streaming of cricket matches helped.

Most searched for — Tech

  1. Gemini
  2. Tamasha
  3. DeepSeek
  4. myco
  5. On4t
  6. Google AI Studio
  7. Claude
  8. iPhone 17
  9. Grok
  10. Non-Fungible Token (NFT)

What did people eat this year?

Pakistanis learnt to cook new things this year, with many Google users trying their hand at cooking with tofu and quinoa — both exotic to a Pakistani kitchen.

Others chose to play it safe and searched up recipes for soup, sandwiches, and even just ‘easy recipes’.

Most searched for — Recipes

  1. Sandwich Recipes
  2. Food Fusion Recipes
  3. Quinoa Recipes
  4. Dough Recipes
  5. Sweet Dishes Recipes
  6. Mutton Recipes
  7. Easy Recipes
  8. Tofu Recipes
  9. Soup Recipes
  10. Beef Recipes

Learning to manage finances

For the ‘How to’ category, people really wanted tips on how to make and manage money, a theme that showed up elsewhere as well. Questions of investing in cryptocurrency, the stock market and getting a credit card were ranked fourth, fifth and sixth this year — linking closely with searches for NFTs in tech and gold rates in the news.

The most searched for topic were the newly introduced e-challans in Karachi and how to check them. People also wanted to know how to get a lawyer, which surely had nothing to do with their newfound interest in traffic fines.

Most searched for — How to

  1. How To Check E Challan Karachi
  2. How To See Unsent Messages On Instagram
  3. How To Do Car Insurance
  4. How To Invest In Crypto Market
  5. How To Invest In Stock Market
  6. How To Apply For Credit Card
  7. How To Make Ghibli Photo
  8. How To Choose Best Lawyer
  9. How To Print From Phone Using Nokoprint App
  10. How To Upload Blog

Looking back at the results, some things are for sure, Pakistanis love their cricket — even if it stresses them out at times — they love their food and they love a good story.

They’re also somewhat adventurous, often looking for something new to do. Trying out new recipes, ways to make money and new tools that might make their work or lives easier.

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