Google Trends Australia: 'Buy Bitcoin'
Australian Google search interest in 'buy bitcoin' from January 2014 to September 2026, as a monthly 0-100 index where 100 is December 2017. It is the closest free proxy for new-buyer intent in Australia. The latest reading is 4. Since 2022 the highest month has been February 2026 at 20, which came during a sell-off rather than at a top.
Chart
Monthly Google Trends interest for 'buy bitcoin' from Australia, January 2014 to September 2026. 100 = December 2017. Reference lines mark half of that peak (50) and the mania level (80).
What the chart shows
Relative Google search interest for 'buy bitcoin' from Australia: each month's share of all Australian searches, scaled so December 2017 reads 100. People typing this are usually close to opening an account, so it is a tighter intent signal than the broader 'bitcoin' query.
Compared with the 'bitcoin' chart, this series has a sharper 2017 spike and deeper quiet periods, and it has faded more each cycle. That fits a market where first-time buyers are a smaller share of demand than in 2017, and where some new money now arrives through ETFs rather than exchange sign-ups.
Purchase-intent spikes
| Month | Trends value | BTC AUD month-end | What was happening |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 2017 | 100 | A$18k | 2017 cycle top; first mass retail wave |
| January 2018 | 44 | A$13k | First leg of the 2018 crash |
| February 2021 | 33 | A$57k | Rally through the 2017 high |
| May 2021 | 29 | A$48k | Crash from the April 2021 high |
| November 2024 | 13 | A$148k | US election rally to new highs |
| February 2026 | 20 | A$94k | Sell-off from the October 2025 high |
| September 2026 (latest) | 4 | A$120k | Latest complete month |
How to use it
- New-buyer demand, not total demand. This measures people looking for a way in. It misses existing holders adding to positions and money arriving through ETFs, so a low reading does not mean nobody is buying.
- Dip-buying shows up. The highest reading since 2021 came in February 2026, during a sell-off, not at a price high. Rising 'buy bitcoin' interest while price falls points to fresh buyers stepping in.
- Quiet phases have been the clearer read. Long stretches in low single digits, as in 2015 to 2017 and much of 2019 to 2023, lined up with periods when Bitcoin was cheap relative to the next cycle.
- Read it with the other two queries. The 'bitcoin' chart shows general attention and the 'bitcoin tax' chart shows what existing holders are dealing with. When all three spike together, retail involvement is at its highest.
Methodology
- Source. Google Trends web search, term 'buy bitcoin', location Australia, monthly, January 2014 onward, retrieved through the DataForSEO Google Trends API. The current partial month is excluded.
- Scaling. Google scales the whole window to its busiest month (December 2017 = 100).
- Refresh. Automatic, once a month. Each refresh replaces the full series, so past values can shift by a point or two.
- Static-first. If the source is unavailable, the chart keeps the last good data rather than going blank.
Related tools
- 'Bitcoin' AU Google Trends - the broader attention query.
- 'Bitcoin tax' AU Google Trends - what existing holders are searching.
- Bitcoin Mayer Multiple - valuation measure to pair with attention extremes.
- Crypto Fear and Greed Index - daily sentiment gauge.
- ASX spot Bitcoin ETFs - the ETF route that bypasses exchange sign-ups.
Frequently asked questions
Intent. 'Bitcoin' picks up news interest, price checks and curiosity. 'Buy bitcoin' is typed by people looking for somewhere to buy, so it is a tighter read on new-buyer demand arriving at Australian exchanges. The two usually move together, but 'buy bitcoin' has faded more each cycle: its 2021 high was 33 against 57 for 'bitcoin' in the same month.
4 for September 2026, against a twelve-month average of 9.4 and 100 at the December 2017 peak. The highest month since 2022 is February 2026 at 20.
In 2017, yes: December 2017 was both the price top and the search peak. Since then the pattern is mixed. February 2021 (33) came during the rally, but May 2021 (29) came during the crash, and February 2026 (20) came as Bitcoin fell to about A$94k. A good share of purchase intent now shows up on sharp falls, when buyers see a discount.
2017 was the first time most Australians heard of Bitcoin, so a large group went through the 'how do I buy it' stage at once. By 2021 more people knew where to buy, exchanges had simpler onboarding, and from 2024 some demand moved into ETFs, including the ASX-quoted spot Bitcoin ETFs, which do not need a 'buy bitcoin' search. The later peaks were 33 in 2021 and 13 in November 2024.
As context. Quiet phases have been the clearer read: January 2015 to March 2017 averaged 2.4 and January 2019 to October 2020 averaged 5.5, both periods when Bitcoin was cheap relative to the next cycle. Spikes need a price check, because they have come on both rallies and crashes.
Google Trends web search data for 'buy bitcoin', location Australia, monthly from January 2014, retrieved through the DataForSEO Google Trends API. It refreshes automatically early each month. Google re-scales the whole window on each pull, so past months can move by a point or two.
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