Yelp’s 15th Anniversary

more than

words of gratitude

nearly

reviews

years

To celebrate 15 years of Yelp, we’ve taken a look at the way trends, words and tastes have changed since the launch of Yelp in October 2004. Nearly 200 million reviews later, including 40 million words of love and gratitude, we're excited to celebrate 15 years of connecting people with businesses that they love. It's not surprising that people have included "love" in reviews of half of all donut businesses in the U.S., or that plunger-wielding plumbers have been showered with nearly 92 thousand words of gratitude in Yelp reviews.

All of those amazing reviews make a difference, helping local businesses stand out and helping people find a business that’s right for them right when they need it. Take a look below at some of the trends that have shaped the past 15 years.

Scroll on, or choose a section below:

Foods we consumed

Chains we cherished

Language we used

Words that defined our cities

Services we needed

Fads we followed

Locals we loved

01 Foods we consumed

Every type of restaurant imaginable is listed on Yelp, but some categories are searched for and visited by more users than others. Mexican food was among the top cuisines in share of all food-related page views in 2012, while Filipino, Hawaiian, Hot Pot and vegan food are currently increasing in popularity.

The popularity* of various cuisines on Yelp

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*Popularity is defined as the share of Yelp page views attributed to this cuisine relative to the entire restaurants & food category.

Tastes change over the years, and when they do, our reviews reflect that. We checked when food words and phrases were mentioned most often to map some of the biggest food trends since 2010.

Which foods have seen the biggest spikes in popularity on Yelp?

02 Chains we cherished

When you think of Yelp, local businesses likely come to mind. But over the last 15 years, millions of people have also come to us to look up locations of their favorite chains.

The most searched chains on Yelp

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03 Language we used

Our reviews reflect our collective living language, from the rise of “emoji”, “dope” and “uber” to the decline of “yolo” and “chillax.” The constant is that people want to share their experiences with local businesses; what changes is how they express themselves. See how words compare.

Indexed popularity* of slang in Yelp reviews

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*We’ve indexed each term’s popularity against the year in which the term was mentioned at the highest rate in Yelp reviews.

04 Phrases that define our cities

Which phrases define American cities? We found out by comparing the language in reviews in dozens of cities to the Yelp vernacular nationwide. You might be able to guess which city is more into pimento cheese, and which digs food carts.

The phrases that define

05 Services we needed

Everyone at some point is likely to need a locksmith or mover; but if you’re in Florida, you’re more likely to seek help cleaning your pool than anywhere else; and Arizona, California, and Nevada are the states where artificial turf services are in high demand.

The most uniquely popular home service category, by state*

*The category shown for each state is the one reviewed most often relative to the national baseline.

06 Fads we followed

Our users have sought good health (and good looks) in many different places, then told us in their reviews what was in when. Cupping and HIIT workouts are rising in popularity; acupuncture and yoga are on the decline.

The Rise and Fall of Trends

07 Locals we loved

What's the most amazing story on Yelp? To give you an idea of just a few of the incredible moments where local businesses have saved the day, we asked Yelp Elites to share their experiences.