Exploding Topics is the most well-known trend discovery platform. Founded by Brian Dean and Josh Howarth, it popularized the idea of finding trends before they take off. It has 13,000+ curated trends, a loyal user base, and a Semrush integration.
So why would you consider Trendmine instead? The short answer: regional coverage and data sources.
Here's the full comparison.
TLDR
- Exploding Topics = 13,000+ human-curated trends, primarily US-focused, based on Google search data. Starts at $79/mo.
- Trendmine = AI-generated trend database from multiple sources (articles, products, startups, Reddit + search data), built for Saudi Arabia, UAE, UK, and US. Full Arabic support. Free tier available.
If your market is the US, Exploding Topics has a bigger database. If your market is Saudi Arabia or the UAE, Trendmine is the only option.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Trendmine | Exploding Topics | |
|---|---|---|
| Trend database | Auto-generated from live sources | 13,000+ manually curated trends |
| Curation method | AI clustering + automated scoring | Human-vetted by editorial team |
| Data sources | Articles, products, startups, Reddit + search volume | Primarily Google search data |
| Update frequency | Daily (automated pipeline) | Weekly updates + weekly newsletter |
| Regional coverage | SA, AE, GB, US (per-region data) | Primarily US-focused |
| Language support | English + Arabic | English only |
| Search volume | Absolute monthly numbers per region | US search volume |
| Growth scoring | Quantitative growth factor from search data | Growth rate percentage |
| Category filtering | 30+ auto-assigned categories | 30+ categories |
| Project tracking | Save trends to projects with alerts | Save to collections, track over time |
| Trend reports | Curated industry reports | Weekly trend reports + newsletter |
| Startup/product tracking | Native feature — tracks emerging startups and products | Startup and product meta-trends |
| Semrush integration | No | Yes — available as Semrush app |
| API access | Coming soon | Not available |
Pricing: Trendmine Is More Accessible
| Tier | Trendmine | Exploding Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Free / Trial | Free tier (no credit card) | $1 trial only |
| Entry | Affordable starter plan | $79/mo (Entrepreneur) |
| Mid-tier | Full features | $199/mo (Investor) |
| Enterprise | Enterprise plan | $499/mo (Business) |
Exploding Topics has no free tier — just a $1 trial. Trendmine lets you browse the trends database for free, no credit card required.
Where Exploding Topics Wins
Credit where it's due:
- Larger curated database. 13,000+ trends, each human-vetted for quality. Exploding Topics has been building this database for years.
- Established brand. Founded by well-known SEO experts with a large community. The "Exploding Topics Tuesday" newsletter has a massive audience.
- US market depth. If your focus is purely the American market, their coverage is deep and proven.
- Semrush integration. If you're already in the Semrush ecosystem, Exploding Topics plugs right in.
- Weekly newsletter. Curated trend summaries delivered to your inbox — well-written and actionable.
Where Exploding Topics Falls Short
These are the gaps that led us to build Trendmine:
- No MENA coverage. Exploding Topics doesn't break down trends by Saudi Arabia or UAE. If you're a business, investor, or marketer in the Gulf region, the data isn't there.
- English only. No Arabic interface, no Arabic trend data, no Arabic trend names. For a bilingual market, this is a dealbreaker.
- Single data source. Exploding Topics primarily relies on Google search data. Trendmine also scans tech articles, product launches, startup funding rounds, and Reddit — surfacing trends before they generate significant search volume.
- Human curation bottleneck. Manual vetting means quality, but also means trends surface slower. Trendmine's AI pipeline processes new signals daily without waiting for editorial review.
- No free tier. The $1 trial is generous, but you can't keep browsing for free. Trendmine's free tier lets you keep exploring.
The Regional Advantage
This is the biggest differentiator and why Trendmine exists.
If you're operating in Saudi Arabia or the UAE, Exploding Topics doesn't serve your market. Trendmine was built for this region from day one:
- Per-region search volume — See how a trend performs in Saudi Arabia vs. UAE vs. UK vs. US, side by side
- Arabic trend data — Trend names, descriptions, and search data in Arabic
- Bilingual interface — Full RTL Arabic experience, not just translated labels
- MENA-relevant categories — Fintech, e-government, halal products, and other categories relevant to Gulf economies
- Regional growth scoring — Growth factors calculated per region, not just global averages
How Trendmine Discovers Trends Differently
Exploding Topics curates trends from search data. Trendmine takes a multi-source approach:
- Scans thousands of tech articles, product launches, and startup announcements daily
- Monitors Reddit discussions for emerging signals
- Clusters related signals into coherent topics using AI embeddings
- Validates with real search volume data from Google Ads across 4 regions
- Scores for growth and categorizes into 30+ verticals automatically
This means Trendmine can surface a trend when it first appears in articles — potentially weeks or months before it generates enough search volume for Exploding Topics to pick it up.
Where Trendmine Is Still Catching Up
We're transparent about our current limitations:
- Smaller database — Exploding Topics has years of curated data. Our AI-generated database is growing but isn't as large yet.
- No Semrush integration — If you live in Semrush, Exploding Topics has the edge.
- No newsletter — We don't (yet) send a curated weekly email. Exploding Topics Tuesday is a strong feature.
- Fewer regions — We cover 4 key markets. Exploding Topics covers the US deeply, but neither covers every market.
- Newer brand — Exploding Topics has years of trust built up. We're proving ourselves.
Who Should Use What?
Choose Exploding Topics if:
- Your market is primarily the United States
- You want a large, human-curated trend database
- You're in the Semrush ecosystem
- You value editorial curation over automated discovery
Choose Trendmine if:
- You operate in Saudi Arabia, UAE, or the broader MENA region
- You need Arabic language support
- You want multi-source trend intelligence (not just search data)
- You want per-region data breakdowns
- You want a free tier to start with
Try Trendmine Free
See what's trending in your market right now. No credit card, no $1 trial — just free access to the trends database.
Want to see the difference? Browse our trends page and compare what you find to Exploding Topics. The regional data speaks for itself.