If the standard Google Trends visualizations aren't enough, then we can download and export the raw search data as a CSV to extract further insights using tools like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
Export as CSV
First, we'll enter our query into Google Trends, then click the download icon in the top right of the Interest over time section.
Next, if we're using Excel, simply find the downloaded file and open it.
Alternatively, if we're using Google Sheets, then we'll create a blank sheet, then click File > Import > Upload. Then, we'll drag and drop the downloaded CSV, make sure "Replace spreadsheet" is selected under "Import location", and finally click "Import data."
Quickly export to Google Sheets
We can export Trends data to Google Sheets with the click of a button with the Glimpse Chrome extension, which adds a “Open in Google Sheets” button to each module (among other features). This allows for easy manual manipulation of Google Trends data.
Access Google Trends data via API
While Google Trends doesn’t have an official API, we can use Glimpse’s Google Trends API.
This will let us pull Google Trends data into our own application or workflow, even pulling it into Google Sheets directly using the custom ImportJSON function.
Licensing and citing
Google Trends data is legal to use; it even offers an embeddable widget that lets you embed live data onto your site.
Learn more about citing Google Trends.