5 Trends.co Alternatives - Find New Trends, Products & Startups

Trends.co is a popular trends research site and online community where investors, entrepreneurs, and young professionals can learn about innovative products and business ideas. But the biggest complaint with Trends.co is that the newsletters and trend database have generic insights and trends information — you’re not really getting the inside scoop on anything you don’t already know — and the most useful aspect of their site is the online community.

So we put together this guide of Trends.co alternatives so you can learn about other newsletters and websites to research business trends. Our list kicks off with our trend spotting platform — Exploding Topics.

You can also start an Exploding Topics Pro Trial and receive access to our entire trend database and trend tracking features. Read some of our recent trend reports, see how our trend analysis features work, and start tracking the trends that interest you!

1. Exploding Topics — Trend discovery, analysis, & tracking for all industries

Exploding Topics is a valuable market research tool that appeals to investors and venture capital firms, entrepreneurs, business consultants, media brands, and other professionals that want to identify and track industry trends. We provide weekly trend reports and a self-serve trend database that lets you:

• Identify new industry trends super early on — across dozens of categories, including tech, startups, eCommerce, software, fashion, health, gaming, travel, social media, and more.
• Review and analyze trend data over different timelines to forecast future trend growth.
• Track industry trends in an organized dashboard and export trend data to other business applications.

We use a two-step trend research method (involving both AI and our team of analysts) to uncover really early trends before they become popular. We also collect historical trend data so we can predict the longevity of trend growth — we look for only the trends with indicators of long-term interest and value, instead of short-lived “trendy” trends, so that all of the trends on our database have solid data you can use in your business strategy. We take the hard work out of trend discovery and let you start your research with vetted (high-quality) trend data. This way, you’re not chasing fads or guessing about which trends are truly useful in your decision-making.

You can read more about this process here: Best Trend Forecasting Websites - Beauty, Tech, Media & More

What’s even more convenient about our site is that it’s super user-friendly and easy enough for anybody to learn, even if you don’t have a ton of experience with this type of market research. Our trend database lets you browse trends by category and filter results, the weekly trend reports contain analysis from our team, and the trend tracking dashboard has clear tools to organize trends by topic and stay on top of trend updates.

Let’s briefly review how these features work.

Weekly Trend Reports

We deliver trend reports on ten of the most exciting new trends straight to your inbox at the start of each week. We look at fast-growing trends from a variety of categories and provide a detailed analysis for each trend we include; this lets you easily gather key details on the history of the trend (i.e., what target audiences or markets it impacts, how it’s relevant already, what we predict for future growth) and visualize trend data on a clear graph.

For example, here’s a glimpse of a recent trend report:

We also store trend reports in the Exploding Topics dashboard so you can reference past reports, and we link to other market research sites in reports so you can see our sources (and open links to read more).

Read More: Industry Trend Reports (Track New Trends Verified by Analysts)

Trend Discovery Tools

Our market trends website has a variety of features that let you learn about cool business ideas, early startups, unique new products, new trends in technology, and more. These include the trend database, trend search, and Meta Trends library.

Most users say our database offers one of the easiest ways to explore new trends. All you have to do is select the category you’re interested in (technology, fashion, travel, software trends, etc.) and we’ll show you a list of new trends in that space. You can also filter trends by date or status to look at super-new trends vs. trends that have already built up some popularity.

Then you can look up trends you’ve already heard about with the search feature (found in the trend database or available through the “Trend Search” option on the left-side menu). Use the trend search to research brands, products, services, and other trending topics — we’ll show you all of the data on your search query and a list of related trends; this makes it easy to dig into trends you’re interested in and pivot to similar opportunities that could be more valuable for your business.

For example, say you run a health food company and want to research interest in prebiotic supplements: type “prebiotic” in the search to see general interest in the category, then we’ll show you a list of related products and topics that you may want to explore.

We also organize trends into Meta Trends so you can browse trends by topic (i.e., type of product or service) and analyze batches of related trends on one page. Some examples of Meta Trends include:

• API-First Software — this includes software like Contentful, Oilprice, Scrapingbee, and Metaverse API.
• Reusable Hygiene Products — this includes brands like Blueland, Nixit, and Earth Breeze.
• ESports Training & Accessories — this includes products like gaming finger sleeves, Logitech G Pro Wireless, and gaming gloves.
• DTC Pet Food — this includes brands like Smalls Pet Food, PetPlate, Katkin, and Barkyn.
• Contractor SaaS — this includes software and apps like JobNimbus, Gocontractor, Wrapbook, and Knowify.

Within each Meta Trend, we include a quick background on the topic so you can learn more about the trends that make up the category and how they’re driving industry change. We also display Meta Trends in an interactive diagram so you can see the most popular trends within the Meta Trend, alongside closely-related trends that are becoming increasingly relevant. Then, you can click on any trend you’re interested in to see the analytics (more on that in the next section).

Regardless of how you research and find trends, you can easily add them to your trend tracking dashboard by clicking “Track Topic” in the trend overview.

Trend Overview & Analysis

We simplify trend analysis by consolidating data like search volume and growth rate into an interactive graph — you can change the timeline to look at trend data over recent months vs. past years, and you can move your cursor along the graph to see trend growth over time.

We collect up to 15 years of historical trend data for some of the topics on our site so you can look back at a trend’s entire evolution to help you predict how interest could change in the future. We also assign each trend a “status” so you can easily tell where it's at in its lifecycle — for example, “Regular” trends are super early trends, “Exploding” trends are trends that are starting to grow in popularity, and “Peaked” trends are trends that are already well-known. You want to focus on Regular and Exploding trends to learn about the newest opportunities.

Read More: #1 Trend Research Group + Trend Tracking Platform

Trend Monitoring

Then, as we mentioned above, you can save trends to your dashboard to track their growth. Every Pro user has access to a private trend tracking dashboard where they can see saved trends, recommended trends (based on what they’re tracking), and the trend reports library. We also have a Projects feature that lets you organize saved trends by topic or category, you can store trends separately and easily look back at trends you want to monitor — this feature is especially useful for large enterprise teams that are tracking hundreds of trends across different areas of interest.

You can check on trend data anytime you wish — we update our site constantly so you’re always working with current analytics. Plus, you can set email notifications for trends to stay on top of important updates. We also provide an API so you can connect Exploding Topics with your other online business reporting tools and track trend data in those software.

Exploding Topics offers an easy way to identify early industry trends, get a big-picture look at trend data, and track trend growth into the future — start a Pro Trial to demo our platform and see if we’re the best Trends.co alternative for you.

2. Trends.vc — Weekly trend newsletters & collaborative online community

Trends.vc is a good alternative to Trends by The Hustle if you're looking for an online network to connect with other like-minded professionals. The platform appeals mostly to entrepreneurs and business owners, and has over 50,000 subscribers worldwide. Members can chat on the online forum, read case studies, and share resources with each other — and this collaboration may be ultra beneficial for small businesses that are looking to grow and professionals who are just starting out.

Aside from the online community, Trends.vc offers weekly trend reports with updates on new startups, business ideas, and innovative products. Trends.vc’s insights are not specific to any one industry; instead, reports cover a broad variety of topics. However, they also offer some “custom” market research services if you want more personalized trend reports.

Here’s a quick list of Trends.vc’s offerings:

• Trend Pro Reports — four per month.
• Weekly Masterminds.
• Community “events” like Trends Tribe Meetups (where subscribers can check in with each other) and Daily Standups (where new members can meet fellow founders).

3. Trend Hunter — Custom trend reports & research for lifestyle and fashion industries

Trend Hunter is a popular resource for professionals interested in researching fashion, beauty, lifestyle, and tech trends. Their platform has global reach, with insights on audiences and markets from all around the world, and it’s used by media brands, marketers, and influencers.

They offer a variety of resources and business services, including:

• Personalized market research and trend reports, tailored to your interests and goals.
• One-on-one advisory and consultative services.
• Self-serve trend database, where you can look up trends and preview trend data.
• Custom keynotes and training events.
• Free webinars and trend newsletters.
• Articles on trending topics, submitted by Trend Hunter’s large network of contributors.

Trend Hunter’s site appeals to teams small and large because they have such a wide variety of offerings, and many resources on their site are free to access. However, it’s worth noting that the custom research services can be pricey and are mostly reserved for enterprise companies with the budget for this type of long-term agency relationship.

Read More: 5 Sites like Trend Hunter (2022 Competitors & Alternatives)

4. Trend Watchers — Business and social trends for entrepreneurs or content creators

Trend Watchers is a trends website that reports on business trends and creator trends — they cover a mix of “viral trends” and long-term opportunities, so you can see trending social media hashtags and cool startups to invest in. As such, the platform appeals to investors, business owners, and entrepreneurs, as well as social media marketing teams, bloggers, influencers, streamers, and other creators.

The Trend Watchers platform lets you look for new trends, set alerts for trend updates, and brainstorm new content ideas. And their market research spans across many industries so you can use this site to explore a wide range of upcoming trends.

Here’s a quick look at what Trend Watchers offers:

• Trend database — with both business trends and creator trends.
• Viral Video Maker tool.
• Trend newsletters.

Trend Watchers offers a variety of paid packages to suit different budgets and business needs. However, the more inexpensive plans are pretty limiting in what you can do on the site. For example, the most affordable package only lets you access the trend database three times per day and limits trend data to the U.S., while the Premium plan gives you unlimited access to the trend database and lets you research trends in different geographic regions. You can choose a plan based on what you need for your research efforts.

5. Meet Glimpse — Monthly trend reports & free trend research

Meet Glimpse is a solid Trends.co alternative for SEO and content marketing teams that want to research keyword opportunities and learn about early industry trends. This solution offers:

• Monthly trend reports, so you can read about and explore new product ideas, brand names, startups, and trending topics.
• Google Trends extension, so you can look up keyword ideas and see actual search volume, “people also search” data, and trend trajectories.

Many users like that the Meet Glimpse platform is entirely self-service: you can access trend reports and use the Google Trends extension as needed, and you don’t need any training or help from their team to get started.

Overall, Meet Glimpse is a pretty lightweight (and affordable) solution for teams that want to start trend research or are already using Google Trends. However, this platform might not cut it for teams that need more personalized market research or want a way to analyze and monitor trend growth — it offers the basics to dip your toes in, but not much beyond that.

You can also read more about Meet Glimpse here: #1 Glimpse Alternative: Exploding Topics

Want to give Exploding Topics trend research tools a shot? Start a Pro Trial (for just $1!) to unlock full feature access and start tracking trends today.