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Topics: PornHub
Sara Keenan
It's that time of year again - Pornhub has dropped its annual Year in Review and the results are as bizarre as ever.
The world's largest pornsite has analysed billions of searches, revealing the trends, performers, and preferences that defined 2024, so probably best to leave this one of your Instagram Stories.
Spoiler: it's a mix of pop culture obsessions, shifting societal attitudes, and truly strange internet habits.
From ethical porn to animated fantasies, 2024's viewing habits paint a fascinating picture of how pop culture and societal shifts shape our desires.
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And this year, it was all about 'demure desires' and 'animated arousal'. Searches for terms like 'mindful please' (+122 per cent) and 'ethical porn' (+92 per cent) suggest a growing interest in authenticity and simplicity.
Experts believe viewers are gravitating toward more 'real' experiences, with searches for 'authentic sex' (+43 per cent) and 'respectful sex' (+61 per cent) also surging this year.
Despite taking fourth place in overall trends of 2024, the anime craze continues to dominate in 2024, as searches like 'hentai' continue to dominate the site's searches for four years in a row, with 'anime' also making its way to number seven.
But while 'hentai' may get a participation trophy for trends this year, it's seemingly gone for gold in the top categories.
'Hentai' held onto its title as the most-searched term globally, with related categories like 'animation' (+28 per cent) and '3D' (+19 per cent) also seeing massive growth.
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The overlap between anime fandom and gaming culture was reflected in searches for popular video game characters like Chun Li and Lara Croft, which topped the charts again this year.
The top categories showed both familiarity and surprises. 'MILF' made a triumphant return as the second most-viewed category worldwide, knocking 'Lesbian' off its throne.
'Anal' surged to fifth place, while 'Pinay' rounded out the top three.
The rise of categories like 'Real Amateurs' (+10 spots) reflects the ongoing demand for relatable and unscripted content, while interestingly, 'wife' rose amongst the ranks (+12 spots), which Pornhub speculates must be in part due to the 'defining trends of Pornhub Wives'.
Angela White reclaimed the top spot as the most-searched pornstar of 2024, with Abella Danger and Violet Myers close behind. Newcomers like Jessica Sodi, a rising star from Mexico, and Mariana Martix, a Colombian performer, made their mark on this year's list.
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On PornhubGay, Malik Delgaty held this title as the most-viewed performer, while Tyler Wu surged into second place.
The transgender category also saw impressive growth, with PuppyGirlXO leading the charge as the most-watched trans performer.
The United States remained Pornhub's largest audience, followed by France, the Phillippines, and Mexico. Meanwhile, the UK held steady in fifth place, with 'MILK' and 'Lesbian' dominating searches.
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Across Europe, countries like Germany and Italy stuck to their homegrown tastes, favouring 'German' and 'Italian' categories.
In Asia, Japan stayed loyal to 'Japanese' and 'Uncensored' content, while the Phillippines' top searches included 'Pinay' and 'Pinoy'.
Latin American countries like Brazil and Argentina leaned heavily into local content, with searches for 'Brasileria' and 'Argentinian' leading the pack.
If we are going by last year's statistics as well, then the US being at the top of the leaderboard should come as no surprise - as they were also there in 2023.
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In fact, last year, they were similarly followed by the Philippines, France, Mexico and the UK, although looks like there's been a dip since 2023 for the Philippines by 1.
But it appears that one French person has picked up the slack of whoever it was in the Philippines, making France take the second spot.
One thing's for sure: next year's review promises to be just as juicy.