1

New York Times

Image: Marco Lenti

"The Gray Lady" remains the go-to online newspaper in the country. It is the only news site to make it into the top 15, landing in the last place.

Its renowned journalism—and, let’s be honest, its Wordle and crossword puzzles—have captivated millions, keeping readers coming back for comprehensive coverage of national and international news.

2

ESPN

Image: Tech Daily

Sports enthusiasts have made ESPN the ultimate online destination, securing its spot at number 14 on the list. From live games and scores to in-depth analysis and highlights, ESPN provides a 24/7 feast for sports fans.

Most of us have favorite teams we follow religiously, while others visit the site just to stay casually up to date with the world of sports .

3

Microsoft Online

Image: Bram Van Oost

A powerful and versatile tool, Microsoft Online secured the 13th spot on the list. Its sprawling digital landscape offers everything from cloud computing services (Azure) and productivity software (Microsoft 365) to gaming (Xbox) and search (Bing).

It's a one-stop shop— one that many people have set as their default site when they open their browser!

4

ChatGPT

Image: Jonathan Kemper

Officially the newest site on the top-15 list, this powerful AI tool became the 12th most visited in 2024, taking the world by storm with its chat-like approach to artificial intelligence searches.

Launched in late 2022, this chatbot can generate text, translate languages, write various types of creative content, and answer questions—like having a super-smart, endlessly patient research assistant. Of course, it’s always wise to double-check its answers!

5

eBay

Image: Oberon Copeland @veryinformed.com

The master of online auctions , eBay has been connecting buyers and sellers since 1995—and we keep coming back for more.

Whether you're looking to thrift, hunt for rare collectibles, or finally get rid of that printer gathering dust, eBay is a treasure trove of unique finds and deals. It’s just as handy for decluttering your attic as it is for fueling your latest obsession at a bargain price.

6

Walmart

Image: Marques Thomas

The popularity of online Walmart couldn’t fall far behind its physical stores. Products at competitive prices make it one of the most visited retail sites.

From groceries and electronics to clothing and home goods, Walmart.com offers a convenient one-stop shop for online shoppers looking for value and variety . It's a digital extension of the familiar in-store experience.

7

Wikipedia

Image: Oberon Copeland @veryinformed.com

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, is a collaborative project that has become an indispensable resource for information seekers worldwide. Since its launch in 2001, it has helped users navigate everything from academic studies to random curiosities and long-standing doubts.

This crowdsourced encyclopedia covers a vast range of topics, from historical events and scientific breakthroughs to pop culture and biographies. While its accuracy is often debated, Wikipedia remains a go-to starting point for research .

8

Instagram

Image: Solen Feyissa

Instagram, the visually driven social media platform owned by Meta, allows users to share photos and videos, express themselves, and connect with others.

The app has evolved far beyond its early days when heavily filtered meal photos dominated feeds. Today, it serves as a digital hub for exploring interests, building communities, staying in touch with loved ones, and capturing life’s moments.

9

X (formerly Twitter)

Image: Kelly Sikkema

X, formerly known as Twitter, is a fast-paced social media platform where news breaks, conversations spark, and 280-character thoughts dominate.

It’s the go-to space for staying updated on current events, engaging in lively debates, and following the musings of everyone—from world leaders to your next-door neighbor.

10

Yahoo

Image: Dylann Hendricks

Did you know that Yahoo was one of the early pioneers of the Internet? While it may not hold the top spot anymore, it remains a popular portal and search engine . (More on the reigning champion later.)

Offering a variety of services, including email, news, finance, and sports, Yahoo provides a centralized hub for online activities. It's a familiar hub for many longtime internet users.

11

Reddit

Image: Brett Jordan

Reddit isn’t for everyone, but for millions, it’s essential. The self-proclaimed " front page of the internet " is a vast network of online communities where users discuss just about anything and everything imaginable.

From niche hobbies and fandoms to breaking news, psychology, and political debates, Reddit offers a forum for every interest imaginable.

12

Facebook

Image: Timothy Hales Bennett

Facebook, now known as Meta, the social media giant , has been connecting billions of people worldwide for over a decade.

It’s a space for sharing updates with friends and family, joining communities with shared interests, and discovering new content. In the U.S. alone, an estimated 193.5 million people have a Facebook account!

13

Amazon

Image: Christian Wiediger

Amazon has revolutionized the way we shop. What began as a humble bookselling site has grown into an unparalleled retail giant, offering an endless selection of products.

Standing third on the podium among the most-visited websites, Amazon is the go-to destination for online shoppers, making it easy to find just about anything you need—or didn’t know you wanted.

14

YouTube

Image: charlesdeluvio

YouTube claims the second spot on the podium as the world’s largest video-sharing platform—it’s a treasure trove of entertainment, education, and information.

From music videos and movie trailers to tutorials and comedy bloopers, users search for just about everything. And, of course, no list would be complete without cat videos.

15

Google

Image: Pixabay

Naturally, Google sits at the top of this list and has the crown. The ubiquitous search engine is so deeply tied to finding information online that it has even become a verb in everyday language.

Every minute, 5.9 million searches are conducted on Google worldwide, with 60% of U.S. searches coming from mobile devices. Ask yourself—how many times a day do you turn to the great search engine? Probably more than you realize!

1

Blockbuster

During the 1980s and 1990s, Friday night often meant one thing for American families: a trip to Blockbuster. Browsing the aisles for a movie, debating what to watch, and grabbing popcorn at the counter became a weekly routine. But nothing lasts forever.

Born in 1985, Blockbuster conquered the massive home-video market with thousands of stores by the late 1990s and early 2000s, catering to families with at-home VCRs. Then technology changed everything. First came DVD-by-mail services like Netflix, followed by streaming, which left Blockbuster struggling. Late fees and inconvenience only pushed more customers away. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2010. Today, just one official store remains in Bend, Oregon, where visitors still stop by for a dose of the video-store era.

2

Kodak

Back in the day, almost every vacation, birthday, wedding, or holiday gathering seemed to include a Kodak camera, or at least a roll of Kodak film. Founded in 1881, Kodak helped keep the moments that filled family photo albums for generations.

From the 1960s through the 1990s, Kodak dominated the world of film and photography. But that success also made the company slow to accept that technology was changing. Ironically, Kodak helped invent one of the first digital cameras in 1975, yet it hesitated to embrace the future. By the 1990s and 2000s, digital cameras (and later camera phones) quickly replaced traditional film. In 2012, the company declared bankruptcy.

3

Pan Am

Long before flying became an everyday experience, Pan American World Airways, better known as Pan Am, was already carrying Americans across the world. It was founded in 1927, and during the 1960s and 1970s, the airline became a symbol of glamorous air travel.

Its famous blue globe logo was instantly recognizable, even to those who rarely flew. But by the late 1970s, rising competition, fuel costs, and financial troubles began weakening the company. After years of mounting losses and debt, Pan Am shut down in 1991. Even so, its fame was such that even today, more than 30 years later, we still remember it.

4

Woolworth’s

Before Woolworth's made the "five-and-dime" famous, shopping in America looked very different. For decades, Americans visited Woolworth’s for everything from toys and school supplies to household goods and everyday essentials. By the 1960s, the brand had become a familiar part of American life.

Created in 1879 by Frank Winfield Woolworth, the chain grew into one of the country’s largest retailers. But in the 1970s, malls and discount giants like Walmart changed the way Americans shopped, and Woolworth struggled to keep up. By the 1980s, the iconic chain was slowly disappearing. Most stores closed during the 1990s, and the Woolworth retail chain officially ended in 1997.

5

Circuit City

Testing giant stereo systems, browsing rows of CDs and video games, and shopping for the newest TV were all part of the experience at Circuit City, once one of America’s biggest electronics chains.

Founded in 1949 by Samuel S. Wurtzel in Richmond, Virginia, as "Wards Company," the retailer adopted the Circuit City name in 1984. During the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s, it became the go-to place for Americans buying a TV, stereo, computer, or any electronic device. But like many companies on this list, Circuit City struggled as shopping habits changed and online stores became more convenient. A controversial 2007 decision to lay off thousands of experienced employees further hurt the company’s reputation. Circuit City couldn’t survive mounting losses and closed all remaining stores in 2009.

6

Borders

Remember Borders? Born in 1971, its huge stores, filled with books, music, magazines, and cozy reading spaces, invited customers to spend entire afternoons there.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, the rise of large shopping malls actually helped Borders thrive, turning its bookstores into popular destinations inside malls across the US. But eventually, the company ran into a challenge it couldn’t overcome: online shopping and digital reading. Competitors like Amazon surged ahead, while Borders struggled to adapt and made costly business decisions, including outsourcing its online sales to Amazon for years. The company collapsed financially in 2011 and soon closed all remaining stores.

7

Bugle Boy

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, teenage fashion became almost synonymous with Bugle Boy. Famous across the country for its casual jeans and memorable TV commercials, the brand became a major part of American mall culture and was sold in department stores nationwide.

But fashion never stands still, and brands have to constantly adapt to survive. By the late 1990s, newer youth-oriented labels had taken over with fresh styles that quickly made Bugle Boy seem outdated. Sales began to fall, and after years of struggling to keep up with changing trends, the company closed its stores in 2001.

8

Howard Johnson’s restaurants

During the 1960s and 1970s, a stop at Howard Johnson's was part of the classic American road-trip experience for many families, and that was no accident.

Founded in 1925 in Quincy, Massachusetts, the famous orange-roofed chain reached its peak when America’s expanding highways and booming car culture made roadside travel more popular than ever. But by the late 1970s and early 1980s, the growing popularity of fast-food chains like McDonald's began changing the way Americans ate on the road. Drivers increasingly wanted meals that were faster, cheaper, and more standardized, while interstate highways also redirected traffic away from many older roadside locations. Unlike some other brands on this list, Howard Johnson’s faded away slowly over the decades. The last restaurant finally closed in 2022.

9

Burger Chef

In 1958, a name emerged as one of the pioneers of America’s growing fast-food industry: Burger Chef. By the late 1960s, the chain had more than 1,000 locations across the country and had become one of McDonald's’s biggest competitors.

Long before Happy Meals became famous, Burger Chef helped popularize the idea of marketing meals directly to children with toys and themed publicity. But during the fast-food wars of the 1970s, competition became fiercer than ever. While McDonald’s and Burger King expanded by leaps and bounds, Burger Chef struggled with financial problems and changing consumer tastes. In 1982, the company was sold to Hardee's, which gradually converted most Burger Chef locations into Hardee’s restaurants.

10

Sports Authority

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, many Americans looking for running shoes, gym shorts, and sports gear headed straight to Sports Authority.

Known for its huge stores packed with athletic apparel, exercise equipment, bicycles, camping gear, and team sports products, Sports Authority became the ideal shopping destination for families and athletes across the US. But as online shopping rapidly changed retail in the 2000s, the company struggled to adapt. Heavy debt from expansion efforts and a slow shift to e-commerce eventually caught up with the chain. Sports Authority declared bankruptcy in 2016 and closed all remaining stores later that year.

1

An empty whiskey bottle

Image: Zhivko Minkov

In 2015, a time capsule from 1944 was found beneath the City Hall stairs in Lebanon, New Hampshire. Inside was a whiskey bottle with a humorous note: "Whoever finds this bottle may keep it. Sorry, there is no liquor in it, but I drank it all up."

The note was signed by Samuel Stevens, a former city surveyor. Along with the bottle were old newspapers and a penny, but Stevens’ decades-old joke stole the spotlight.

2

Electroshock therapy video

Image: Museums of History New South Wales

In 1958, a time capsule was buried at a former state hospital on the west side of Indianapolis. It included a video from the Bahr Treatment Center's groundbreaking ceremony, which focused on mental health care.

Though some audio is lost, the video references electroshock and insulin shock therapy . The footage is a somber reminder of how far mental health treatment has progressed.

3

A piece of cake

Image: Caitlyn de Wild

During renovations, a Niagara Falls funeral home discovered a 1948 time capsule. It held typical items like newspaper clippings, letters, and postcards.

But one surprise stood out: a piece of cake, possibly from the building's opening party .

4

Vintage optical glass

Image: Daniel Novak

In March 2015, a 19th-century time capsule was found in the cornerstone of a former telescope factory in Pittsburgh. It included what may be one of the first pieces of optical glass made in America .

The Brashear Company, founded by astronomer Dr. John A. Brashear, made telescopes and scientific tools from the 1880s to the early 1900s. By the 1940s, the site was used to produce bombsights for the U.S. military.

5

Lisa mouse

Image: Bryan Natanael

In 1983, Steve Jobs spoke at the Aspen Design Conference and added a computer mouse to the Aspen Time Tube , buried nearby. Meant to be opened in 2000, its location was forgotten over time.

In 2013, a National Geographic crew finally unearthed it. Along with the Lisa mouse, the capsule held a Rubik's Cube and a Moody Blues 8-track tape.

6

Vintage shoestore

Image: Erik Mclean

While technically, this is not a time capsule in strict terms, it can be seen as one. An American family inherited an old building from their grandparents and discovered a forgotten shoe store locked for decades .

The store, active from the 1940s to 1960s, held hundreds of vintage shoes in mint condition, possibly worth thousands. The family is keeping the location secret while they assess its full value.

7

Budweiser beer

Image: Giuliana Catachura

Inspired by Egyptian tombs, Dr. Thorwell Jacobs of Oglethorpe University created a massive time capsule called the "Crypt of Civilization."

Buried beneath the school, it holds items like a Gone with the Wind script, recordings, plastic toys, an English-teaching machine, and a sealed Budweiser . It’s meant to be opened in the year 8113 AD.

8

Stephen Hawking’s DNA

Image: Sangharsh Lohakare

The Immortality Drive, located aboard the ISS, is a memory device designed to preserve human DNA. It holds the genetic codes of Stephen Hawking, Stephen Colbert, Jo Garcia, Laura Hickman , and others.

Also in space are messages from 73 world leaders, left on the moon’s Sea of Tranquility by Apollo 11 envoys in 1969.

9

Spooky message

Image: Daniel Lincoln

In 2016, a time capsule from Montgomery Elementary in Albuquerque was found, containing notes from a 1968 fourth-grade class. Most messages were typical for kids at the time. But one stood out: Greg Lee Youngman began his note with "I am dead" and claimed he was born in 1900 . Whether he was imagining the distant future or pretending to be a ghost, it added a spooky twist.

10

A single black shoe

Image: mostafa mahmoudi

While demolishing his parents' old barn, a man discovered a 128-year-old time capsule hidden beneath the rubble.

Inside were a Mason jar, a newspaper from August 10, 1894, an almanac, a damaged notebook or storybook, and a single black shoe .