What's the difference between realize and figured?

Conversation:

🐹 Do they listen to country music in South America? 

🐰 I don't think so

🐹 I figured it was probably mainly a US thing

🐰 That's exactly right

🐹 I figured 

🐰 What's the difference between realize and figured?

🐹  The way I used it, not much. I used it like an expression. Similar to “I had a feeling”.

But typically if you “figured something out” that means you were intentionally searching for an answer to a problem or a question. 

But if you “realized something” it typically means that the answer to a problem or question just appeared in your mind when you weren’t really looking for it.