SEO Statistics 2026
This page collects figures on search engines and organic traffic: market share by device and region, query and revenue trends from Alphabet and Google, zero-click searches, the effect of AI Overviews on click-through rates, AI assistants as a search and referral channel, and how people look for local businesses. Most figures describe 2025 and 2026, with a few 2024 baselines kept for comparison. Geography is worldwide for market share and mostly the United States for behavior studies. Sources include StatCounter, Alphabet's SEC filing, Google, Pew Research Center, SparkToro, Ahrefs, Semrush, Seer Interactive, Similarweb, OpenAI, Cloudflare, Adobe and BrightLocal.
By the TopToolAdvisor research desk · Updated November 6, 2026 · 54 figures from 25 sources
Quick answer
Google handled 91.05% of search engine referrals worldwide in October 2026 (StatCounter), and Alphabet's search revenue grew 12% to $63.4 billion in the third quarter of 2026. But fewer searches send visitors out: SparkToro found 68.01% of US Google searches ended without a click in early 2026, and Ahrefs estimates an AI Overview cuts the top result's click-through rate by about 58%. AI assistants are growing fast, with 44% of US adults using ChatGPT (Pew), yet they still send a small share of referral traffic next to Google.
Key figures
- 91.05%Google accounted for 91.05% of search engine referrals worldwide in October 2026, according to StatCounter.StatCounter
- 12%Google Search and other revenue grew 12% year over year in the third quarter of 2026, and Alphabet said query growth was the highest in five years.Alphabet
- 68.01%In the first four months of 2026, 68.01% of US Google searches ended without a click, according to SparkToro's analysis of Similarweb clickstream data.SparkToro
- 8%In Pew's March 2025 browsing panel, US users who saw a Google AI summary clicked a traditional result link in 8% of visits.Pew Research Center
- 58%Ahrefs found that an AI Overview reduced the click-through rate of the top-ranking page by about 58% as of December 2025.Ahrefs
- 15.69%Semrush found AI Overviews appeared for 15.69% of tracked keywords in November 2025, down from a peak of nearly 25% in July.Semrush
- 44%44% of US adults said they use ChatGPT in February 2026, up from 34% a year earlier, according to Pew Research Center.Pew Research Center
- 45%45% of US consumers used ChatGPT or other generative AI tools for local business recommendations in 2026, up from 6% a year earlier, BrightLocal found.BrightLocal
What the figures show
Google's hold on search is close to total by StatCounter's referral measure: 91.05% worldwide, 96.35% on mobile and 85.45% in the United States in October 2026. Bing is the only meaningful rival, and mostly on desktop, where it reached 15.03%. Alphabet's results show the business behind those clicks is still expanding, with Search and other revenue up 12% to $63,350 million in the third quarter of 2026 and query growth at a five year high, which Google credits partly to AI Mode passing one billion monthly users.
Growth in searches has not meant growth in clicks to websites. SparkToro's clickstream research found 68.01% of US Google searches ended without a click in the first four months of 2026, against 60.45% in 2024 and about 45% a decade ago, although the 2026 and 2024 figures come from different panels. Pew's browsing study found people clicked a traditional result in 8% of visits when an AI summary appeared and 15% when it did not, and clicked a link inside the summary in only 1% of visits.
Studies built on different data reach a similar conclusion about AI Overviews. Ahrefs estimates a 58% lower CTR for the top-ranking page as of December 2025, up from 34.5% earlier that year, and Seer Interactive measured organic CTR on affected queries falling 61%. Semrush is the useful counterpoint: AI Overview coverage peaked near 25% of keywords in July 2025 and then fell to 15.69%, and the same keywords did not become more zero-click once an Overview appeared. Seer also found that brands cited in the Overview kept noticeably more clicks.
AI assistants are a fast growing but still small source of visits. Pew found 44% of US adults use ChatGPT, OpenAI reports more than 900 million weekly users, and Similarweb counts 9.5 billion monthly visits to generative AI sites. StatCounter, though, shows ChatGPT at 0.09% of combined Google and ChatGPT referrals, and Cloudflare finds AI crawlers fetch thousands of pages per visitor they send back. The visits that do arrive convert well: Adobe saw AI traffic to US retailers convert 90% better than other traffic in September 2026. In local search, BrightLocal found 45% of consumers now ask AI tools for business recommendations, up from 6% a year earlier.
Search engine market share
- 1.
Google accounted for 91.05% of search engine referrals worldwide in October 2026, according to StatCounter.
StatCounter, Search Engine Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Search Engine Market Share Worldwide - October 2026 Google 91.05 %
- 2.
In the United States, Google's share of search referrals was 85.45% in October 2026.
StatCounter, Search Engine Market Share United States Of America (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Search Engine Market Share in United States Of America - October 2026 Google 85.45 %
- 3.
Bing held 9.78% of US search referrals in October 2026, about twice its worldwide share.
StatCounter, Search Engine Market Share United States Of America (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Google 85.45 % bing 9.78 % Yahoo! 2.54 % DuckDuckGo 1.74 %
- 4.
On mobile devices Google took 96.35% of search referrals worldwide in October 2026.
StatCounter, Mobile Search Engine Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Mobile Search Engine Market Share Worldwide - October 2026 Google 96.35 %
- 5.
On desktop computers Google's worldwide share fell to 77.93% in October 2026, with Bing at 15.03%.
StatCounter, Desktop Search Engine Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Desktop Search Engine Market Share Worldwide - October 2026 Google 77.93 % bing 15.03 %
- 6.
Across Europe Google held 88.77% of search referrals in October 2026, followed by Bing at 5.58%.
StatCounter, Search Engine Market Share Europe (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Search Engine Market Share in Europe - October 2026 Google 88.77 % bing 5.58 %
- 7.
When StatCounter compares referrals from Google and ChatGPT directly, ChatGPT accounted for 0.09% worldwide in October 2026.
StatCounter, Google vs ChatGPT Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Google vs ChatGPT Market Share Worldwide - October 2026 Google 99.91 % ChatGPT 0.09 %
Chart
Search engine share of referrals worldwide, October 2026
StatCounter share of search engine referrals across its tracked sites, all platforms, worldwide, October 2026.
- Google91%
- Bing4.8%
- Yahoo1.18%
- Yandex1.14%
- DuckDuckGo0.64%
- Baidu0.42%
Source: StatCounter, Search Engine Market Share Worldwide
Search query volumes, revenue and Google's AI search products
- 8.
Alphabet's Google Search and other revenue was $63,350 million in the third quarter of 2026, up from $56,567 million a year earlier.
Alphabet, Alphabet Announces Third Quarter 2026 Results (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1) (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Google Search & other $ 56,567 $ 63,350
- 9.
Google Search and other revenue grew 12% year over year in the third quarter of 2026, and Alphabet said query growth was the highest in five years.
Alphabet, Alphabet Announces Third Quarter 2026 Results (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1) (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Google Services revenues increased 11% to $96.3 billion, led by 12% growth in Google Search & other with the year-over-year Search query growth rate the highest it has been in the last five years.
- 10.
In the second quarter of 2026, Google reported 17% revenue growth in Search and other.
Google, Alphabet earnings call Q2 2026: Sundar Pichai remarks (Jul 2026)
Source quote
We saw 17% revenue growth in Search and Other.
- 11.
Google said AI Mode passed one billion monthly users one year after its debut, with queries more than doubling every quarter.
Google, Google Search's I/O 2026 updates: AI agents and more (May 2026)
Source quote
The momentum has been incredible: Just one year after its debut, AI Mode has surpassed one billion monthly users, with queries more than doubling every quarter since launch.
- 12.
Google said more than one in six US searches now use voice or images, with image searches growing more than 40% month over month.
Google, How AI Mode is changing and expanding the way people search (May 2026)
Source quote
Searching beyond text: More than one in six searches in the U.S. now use voice or images, with image searches growing over 40% month-over-month.
- 13.
Alphabet reported that the Gemini app reached one billion users by the third quarter of 2026.
Alphabet, Alphabet Announces Third Quarter 2026 Results (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1) (Oct 2026)
Source quote
On top of that, the Gemini app has reached one billion users—making it the fastest-growing product in Google’s history—and we surpassed 150 million YouTube Music and Premium subscribers globally, including trials.
Zero-click searches and where Google clicks go
- 14.
In the first four months of 2026, 68.01% of US Google searches ended without a click, according to SparkToro's analysis of Similarweb clickstream data.
SparkToro, In 2026, Less than One Third of Google Searches Still Send a Click (Jun 2026)
Source quote
In the first four months of 2026, a whopping 68.01% of Google searches ended without a click .
- 15.
SparkToro measured the US zero-click rate on Google at 60.45% in 2024.
SparkToro, In 2026, Less than One Third of Google Searches Still Send a Click (Jun 2026)
Source quote
In 2024, US zero click searches on Google stood at 60.45%.
- 16.
About ten years earlier, roughly 45% of Google searches ended without a click, according to SparkToro's comparison with older Jumpshot data.
SparkToro, In 2026, Less than One Third of Google Searches Still Send a Click (Jun 2026)
Source quote
Ten years ago, ~45% of Google searches were zero-click.
- 17.
Only 0.34% of US Google searches moved on to AI Mode between January and April 2026 in SparkToro's data.
SparkToro, In 2026, Less than One Third of Google Searches Still Send a Click (Jun 2026)
Source quote
Only 0.34% of searches made their way to AI Mode from January–April 2026.
- 18.
In 2024, for every 1,000 US Google searches, 360 clicks went to sites that Google does not own and that are not Google ads.
SparkToro, 2024 Zero-Click Search Study: For every 1,000 EU Google Searches, only 374 clicks go to the Open Web. In the US, it's 360. (Jul 2024)
Source quote
Most interesting to web publishers, entrepreneurs, creators, and (hopefully) regulators is the final number: for every 1,000 searches on Google in the United States, 360 clicks make it to a non-Google-owned, non-Google-ad-paying property .
- 19.
Almost 30% of all clicks from US Google searches in SparkToro's 2024 study went to Google-owned properties such as YouTube and Maps.
SparkToro, 2024 Zero-Click Search Study: For every 1,000 EU Google Searches, only 374 clicks go to the Open Web. In the US, it's 360. (Jul 2024)
Source quote
Equally concerning, especially for those worried about Google’s monopoly power to self-preference their own properties in the results, is that almost 30% of all clicks go to platforms Google owns .
- 20.
In Pew's March 2025 browsing panel, US users who saw a Google AI summary clicked a traditional result link in 8% of visits.
Pew Research Center, Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results (Jul 2025)
Source quote
Users who encountered an AI summary clicked on a traditional search result link in 8% of all visits.
- 21.
US Google users who did not see an AI summary clicked a search result in 15% of visits, nearly twice as often.
Pew Research Center, Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results (Jul 2025)
Source quote
Those who did not encounter an AI summary clicked on a search result nearly twice as often (15% of visits).
- 22.
Users clicked a link inside the AI summary itself in only 1% of visits to pages that had one, Pew found.
Pew Research Center, Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results (Jul 2025)
Source quote
This occurred in just 1% of all visits to pages with such a summary.
- 23.
Pew found that users ended their browsing session on 26% of Google pages with an AI summary, against 16% of pages with only traditional results.
Pew Research Center, Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results (Jul 2025)
Source quote
This happened on 26% of pages with an AI summary, compared with 16% of pages with only traditional search results.
Chart
Google visits that led to a click, with and without an AI summary, March 2025
Browsing data from 900 US adults who shared their online activity, March 2025.
- Clicked a result, no AI summary15%
- Clicked a result, AI summary shown8%
- Clicked a link inside the AI summary1%
Source: Pew Research Center, Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results
AI Overviews and organic click-through rates
- 24.
Ahrefs found that an AI Overview reduced the click-through rate of the top-ranking page by about 58% as of December 2025.
Ahrefs, Update: AI Overviews Reduce Clicks by 58% (Feb 2026)
Source quote
We found that the presence of an AI Overview now correlates with a 58% lower average clickthrough rate for the top-ranking page.
- 25.
In its first analysis of 300,000 keywords in early 2025, Ahrefs measured a 34.5% lower CTR for the top-ranking page when an AI Overview was present.
Ahrefs, AI Overviews Reduce Clicks by 34.5% (Apr 2025)
Source quote
We analyzed 300,000 keywords and found that the presence of an AI Overview in the search results correlated with a 34.5% lower average clickthrough rate (CTR) for the top-ranking page, compared to similar informational keywords without an AI Overview.
- 26.
Ahrefs found that 99.2% of keywords that triggered AI Overviews had informational intent in its 2025 dataset.
Ahrefs, AI Overviews Reduce Clicks by 34.5% (Apr 2025)
Source quote
Our research found that 99.2% of keywords that trigger AI Overviews are informational in intent, so we’ve focused on informational keywords for a better like-for-like comparison.
- 27.
Seer Interactive measured organic CTR on informational queries with AI Overviews falling from 1.76% in June 2024 to 0.61% in September 2025, a 61% decline.
Seer Interactive, AIO Impact on Google CTR: September 2025 Update (Nov 2025)
Source quote
Organic CTR for AIO Queries June 2024: 1.76% Lowest point (July 2025): 0.57% September 2025: 0.61% Overall decline: 61%
- 28.
Paid CTR on queries with AI Overviews fell 68% over the same period in Seer Interactive's data, from 19.70% to 6.34%.
Seer Interactive, AIO Impact on Google CTR: September 2025 Update (Nov 2025)
Source quote
While there's been a slight recovery to 6.34% by September, paid CTR is still down 68% from the starting baseline.
- 29.
Brands cited inside an AI Overview earned 35% more organic clicks and 91% more paid clicks than brands that were not cited, according to Seer Interactive.
Seer Interactive, AIO Impact on Google CTR: September 2025 Update (Nov 2025)
Source quote
When you are cited in an AIO, you get 35% more organic clicks and 91% more paid clicks compared to when you are not cited at all.
- 30.
Organic CTR also fell 41% on queries without AI Overviews between June 2024 and September 2025 in Seer Interactive's sample.
Seer Interactive, AIO Impact on Google CTR: September 2025 Update (Nov 2025)
Source quote
The full trajectory for non-AIO queries: June 2024: 2.72% Peak (February 2025): 3.14% September 2025: 1.62% Overall decline: 41%
- 31.
Semrush found AI Overviews appeared for 15.69% of tracked keywords in November 2025, down from a peak of nearly 25% in July.
Semrush, Semrush AI Overviews Study (Dec 2025)
Source quote
After starting the year at appearing for 6.49% of keywords in January 2025, the share rose to nearly 25% in July before sliding down to 15.69% in November 2025.
- 32.
The informational share of queries that triggered an AI Overview fell from 91.3% in January 2025 to 57.1% in October 2025, Semrush found.
Semrush, Semrush AI Overviews Study (Dec 2025)
Source quote
In January, 91.3% of queries that trigger an AI Overview were informational. By October, that share was down to 57.1%, and the share of commercial and transactional AIOs rose.
- 33.
For the same keywords measured before and after an AI Overview appeared, Semrush found the zero-click rate fell slightly, from 33.75% to 31.53%.
Semrush, Semrush AI Overviews Study (Dec 2025)
Source quote
When we analyzed the same keywords before and after they started showing AI Overviews, we found the zero-click rate decreased from 33.75% to 31.53%.
- 34.
Six in ten US adults said in February 2026 that they read AI summaries at the top of search engine results.
Pew Research Center, Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact (Jun 2026)
Source quote
Our survey shows that six-in-ten U.S. adults say they read AI search engine summaries.
Chart
Share of keywords showing an AI Overview, 2025
Semrush analysis of more than 10 million keywords; the July figure is reported as nearly 25%.
Source: Semrush, Semrush AI Overviews Study
AI assistants as a search channel
- 35.
44% of US adults said they use ChatGPT in February 2026, up from 34% a year earlier, according to Pew Research Center.
Pew Research Center, Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact (Jun 2026)
Source quote
A little under half of U.S. adults (44%) now report using the chatbot, up from 34% last year.
- 36.
About four in ten US adults said in 2026 that they use AI chatbots to search for information, the most common use Pew measured.
Pew Research Center, Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact (Jun 2026)
Source quote
Searching for information and work-related tasks are the most common uses: About four-in-ten U.S. adults say they use chatbots for information searching.
- 37.
OpenAI said ChatGPT had more than 900 million weekly active users in March 2026.
OpenAI, OpenAI raises $122 billion to accelerate the next phase of AI (Mar 2026)
Source quote
ChatGPT is the overwhelming leader in consumer AI with more than 900 million weekly active users, and over 50 million subscribers.
- 38.
ChatGPT generated 51.58% of AI chatbot referrals worldwide in October 2026, ahead of Google Gemini at 28.86%, according to StatCounter.
StatCounter, AI Chatbot Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026)
Source quote
AI Chatbot Market Share Worldwide - October 2026 ChatGPT 51.58 % Google Gemini 28.86 %
- 39.
Generative AI platforms averaged 9.5 billion monthly web visits worldwide between June 2025 and May 2026, up 70% year over year, Similarweb found.
Similarweb, AI Search Stats 2026: Market Share, Referral, and Citation Data (Jun 2026)
Source quote
Average monthly web visits across generative AI platforms worldwide grew 70% year-over-year, reaching 9.5 billion between June 2025 and May 2026, while unique visitors grew more slowly, by 57%, to 655 million, according to Similarweb data.
- 40.
ChatGPT's share of generative AI website visits fell from about 76% in June 2025 to roughly 53% by May 2026, according to Similarweb.
Similarweb, AI Search Stats 2026: Market Share, Referral, and Citation Data (Jun 2026)
Source quote
According to Similarweb’s worldwide traffic panel, ChatGPT’s share of generative AI website visits fell from about 76% in June 2025 to roughly 53% by May 2026, a drop of more than 20 percentage points in twelve months.
- 41.
The share of US ChatGPT prompts that included a citation rose from about 1.6% in June 2025 to roughly 6.8% by May 2026, Similarweb found.
Similarweb, AI Search Stats 2026: Market Share, Referral, and Citation Data (Jun 2026)
Source quote
Citation presence in US ChatGPT prompts rose from about 1.6% in June 2025 to roughly 6.8% by May 2026, according to Similarweb data.
- 42.
Semrush found that pages cited by ChatGPT search ranked in organic position 21 or lower for related queries almost 90% of the time.
Semrush, AI Search & SEO Traffic Case Study (Jun 2025)
Source quote
When ChatGPT search cites webpages, the pages it cites rank in traditional organic search positions 21+ for related queries almost 90% of the time, according to our data.
- 43.
Semrush estimated that the average visitor from an AI search source was worth 4.4 times an average traditional organic search visitor, based on conversion rate.
Semrush, AI Search & SEO Traffic Case Study (Jun 2025)
Source quote
We have seen that the average AI search visitor (tracked to a non-Google search source like ChatGPT) is 4.4 times as valuable as the average visit from traditional organic search, based on conversion rate.
- 44.
AI traffic to US retail sites grew 71% year over year in September 2026, Adobe Analytics reported.
Adobe, AI traffic now drives 83% higher revenue per visit (Oct 2026)
Source quote
In September 2026, AI traffic to U.S. retail sites (measured by users clicking on a link) grew 71% year-over-year (YoY).
- 45.
In September 2026, visits from AI sources to US retail sites converted 90% better than non-AI traffic, according to Adobe.
Adobe, AI traffic now drives 83% higher revenue per visit (Oct 2026)
Source quote
In September, AI traffic converted 90% better (visits that become purchases) than non-AI traffic, the highest level Adobe has observed to date.
- 46.
Googlebot accounted for 39% of all AI and search crawler traffic on Cloudflare's network in mid 2025.
Cloudflare, The crawl-to-click gap: Cloudflare data on AI bots, training, and referrals (Aug 2025)
Source quote
Googlebot is still the anchor, accounting for 39% of all AI and search crawler traffic, but the fastest growth now comes from AI-specific crawlers, though bots related to Amazon and ByteDance (Bytespider) have lost significant ground.
- 47.
Anthropic's crawler fetched about 38,000 pages for every page visit it referred in July 2025, the highest ratio among major AI companies Cloudflare tracked.
Cloudflare, The crawl-to-click gap: Cloudflare data on AI bots, training, and referrals (Aug 2025)
Source quote
Even after an 87% decline this year, it still crawled 38,000 pages for every referred page visit in July 2025
Chart
AI chatbot share of referrals worldwide, October 2026
StatCounter share of referrals from AI chatbots to its tracked sites, worldwide, October 2026.
- ChatGPT51.6%
- Google Gemini28.9%
- Perplexity15%
- Claude2.3%
- Microsoft Copilot2.18%
Source: StatCounter, AI Chatbot Market Share Worldwide
Local search behavior
- 48.
45% of US consumers used ChatGPT or other generative AI tools for local business recommendations in 2026, up from 6% a year earlier, BrightLocal found.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
Use of ChatGPT and other generative AI tools for local recommendations has grown rapidly, rising from 6% last year to 45% and becoming the third most popular source of business recommendations.
- 49.
Google's share as a source of local business reviews fell from 83% in 2025 to 71% in 2026 in BrightLocal's survey.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
Google has always been the standout source for reviews, but this year its share has dipped from 83% in 2025 to 71%.
- 50.
Use of Apple Maps to check local businesses rose from 14% in 2025 to 27% in 2026, according to BrightLocal.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
Apple Maps nearly doubled in usage from 14% in 2025 to 27%.
- 51.
47% of consumers will not use a local business with fewer than 20 reviews, BrightLocal found in 2026.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
Perhaps it’s more than you think… 47% of consumers won’t use a business with fewer than 20 reviews, and only 9% are willing to use one with five or fewer.
- 52.
74% of consumers look for reviews written in the last three months when choosing a local business.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
74% seek reviews written in the last three months.
- 53.
54% of consumers visit a business's website after reading positive reviews, up from 32% in 2019, according to BrightLocal.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
Consumers are most likely (54%) to visit a business’s website after reading positive reviews, up significantly from 32% when we last asked this in 2019.
- 54.
82% of consumers read AI-generated review summaries, and 23% would rely on them alone to make a decision, BrightLocal found.
BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026)
Source quote
82% of consumers read AI-generated review summaries, with 23% willing to rely solely on these to make a decision
Common questions
- What percentage of searches are zero-click in 2026?
- SparkToro found that 68.01% of US Google searches ended without a click in the first four months of 2026, up from 60.45% in 2024. The 2026 figure uses Similarweb clickstream data and the 2024 figure used Datos, so part of the change may come from the switch in panels.
- How much do AI Overviews reduce clicks?
- Ahrefs estimates that an AI Overview lowers the top result's click-through rate by about 58% as of December 2025, and Seer Interactive measured a 61% fall in organic CTR on affected queries. Semrush found the zero-click rate did not rise for the same keywords once an Overview appeared, so the effect varies by query type.
- What is Google's search engine market share?
- StatCounter puts Google at 91.05% of search engine referrals worldwide in October 2026, 96.35% on mobile and 85.45% in the United States. Bing is second with 4.8% worldwide and 15.03% on desktop.
- How many people use AI chatbots instead of Google?
- Pew found 44% of US adults used ChatGPT in early 2026 and about four in ten use chatbots to search for information. Most still use Google too: StatCounter measures ChatGPT at 0.09% of combined Google and ChatGPT referrals in October 2026.
- Does traffic from AI assistants convert better than organic search?
- Adobe found AI traffic to US retail sites converted 90% better than non-AI traffic in September 2026, and Semrush estimated an AI search visitor is worth 4.4 times a traditional organic visitor. Both figures describe small volumes compared with Google traffic.
- How are people searching for local businesses in 2026?
- BrightLocal's 2026 survey found 45% of consumers used ChatGPT or similar tools for local recommendations, up from 6% a year earlier. Google remains the top review source at 71%, down from 83%, while Apple Maps rose to 27%.
How we picked these figures
We chose figures that describe search market share, query and revenue trends, click behavior, AI Overviews, AI assistants and local search, and we read each quote on the publisher's own page or SEC filing. StatCounter measures referrals from search engines to sites running its tracker, not query counts, and its monthly figures change as new data arrives. Alphabet and Google figures are company statements. Zero-click and CTR figures come from clickstream panels (SparkToro using Similarweb and earlier Datos data, Pew's opt-in browsing panel) or from Search Console and client data (Ahrefs, Seer Interactive, Semrush), so they differ in sample, device coverage and definitions; most exclude searches made in Google's mobile app. AI traffic figures from Similarweb, Adobe and Cloudflare reflect each company's own panel or network. BrightLocal's local figures come from a single consumer survey. We could not include Ofcom's Online Nation report because its pages could not be retrieved for checking, and Datos's State of Search reports are gated. Each quote is copied from the original publisher and fetched again by a script to confirm it still appears there. See the methodology.
Sources
- Adobe. AI traffic now drives 83% higher revenue per visit (Oct 2026).
- Ahrefs. Update: AI Overviews Reduce Clicks by 58% (Feb 2026).
- Ahrefs. AI Overviews Reduce Clicks by 34.5% (Apr 2025).
- Alphabet. Alphabet Announces Third Quarter 2026 Results (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1) (Oct 2026).
- BrightLocal. Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (Feb 2026).
- Cloudflare. The crawl-to-click gap: Cloudflare data on AI bots, training, and referrals (Aug 2025).
- Google. Alphabet earnings call Q2 2026: Sundar Pichai remarks (Jul 2026).
- Google. Google Search's I/O 2026 updates: AI agents and more (May 2026).
- Google. How AI Mode is changing and expanding the way people search (May 2026).
- OpenAI. OpenAI raises $122 billion to accelerate the next phase of AI (Mar 2026).
- Pew Research Center. Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results (Jul 2025).
- Pew Research Center. Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact (Jun 2026).
- Seer Interactive. AIO Impact on Google CTR: September 2025 Update (Nov 2025).
- Semrush. Semrush AI Overviews Study (Dec 2025).
- Semrush. AI Search & SEO Traffic Case Study (Jun 2025).
- Similarweb. AI Search Stats 2026: Market Share, Referral, and Citation Data (Jun 2026).
- SparkToro. In 2026, Less than One Third of Google Searches Still Send a Click (Jun 2026).
- SparkToro. 2024 Zero-Click Search Study: For every 1,000 EU Google Searches, only 374 clicks go to the Open Web. In the US, it's 360. (Jul 2024).
- StatCounter. Search Engine Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026).
- StatCounter. Search Engine Market Share United States Of America (Oct 2026).
- StatCounter. Mobile Search Engine Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026).
- StatCounter. Desktop Search Engine Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026).
- StatCounter. Search Engine Market Share Europe (Oct 2026).
- StatCounter. Google vs ChatGPT Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026).
- StatCounter. AI Chatbot Market Share Worldwide (Oct 2026).
How to cite
You can link to the whole page or to any single figure. When you quote a number, please credit the organization that first published it.
TopToolAdvisor. (2026, November 6). SEO Statistics 2026. https://toptooladvisor.com/seo-statistics
Questions or corrections: editorial@toptooladvisor.com. Next review due January 5, 2027.