Google AI Overviews Drive Decline in Open Web Clicks

Image credit: Search Engine Journal

WASHINGTON (AP) — Google searches in the United States are increasingly ending without users clicking through to external websites, a trend significantly influenced by the introduction of AI Overviews, according to new analysis.

Data from SparkToro, utilizing Similarweb‘s panel, indicated that 68 percent of U.S. Google searches concluded without any click to the open web between January and April 2026, challenging Google’s assertions of stable organic traffic.

Only 23.2 percent of U.S. Google searches resulted in clicks to the open web during that four-month period, SparkToro co-founder Rand Fishkin reported.

The share of searches generating at least one click declined by 22 percent, falling from 41 percent in 2024 to 32 percent in 2026.

Searches that led to another search query also increased by seven percentage points over the same period, Fishkin noted.

AI Overviews, which appeared on more than 20 percent of searches, were identified as a primary factor for the reduction in click-through rates. When AI Overviews were present, click rates were nearly 60 percent lower, according to the analysis.

Google’s Vice President of Search Liz Reid previously stated that organic click volume remained “relatively stable” and that AI Overviews helped remove “bounce clicks.” However, SparkToro’s findings suggested otherwise.

The share of all clicks directed to paid advertisements saw an increase from 1 percent in 2024 to 6 percent in 2026. SparkToro acknowledged that 2024 data might have been skewed by ad blocker usage.

SparkToro’s analysis was based on Similarweb’s U.S. desktop and mobile panel data from January to April 2026, weighted two-thirds mobile and one-third desktop.

AI Mode, a feature within Google Search, accounted for only 0.34 percent of searches in the dataset. Despite this, Google reported over 1 billion monthly users and a quarterly doubling of queries for its AI features.

SEO remains a critical component of digital strategy, but its effectiveness for earning traffic has evolved, according to the report. Branded, local and high-intent transactional queries continue to benefit from SEO efforts.

Other contributors to the SparkToro analysis included Amanda Natividad and Cyrus Shepard.

Source: Search Engine Journal