Users are clicking less when Google shows AI Overviews on Search

A recent analysis conducted by the Pew Research Center reveals that Google's AI Overviews are altering user behavior in significant ways, often leading to a decrease in clicks to external websites. This study, which examined the browsing habits of 900 adults in the U.S. in March 2025, analyzed a staggering 68,879 unique Google searches. It found that approximately 18% of these searches included an AI Overview (AIO). Notably, when an AIO was present, users clicked on traditional search result links only 8% of the time. In stark contrast, searches devoid of an AIO saw a click-through rate of nearly double that, at 15%. Equally concerning for web traffic, the study indicated that AIOs might be causing users to exit browsing sessions prematurely. In 26% of instances where an AIO was displayed, users left Google without engaging with any links. This is a significant increase compared to just 16% of sessions that featured only conventional search results, suggesting that AI-generated summaries may be effectively answering user queries, reducing the desire to explore external content. Interestingly, the occurrence of AI Overviews tends to rise with more complex and elongated queries. Searches comprising ten or more words triggered AIOs 53% of the time, while only 8% of shorter, one- or two-word searches did so. Queries framed as questions—beginning with terms like “what,” “why,” or “how”—were particularly likely to generate AI content. In terms of sources cited within these AI Overviews, platforms like Wikipedia, Reddit, and YouTube were predominant, appearing in about 15% of summaries. In comparison, government websites accounted for 6% of the sources in AIOs, while standard search results saw them at just 2%. News websites represented 5% of links in both categories. This shift in user engagement has raised concerns among publishers who depend on Google Search for visibility and revenue. Many have attributed recent drops in web traffic to the presence of AIOs, although Google has disputed this assertion. The broader impact on the journalism landscape has been stark, with thousands of journalists losing their jobs in recent years, particularly as AI technology continues to advance. Since 2022, over 8,000 reporters in the United States have faced layoffs amid this digital transformation. High-profile publications like BuzzFeed News and Business Insider have undergone significant layoffs, explicitly citing AI's role in their restructuring efforts. While automation is not the sole culprit, its increasing prevalence is prompting cutbacks in newsrooms throughout the U.S. and Europe, emphasizing the growing influence of AI on the profession. Google's near-monopoly on search, commanding almost 90% of the global market, makes it a vital avenue for publishers. However, its increasing reliance on AI-generated content, paired with a lack of transparency regarding traffic derived from AIOs, has sparked criticism. Although Google asserts that AIOs lead to “higher quality clicks” from users with more intent, it has yet to provide supporting data for this claim. The situation is further complicated by Google's ownership of YouTube and a recent multi-million-dollar data licensing agreement with Reddit, both of which are frequently cited sources in AIOs. As AI continues to redefine how information is searched and consumed, the friction between search platforms and publishers is poised to escalate.