How to read this study
What each view measures, where the data comes from, and how to apply it to your own keywords.
The Organic vs AI Overviews view
What is the CTR impact of Google AI Overviews?
An AI Overview is the AI-generated answer Google shows above the organic results on a growing share of searches. You can check which of your queries currently show one with the free Google AI Overviews tool. When one appears, it answers part of the query on the results page itself — so fewer people click through. This study measures that effect directly: the Organic vs AI Overviews view compares average organic CTR at each of the top 20 positions on SERPs that show an AI Overview against standard organic SERPs, for the same month, device, and search intent. The pattern is consistent: when an AI Overview is present, the top organic result earns a substantially smaller share of clicks, and the impact is not confined to the top — the gap persists well past position 3. It also compounds the zero-click problem: searches with an AI Overview are considerably more likely to end without a click at all. The cards and charts above always show the exact size of the effect for the latest dataset.
How do I read the Organic vs AI Overviews chart?
The blue curve is average organic CTR by position on SERPs without an AI Overview; the purple curve is the same measurement on SERPs where an AI Overview was present. The distance between the curves at your ranking position is the share of expected traffic at stake if AI Overviews start triggering for your keywords. Use the month selector to see how the gap moves, the device toggle to compare desktop and mobile, and the intent filter to isolate informational, commercial, transactional, or navigational queries. The "Compare to" toggle overlays any earlier month, so you can separate a real trend from a one-month fluctuation.
Does the AI Overview effect differ by search intent?
Sharply. Query intent is one of the strongest predictors of how much CTR an AI Overview absorbs. Informational and commercial queries typically lose the largest share of clicks at position 1, because an AI summary can answer them directly on the results page. Transactional queries tend to lose the least — when someone is ready to buy, a summary rarely replaces the visit. Navigational queries start from the highest baseline CTR, so they often lose the most in absolute percentage points even when the relative drop is smaller. If your keyword mix skews informational or commercial, AI Overview exposure belongs in your traffic forecasting — use the intent filter above to quantify it for the current month.
How much does the effect change month to month?
More than you might expect. The gap between organic and AI Overview CTR moves in weeks, not years — it widens or narrows as Google adjusts AI Overview formats, link placement, and how often Overviews trigger. The sharpest swings this study has recorded happened within a single quarter. That volatility is exactly why the dataset refreshes monthly: an annual CTR table can be badly wrong about any given month. Use the month selector and the "Compare to" toggle to see how the current month sits against any earlier one.
The SERP Features view
How do SERP features change organic CTR?
Every element Google adds to a results page competes for the same clicks. Features that answer the query on the page — AI Overviews, featured snippets, knowledge panels — absorb the largest share of clicks from organic results. Others mainly redistribute clicks: sitelinks, for example, concentrate even more of them on the top result. The effect also compounds — the more features a SERP carries, the less organic CTR is left to share. The SERP Features view shows the current CTR curve for each feature combination, so you can benchmark against SERPs that look like the ones you actually rank on.
How do I read the SERP Features view?
Start from the clean organic curve as your baseline, then select the feature combination that matches your target SERPs. The distance between the two curves at your ranking position is the share of expected traffic those features absorb. If your important keywords trigger feature-heavy SERPs, use that adjusted curve — not the generic average — when you forecast traffic from rankings.
About the data
Where does the data come from, and how often is it refreshed?
The study is built on anonymized Google Search Console data covering millions of US SERPs (Google US). It refreshes every month when the newest dataset lands — the date shown at the top of the page is always the latest available month.
How is this data collected?
Each monthly dataset aggregates anonymized Google Search Console data across millions of US SERPs. Because Search Console reports real impressions and clicks from Google itself, these are measured click-through rates — not estimates modeled from clickstream panels or scraped results.
How do you detect AI Overviews?
Every sampled SERP is checked for the presence of an AI Overview and other SERP features at crawl time. A SERP counts as an AI Overview SERP when the Overview actually rendered for that query, that month, on that device.
What does 'modeled' mean in the SERP Features view?
Feature-combination curves are modeled from the measured organic baseline for the selected device and intent: we measure how each observed feature mix shifts CTR by position, then apply that shift to the clean organic curve. Measured values are always shown where the sample is large enough.
The numbers above are averages — what matters is your exposure. Three moves, in order:
Measure your exposure. Check how many of your money keywords trigger an AI Overview, and re-forecast traffic with the AI Overview curve — not the blended average.
Rebalance by intent. Transactional queries lose the least; informational lose the largest share. Shift content investment toward queries where a click still has to happen.
Track it monthly, per keyword. Averages move in weeks. Monitor AI Overview presence and your position on the SERPs you actually rank on. Track AI Overviews for your keywords with AWR →
Cited in industry reports and used by SEO teams at agencies worldwide — free to cite with a link.
Do AI Overviews reduce organic click-through rates?
Yes, consistently. When an AI Overview appears, the #1 organic result earns a markedly lower CTR than on a standard SERP — across this study the reduction at position 1 has typically been on the order of half, though the exact size varies by month, device, and search intent.
What is a zero-click search, and how do AI Overviews affect it?
A zero-click search ends without the user clicking any result. AI Overviews raise the zero-click rate substantially: searches where an Overview appears are consistently more likely to end without a click than standard searches, because the answer is already on the page.
Which search intents are hit hardest by AI Overviews?
Commercial and informational queries lose the largest share of clicks at position 1; transactional queries lose the least, because a purchase still requires visiting a site. Navigational queries lose the most percentage points outright.
Do SERP features affect CTR as much as AI Overviews?
It depends on the feature. AI Overviews are currently the strongest single depressor of organic CTR because they answer the query outright. But stacked features — a snippet plus ads plus a video pack — can take a comparable bite collectively. The SERP Features tab lets you compare any combination against the clean organic baseline. To see which features appear for your market, use the Google SERP Features tool.
How often is this CTR data updated?
Monthly. Each dataset aggregates Google Search Console data across millions of keywords and is published as a new selectable month in the tool — a continuous series going back to September 2015. The "This month in 30 seconds" summary at the top of the page refreshes with every release.
What is CTR, and why is it so important?
Click-through rate (CTR) is the share of people who click a result after it appears in the search results. It turns a ranking position into an estimate of real traffic: two keywords ranking first can send very different numbers of visits depending on the SERP around them. Knowing the CTR for each position lets you forecast clicks, prioritize keywords, and measure what features like AI Overviews cost you.
How can I find out the CTR for organic search?
This study reports the average organic CTR for each of the top 20 positions, drawn from Google Search Console data across millions of keywords. Use the controls above to filter by device, search intent, and month, then read the CTR at your ranking position from the curve.
How do I read the CTR curve from the chart?
Each point on the CTR by position chart is the average click-through rate for that ranking position. The blue curve is standard organic SERPs; the purple curve is SERPs that show an AI Overview. Find your position on the horizontal axis and read its CTR on the vertical axis. The distance between the two curves is the traffic at stake when an AI Overview appears.
Do you collect CTR data for desktop and mobile?
Yes. Every metric is available for both desktop and mobile, and the two are reported separately because CTR runs higher on mobile at the top positions.
Do long-tail keywords have a different CTR than short-tail keywords?
They do. Long-tail queries tend to have a steeper curve, with the top result taking a larger share of clicks, because the intent is narrower and fewer results compete. Short-tail, high-volume queries carry more ads and SERP features, so clicks spread more evenly across positions.
Does CTR differ by industry?
Yes. CTR curves vary by category, driven by how many ads and SERP features a typical query triggers and how strong brand recognition is in that space. Use the closest match to your niche rather than a single blended average when the difference matters to your forecast.
Can I see how the CTR changes over time, or year over year?
Yes. The Position 1 CTR over time chart tracks every month in the series, and the month selector lets you compare any two datasets. Because AI Overview formats change in weeks rather than years, the monthly view catches shifts an annual table would miss.
How long have you been collecting this data?
A new dataset has been published every month since September 2015, giving a continuous record of organic CTR through the shift to mobile-first results, featured snippets, and now AI Overviews.