New Data: Google AI Overviews are Hurting Click-Through Rates

Google’s AI-generated answers are drastically cutting traffic to standard search listings, especially for general, non-branded questions.

Two separate analyses just dropped, and both point to the same problem: Google’s AI Overviews are pulling attention (and traffic) away from traditional organic results.

Although Google has stated that AI Overviews can drive better-quality clicks, the rollout appears to be reducing total visibility and visits for top-performing organic pages—especially those targeting general informational searches. These findings come from fresh reports by SEO platform Ahrefs and digital performance firm Amsive.

The impact by the numbers

Here’s a look at how click-through rates (CTR) have shifted when AI Overviews appear in the SERPs:

• Ahrefs: Position 1 results experienced a 34.5% CTR drop when AI Overviews were present, based on data from 300,000 keywords.
• Amsive: Saw an average 15.49% decrease, with much steeper drops in certain conditions (up to -37.04% when paired with featured snippets), analyzing 700,000 keywords.

Non-branded search terms take the biggest hit

AI Overviews are more likely to show up for non-branded, informational searches, and these are also the queries seeing the steepest drop in engagement:

• Amsive: Recorded a -19.98% decline in CTR for non-branded keywords.
• Ahrefs: Concentrated solely on informational searches, 99.2% of which aligned with AI Overview triggers.

Lower positions suffer more

When organic listings aren’t in the top 3, the CTR loss is even more dramatic. According to Amsive:

• Keywords outside the top 3 saw a -27.04% CTR drop when AI Overviews were shown.

Branded searches fare better

AI Overviews show up less frequently for branded searches—only 4.79% of the time. But when they do, these branded queries actually perform better, seeing a +18.68% CTR boost. This could be due to stronger brand recognition and user trust, Amsive suggests.

Why this matters

These findings, along with recent reports (like Seer Interactive’s coverage on CTR declines), suggest that Google’s claim—that AI Overviews generate more clicks—might not apply across the board. While the clicks may be better, they are fewer. And for many publishers and SEO professionals, fewer clicks means less value from organic rankings.

More about the studies

• Ahrefs: Compared Google Search Console data from before and after the March 2025 rollout of AI Overviews in the U.S.
• Amsive: Studied 700,000 keywords across 10 websites in five industries, analyzing how different keyword types and SERP features affected CTR.

As AI Overviews reshape the search landscape, relying solely on traditional SEO may no longer be enough to maintain visibility and traffic. With organic CTRs declining, it’s critical to diversify your strategy.

Engage Coders is here to help you adapt. We offer Advanced SEO + Paid Search Management services designed to keep you competitive—even when Google’s algorithms shift. From optimizing for AI-driven SERPs to running high-converting PPC campaigns that put your brand front and center, our digital marketing solutions are built to future-proof your online presence.

Let’s talk strategy. Contact us now and get ahead of the curve.