Google AI search clicks aren’t always better traffic: Study

Google has told us (e.g., here, here, and here) that clicks on AI search results drive better traffic to websites. But a new Ahrefs study suggests that isn’t always exactly the case.

The big picture. AI visitors behave differently from search visitors, and not always in ways that suggest higher quality. Here are some of the findings from Ahrefs comparing visits from AI and search:

• Higher bounce rate: AI users were 4.1% more likely to bounce than search visitors, and 5.4% more likely than average users.
• Fewer pages per visit: AI users browse fewer pages – 4 on average, compared to 5.2 from search and 5.5 for overall visitors.
• Shorter sessions: AI visitors view fewer pages per minute, suggesting they’re less inclined to explore a site.
• Slightly more time on site): AI users spent 86 seconds on average, 8 seconds more than search or average traffic.

Why we care. Google insists that citations in AI search will help brands and publishers because we will get higher-quality clicks in exchange for all the traditional organic search traffic we’re losing. But it’s been hard to prove or disprove this. Many brands and publishers feel like it’s nearly impossible to trust Google at their word these days.

What about conversions? Ahrefs mentioned seeing higher conversion rates (~12%) from AI vs. traditional search.

Dig deeper. LLM traffic not as engaged as organic traffic: Study

Bottom line. AI traffic isn’t clearly better; it’s different. It may bring more decisive users, but they engage less, bounce more, and visit fewer pages.

About the study. Ahrefs analyzed traffic to 81,947 websites between May and June, comparing behavior metrics like pages per visit, session duration, and bounce rate by channel.

The study. AI Visitors Visit Fewer Pages and Bounce More Often Than Traditional Search Visitors