How AI's Zero-Click Searches Are Impacting Click Rates

cathtidd
1 day ago
6 min read

Updated: 2 hours ago

Key Takeaways

Zero-click searches are rising, meaning users often get their answers directly on Google without visiting websites—reducing traditional organic click-through rates.
Informational queries are the biggest losers, with studies showing click-through rates dropping 34–45% when an AI Overview appears.
Non-branded searches are hit hardest, because users looking for general answers don’t need to click when AI provides it up front.
Branded searches remain more resilient, as users searching for specific firms, names, or tools are more likely to click through.

As they say in the marketing biz (or pretty much any biz), the only constant is change - and it can be hard to keep up. I thought I had a lock on how all of this worked decades ago, and then social media algorithms changed, digital advertising got way more complex, and lately, AI has thrown us all for a loop.

While many of us would like to stick our heads in the sand when it comes to AI, it's here to stay. So, you either have to figure out a way to work with it, or it could do what we all fear - put us out of a job.

And there are many things I like about AI. I like how I can download an enormous (boring) PDF report and have it summarize it for me. I like how I can ask it for blog ideas and pick and choose, or sometimes expand on what it generates. I like how I can put complex ideas in and ask it to explain them to me like I'm a 5th grader (I do that a lot).

But it is changing the way we market. And it could be making a significant difference in the traffic you're getting to your website.

How Zero-Click Searches Are Impacting Click Rates

Remember when we used to Google things, and the first results that would appear would be blogs and articles from resources giving us the information we needed? Now the blogs and articles are still there...you just have to scroll down to get to them.

These days, Google's first result is an AI-generated answer that might solve your problem without you even clicking on the suggested articles. This can be a time saver for the user. But it's also a bummer for those businesses that relied on those clicks to boost their traffic.

There's a term for this: zero-click searches. Zero-click searches are search engine queries where the user gets the information they need directly on the results page - without clicking through to any website. Google answers the question upfront through features like answer boxes, knowledge panels, featured snippets, maps, or calculators, so the search ends right there.

Research from 2025 confirms that approximately 60% of Google queries now end without users clicking any links, as AI-generated answers often fulfill the user’s intent directly on the search results page. HOWEVER, according to Passionfruit, this same study found the following: Even though AI search platforms sent only 0.5% of total traffic, those visitors generated 12.1% of all signups. In other words, people coming from AI search convert 23x better than traditional organic visitors.

So, what makes AI-driven traffic so powerful?

👉AI users show up already prepared. Most people use AI tools to compare options, understand features, and narrow things down before they ever click. By the time they land on a website, they’re much further along in the decision-making process.

👉They only click when they’re truly interested. Traditional search encourages browsing. AI search, on the other hand, delivers curated answers, so when someone does click, it’s because they want to learn more or are ready to take action.

👉They make decisions earlier. In many major industries - electronics, travel, beauty, wellness, grocery, apparel, and even financial services - 40–55% of consumers now rely on AI search to help them make purchasing decisions.

How AI's Zero-Click Trend Might Be Affecting Your Industry

The zero-click trend doesn’t hit every industry equally. Some fields - especially the ones built around answering big, general questions - feel the impact much more than others.

Industries Feeling It the Most

News and media: Google now shows headlines, summaries, and quick info right on the results page. That means a lot of people get the gist of a story without ever clicking through to the article.

Health and medical: AI tools love summarizing symptoms, treatment FAQs, and general medical info. Because those answers are pulled from multiple sources and packaged neatly, users often don’t go any further, which has led to big traffic drops for many sites.

How-to and education: Step-by-step guides, basic tutorials, and explainer content often get turned into featured snippets or AI Overviews. Users get the instructions they need instantly, so the original sites miss out on the visit.

Other Sectors Getting Hit Hard

Finance and legal (broad informational questions): Queries like “how does a 401(k) work?” or “what is a power of attorney?” are exactly the types of questions AI loves to answer directly. Pages built on these kinds of explainers tend to see fewer clicks.

B2B and SaaS blogs: High-level topics - “what is a CRM?” or “best project management methods” - are easy for AI to summarize. Unless the content is very niche or proprietary, it’s at higher risk of zero-click behavior.

Where the Impact Is More Mixed

E-commerce and local businesses: General product questions and “near me” searches often get quick answers, but anything with clear purchase intent—like buy, book, or order—still drives real traffic.

Highly specialized or regulated fields: In areas where expertise, nuance, or current rules really matter (think tax strategy, estate planning details, complex legal analysis), people still need real human insight. AI tends to surface the actual websites instead of replacing the click.

The Search Types Losing (and Gaining) the Most

AI Overviews don’t impact every search the same way. Some query types see mild changes in click-through rates, while others experience dramatic drops. Here’s how the major categories stack up.

Informational Queries: The Biggest Losers

Let’s start with the toughest category: informational searches - things like “What is a Roth conversion?” These are the queries where AI Overviews show up the most, and unfortunately, they’re also where websites lose the most traffic.

Multiple studies all point to the same trend: when an AI Overview appears, the top organic result gets about one-third fewer clicks - sometimes even more. Users see a full, tidy answer right on the search results page and never bother clicking through.

Non-Branded vs. Branded Searches

Non-branded searches are things like “best retirement plan for 50-year-olds.” There’s no loyalty attached - people just want a helpful answer. AI is great at that, which means clicks drop fairly consistently here, too. Most studies show a 15–37% decline in CTR when an AI Overview is present.

Branded searches, on the other hand - think “Vanguard Roth IRA login” or your firm’s name - behave very differently. These rarely trigger AI Overviews. And when the brand is mentioned or cited in the Overview, click-through rates can actually go up, with boosts of +18% or more reported.

So while generic advice content struggles, strong brand recognition can still shine.

What the “Overall Search” Line Really Means

That final row - “18–64% reduction predicted” - isn’t a single statistic. It’s a range based on industry models that try to forecast how generative AI will impact organic traffic overall.

Here’s how to interpret it:

Some analysts predict mild average losses of 15–20% across searches that receive AI treatments.
Others, looking at AI-heavy industries or very informational query sets, estimate 50–60% declines in CTR.

In other words, depending on your niche and how heavily your content leans on informational queries, generative search could trim off a little organic traffic… or a whole lot.

Don't Panic. Take Action

If you're reading this and starting to panic...don't. Remember, the antidote to anxiety is action, and now it's time to take some. This is the perfect time to review your marketing strategy to make sure that what you're creating is keeping up with this latest trend.

Here's more information about how you can stay relevant in an AI-driven world: