Zero-click searches
A zero-click search is a search that ends without the user clicking any result. SparkToro’s 2024 study (Datos panel data) found 58.5% of US and 59.7% of EU Google searches ended with zero clicks, and that only 360 of every 1,000 US Google searches produced a click to the open web. AI summaries add to this: Pew found fewer clicks when a summary appeared.
How common are zero-click searches?
SparkToro’s 2024 study, using Datos clickstream panels, reported that in 2024, 59.7% of EU and 58.5% of US Google searches resulted in zero clicks; searchers either ended their session (about 37% of the time) or changed their query (about 22%). For every 1,000 searches, 360 clicks in the US and 374 in the EU went to the open web.[1] These are panel estimates, not Google data.
Do AI Overviews increase zero-click searches?
Evidence points that way. Pew Research Center (March 2025 data) found users clicked a traditional result in 8% of visits to pages with an AI summary versus 15% without, and ended their browsing session on 26% of pages with a summary versus 16% without.[2] Ahrefs estimated a 34.5% lower position-1 CTR for keywords with AI Overviews.[3] Google says clicks from pages with AI Overviews are higher quality.[4]
Is a zero-click search worthless for brands?
No. Visibility can occur without a visit: an impression, a brand mention in an answer or a featured snippet still exposes the brand. That is why search visibility is measured separately from traffic, and why share of voice and mention tracking exist.
How should you respond?
- Measure impressions and AI feature appearances, not just clicks.[5]
- Track branded search demand as an outcome; see branded search.
- Give users reasons to click: tools, data and depth an answer cannot replace; see information gain.
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of Google searches are zero-click?
SparkToro’s 2024 study estimated 58.5% in the US and 59.7% in the EU, from Datos panel data.
Are zero-click searches bad for SEO?
They reduce clicks per impression but still create visibility. Measure both.
Did zero-click searches exist before AI?
Yes. Featured snippets, knowledge panels and other SERP features answered queries on the results page long before AI Overviews.
See also
References
Sources accessed October 14, 2026 unless another date is given. See all sources.
- “2024 Zero-Click Search Study”. SparkToro (data from Datos). July 1, 2024.
- “Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results”. Pew Research Center. July 22, 2025; March 2025 browsing data.
- “AI Overviews Reduce Clicks by 34.5%”. Ahrefs. April 17, 2025.
- “AI features and your website”. Google Search Central. accessed October 14, 2026.
- “Generative AI performance report (Search)”. Search Console Help. rolled out to all sites as of August 31, 2026; accessed October 14, 2026.