Google search traffic has decreased by one-third.

Google Search Traffic Declined by One-Third

According to data from Chartbeat, published in the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism's report "Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends and Predictions 2026," global traffic from the Google search engine decreased by one-third over the year (as of November 2025).

Referrals to publisher websites from the Google Discover service also dropped significantly — by 21% year-on-year. This recommendation feed is located in Google mobile apps and the Android operating system.

The analysis covers over 2,500 publisher websites. Since May 2023, a decline has been recorded: 21% for referrals from Google Search, 18% from Google Discover, and 24% for all external referral traffic.

In the United States, the decline was even more pronounced: over the year, traffic from Google organic search decreased by 38%, and from Google Discover by 29%. Since May 2023, both metrics have fallen by 22%.

Researchers link the decline to the introduction of AI Overviews at the top of Google search results in 2024. This particularly affected publishers specializing in lifestyle content and utilitarian materials — such as weather forecasts, TV listings, and horoscopes.

The report was prepared by Senior Research Associate Nic Newman based on a survey of 280 media company executives from 51 countries. Among the respondents were 64 editors-in-chief, 64 CEOs or managing directors, and 51 heads of digital or innovation. The survey was conducted in November and December.

Most publishers expect the situation to worsen further. On average, participants predict a 43% decline in traffic over the next three years. At the same time, a small portion believes losses will be less than 20% due to Google AI Overviews and AI Mode features, while about one-fifth of respondents are preparing for a reduction of more than 75%.

In this regard, many plan to pay less attention to traditional Google search in 2026.