The impact of Google AI Overviews: 61% lower organic CTR, 68% drop in paid — search marketing will never be the same again.

The numbers are stark, and they tell a story that digital marketers can no longer afford to ignore. Google’s AI Overviews aren’t just changing how users interact with search results—they’re fundamentally reshaping the economics of organic and paid search traffic.

According to new research from marketing agency Seer Interactive, organic click-through rates for informational queries featuring AI Overviews have plummeted 61% since mid-2024, dropping from 1.76% to just 0.61%. Even more alarming for advertisers, paid CTRs on those same queries crashed 68%, falling from 19.7% to 6.34%.

But here’s the kicker that should concern every SEO professional and content creator: even queries without AI Overviews saw organic CTRs fall 41%. This isn’t just about AI Overviews displacing traditional search results—it’s evidence of a broader behavioral shift in how people find information online.

The Data Behind the Decline

 Seer Interactive’s study analyzed 3,119 informational queries across 42 organizations, tracking 25.1 million organic impressions and 1.1 million paid impressions from June 2024 through September 2025. The extended dataset reveals trends that challenge earlier assumptions about where search traffic might stabilize.

The organic CTR trajectory for queries with AI Overviews shows a steady decline through the first year before appearing to bottom out around 0.6% in summer 2025. At current rates, these queries deliver less than half a click per 100 impressions.

The paid search story is even more volatile. Paid CTR experienced dramatic month-over-month decreases, with rates plunging from approximately 11% to 3% in a single month during July 2025. While there’s been a slight recovery to 6.34% by September, the damage is substantial and suggests fundamental shifts in how users perceive paid ads on informational queries.

The “Safe Harbor” That Wasn’t

Perhaps the most significant finding from Seer Interactive’s updated analysis is the correction of their own earlier hypothesis. In January 2025, queries without AI Overviews briefly showed growth, suggesting they offered “untapped opportunities.” However, extended data tells a different story—these queries have since declined dramatically.

While queries without AI Overviews still outperform those with AI Overviews by 166% (1.62% vs 0.61%), they’ve lost 41% of their click-through rate year-over-year. This suggests broader forces are at work beyond just AI Overviews reshaping the SERP.

Where are those clicks going? Users are increasingly seeking answers elsewhere before even opening Google—platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, social media, or going directly to trusted brands they already know.

The Citation Advantage

There is a silver lining for brands that manage to get cited within AI Overviews. Brands cited in AI Overviews earned 35% more organic clicks and 91% more paid clicks compared to those not cited.

However, researchers are careful to note they cannot definitively prove that citation causes higher CTRs. It may simply be that brands with higher authority and better content are both more likely to be cited and to earn more clicks naturally. The correlation is clear, but causation remains uncertain.

For branded queries specifically, the picture is more optimistic. Branded keywords that triggered AI Overviews saw a CTR increase of 18.68% on average, suggesting that strong brand recognition can actually benefit from AI Overview visibility rather than being hurt by it.

What This Means for Digital Marketers

The implications are profound and demand a fundamental shift in how we think about search success:

Stop Waiting for Recovery

After 15 months of tracking this data, the trend lines aren’t flattening in a way that suggests stability. If you’ve been waiting for CTRs to bounce back, the data is telling you to stop waiting. This is the new baseline.

Redefine Success Metrics

Traditional KPIs centered on clicks and traffic are becoming obsolete for informational queries. Success metrics are shifting from clicks and traffic to visibility and share of voice. The question is no longer “how many people clicked to my site?” but rather “how visible is my brand in the AI-generated answer?”

Optimize for Authority and Citations

SEO strategy must evolve into a strategy of authority and AI-driven visibility. The goal is becoming the trusted source that Google’s AI must cite—not just ranking well in traditional organic results. This means:

• Creating comprehensive, authoritative content that AI models recognize as credible
• Building entity relationships and topical authority across your domain
• Focusing on E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness)
• Developing content strategies that go beyond keyword targeting

Diversify Beyond Google

With clicks declining across the board, relying solely on Google Search traffic is increasingly risky. Smart marketers are building multi-channel strategies that include:

• Direct traffic through brand building and community development
• Email lists and owned media properties
• Social media platforms where users are increasingly starting their searches
• AI platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and others where users go directly for answers

The Paid Search Dilemma

For advertisers, the situation demands careful evaluation of informational keyword strategies. The July 2025 collapse in paid CTR from 11% to 3% raises questions about potential SERP layout changes that may have pushed advertisements further down on queries dominated by AI Overviews.

The pattern suggests users have learned that advertisements on informational queries rarely provide the educational content they seek. This creates a challenging dynamic: informational queries still drive awareness and research behavior, but they’re becoming less viable from a direct ROI perspective in paid search.

Advertisers may need to:

• Shift budget away from informational queries toward higher-intent commercial terms
• Focus on branded campaigns where CTRs remain stronger
• Explore alternative platforms for reaching users in the awareness and research phases
• Measure success through assisted conversions and brand lift rather than direct clicks

Looking Ahead

The introduction of AI Overviews represents more than just another SERP feature—it’s a paradigm shift in how search engines deliver value to users. Google’s stated goal is to satisfy user queries more efficiently, and by that measure, AI Overviews are succeeding. Users are getting answers without needing to click through to websites.

For the digital ecosystem that has grown around search traffic, this creates an existential challenge. The free traffic that has powered content businesses, affiliate sites, and information publishers for two decades is fundamentally changing.

The winners in this new landscape will be those who:

1. Build strong brands that users actively seek out, not just stumble upon through search
2. Create content so valuable that AI models must cite it as authoritative sources
3. Diversify traffic sources rather than depending on Google’s goodwill
4. Focus on outcomes like brand awareness and authority rather than just clicks
5. Adapt quickly to new platforms and user behaviors as they emerge

With organic CTRs for AI Overview queries down 61% and paid CTRs down 68%, we’re 15 months into tracking this data, and the trend lines aren’t flattening. This isn’t a temporary disruption—it’s the new normal.

The question isn’t whether to adapt to this reality, but how quickly you can evolve your strategy before your competitors do. The era of optimizing solely for traditional search rankings is ending. The era of optimizing for AI visibility, multi-platform discovery, and direct brand relationships is here.

Those who recognize this shift and act on it now will be positioned to thrive. Those who wait for things to return to “normal” will find themselves increasingly marginalized in a search landscape that has moved on without them.

Data for this analysis was drawn from Seer Interactive’s September 2025 study tracking 3,119 informational queries across 42 organizations from June 2024 through September 2025.