Do 93% of Google AI Mode Sessions End Without a Website Click?

What did the study actually measure?

Semrush itself warned that the comparison figures come from separate studies with different methods and timeframes, so they should be compared with caution.

Why is the number narrower than it sounds?

• It is a session measure. A session with several AI Mode questions counts once. Zero-click means no external site was visited during the whole session, not that each answer was ignored.
• It covers early adopters. In mid-2025, AI Mode users were a small, self-selected group trying a new feature.
• It is desktop only. Mobile behaviour, where most searches happen, was not measured.
• It is US only. AI Mode has since expanded to more than 200 countries and territories, as covered in where Google AI Overviews and AI Mode are available.
• External means another domain. Actions that stay on Google, such as opening a Maps listing, are not visits to your site, even when they lead to a business.
• AI Mode has changed. By May 2026 Google said AI Mode had more than a billion monthly users, with a newer default model, shopping features and agentic booking, all of which change how people leave the page.

What does other research say?

• Growth Memo's usability study. In October 2025, Kevin Indig's Growth Memo reported a study of 250 AI Mode tasks in which the median number of external clicks per task was zero. Participants mostly read the answer, and in shopping tasks without a familiar brand they tended to default to marketplaces.
• Pew Research on AI Overviews. In July 2025, Pew found that users who saw a Google AI summary clicked a traditional search result in 8% of visits, against 15% when there was no summary. Links within the summary itself drew a click in roughly one visit in a hundred.
• Ahrefs on AI Overviews. By December 2025 data, Ahrefs estimated that AI Overviews cut the click-through rate for the top-ranking page by 58%.
• Google's position. In August 2025, Google said total organic click volume from Search had been relatively stable year on year, and that clicks were of slightly higher quality.

Together, these show that AI answers reduce clicks, and that AI Mode reduces them most, because it is designed to answer inside the conversation. They do not give a reliable current figure for AI Mode specifically. More on click rates is in how often users click source links in AI search answers.

Why does AI Mode send so few clicks?

AI Mode is built for conversation rather than a list of links. It searches several related queries in the background, combines the results into one answer, and invites follow-up questions, as covered in what Google AI Mode is. Links appear as citations beside the text, rather than as the main content of the page. People who get what they need from the answer have little reason to leave, and those who do often leave for a specific next step, such as buying, booking or checking a detail.

What does it mean for your website?

• Being cited still matters. When AI Mode names or cites you, people see your brand even if they do not click. Visibility becomes the goal, with clicks as a bonus.
• Clicks that happen tend to be later-stage. Visitors who leave AI Mode for your site have usually already compared options.
• Measure AI Mode in Search Console. Google counts clicks from AI Mode in the Performance report, and the Generative AI performance report shows impressions from AI Overviews and AI Mode by page.
• Track brand demand. Growth in branded searches and direct visits can reflect AI visibility that never shows up as a click.
• Make the click worth it. Pages that answer the next question, such as prices, availability, booking or detailed comparisons, give people a reason to visit.

Broader traffic figures are covered in how much website traffic AI search engines actually send.

We have not measured AI Mode click rates ourselves. This page is based on the published Semrush, Growth Memo, Pew and Ahrefs studies, and Google's statements.

What might this look like in practice?

Consider an illustrative garden furniture retailer, Ostroway Outdoor, that read the 93% figure and assumed AI Mode was worthless. Checking Search Console, it found its buying guides were earning growing impressions in the generative AI report, which combines AI Mode and AI Overviews, while clicks rose only slightly. Its branded searches, however, grew by a fifth over the same months, and customers increasingly said they had "seen it in Google's AI answer". The team kept publishing detailed comparison and care guides, and began reporting AI impressions and branded search alongside clicks.

What do people ask about AI Mode and clicks?

Where does the 93% AI Mode zero-click figure come from?

From Semrush's 2025 clickstream study of about 69 million US desktop Google sessions, which found 92% to 94% of AI Mode sessions had no external visit.

Is AI Mode zero-click rate higher than AI Overviews?

In Semrush's separate studies, yes: about 93% for AI Mode against about 43% for searches with AI Overviews, though the methods differ.

Does Google count AI Mode clicks in Search Console?

Yes. Clicks on links in AI Mode are counted in the Performance report.

Is the 93% figure still accurate?

It describes AI Mode's first two months on US desktop in 2025. Newer data points the same way: Similarweb reported in 2026 that only 1.6–2.5% of AI Mode queries led to an external referral, against 17–19% for traditional Google search, though that figure counts queries rather than sessions.