Google AI features drive 21% of one site's clicks

Google AI features are driving 21% of one site's clicks

Google AI features, especially AI Overviews and AI Mode, accounted for an estimated 21% of one site's Google clicks after a four-week opt-out test, according to Search Engine Journal citing SEO consultant Cyrus Shepard. The same site saw about 10% of its Google impressions come from those AI surfaces. For commercial teams, that means search traffic is no longer one clean bucket, and the AI share can be material even when standard rankings stay intact.

Source: Search Engine Journal

Key takeaways

• Cyrus Shepard took Zyppy’s site out of Google’s AI features on September 1 and opted it back in on September 29, creating two 28-day comparison windows, according to Search Engine Journal.
• Before the test, Zyppy’s site was getting about 500 to 1,000 impressions a day from AI Overviews and AI Mode, which represented roughly 10% of its Google impressions, according to Search Engine Journal.
• Shepard estimated AI Overviews and AI Mode delivered about 0.9% click-through rate, with a reasonable range of 0.7% to 1.1%, versus roughly 0.4% across Google Search overall, according to Search Engine Journal.
• When he added the lift in regular organic clicks that he attributed to AI visibility, Shepard estimated 23% of all search clicks were tied to AI features, according to Search Engine Journal.

Source: Search Engine Journal

How did the opt-out test isolate Google AI features?

Shepard removed Zyppy’s site from Google’s AI features using Search Console’s Search generative AI control, then measured one 28-day period out and one 28-day period back in, according to Search Engine Journal. He said the comparison used the same searches and position rankings to reduce noise from query mix and rank changes.

Google’s help center says exclusions generally take several days and are not treated as a ranking or inclusion signal for other parts of Search, according to Search Engine Journal. Shepard also said the site disappeared from AI features in less than an hour, then returned almost as fast after he opted back in. That makes the control useful for testing, but not a substitute for broad conclusions about Google Search as a whole.

Source: Search Engine Journal

What did the test say about impressions and CTR?

The key result is not just that AI surfaces sent clicks, but that they sent them at a higher rate than the site’s average Google traffic, according to Search Engine Journal. Shepard said Zyppy’s AI impressions were about 10% of total search impressions, but the click-through rate on those impressions came to about 0.9%, compared with about 0.4% across Google Search as a whole.

Using that math, he estimated AI Overviews and AI Mode generated about 21% of the site’s search clicks, and 23% once he added the lift in standard listings that he believes came from AI visibility, according to Search Engine Journal. He cautioned that the test covered one site only, so the number is a directional yardstick, not a universal benchmark.

Source: Search Engine Journal

Why does the halo effect matter for organic search?

The halo effect is Shepard’s term for the extra clicks that happen when a site appears both in AI features and in the regular results on the same search page, according to Search Engine Journal. In advertising terms, repeated exposure can make people more likely to click at least one result, and Shepard said brand reinforcement is a likely explanation.

For publishers and B2B brands, that matters because AI visibility may lift standard organic clicks even when the AI link itself is not the main source of traffic. Shepard said the effect was small and strongest on URLs that received the most AI visibility, which means some pages may benefit more than others.

Source: Search Engine Journal

What should publishers and commercial teams do now?

The practical takeaway is not to leave AI search entirely, because Shepard said Zyppy will stay opted in and called working toward AI citations 'the only reasonable action to take,' according to Search Engine Journal. That does not mean every company will see the same result, but it does mean AI visibility should be measured as part of search performance, not treated as a side experiment.

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has given Google until December 3 to provide publishers with impressions, clicks and click-through rate for AI search features, according to Search Engine Journal. The CMA’s summary also says Google has three more months after December 3 to roll out page-level controls for AI search features, so reporting and governance may keep evolving.

Source: Search Engine Journal

What to do now

If your company depends on search, treat AI visibility like a commercial channel, not just an SEO metric. This quarter, the goal is to know how much traffic comes from AI surfaces, how much you can measure today, and where you need better controls before budget season.

• Audit which priority pages appear in AI Overviews and AI Mode, and track them separately from standard organic listings.
• Compare click-through rate, impressions and assisted conversions for pages with and without AI visibility.
• Check whether your reporting can isolate trends around AI-related search traffic, even if the platform data is still aggregated.
• Run a quarterly test on content formats that are more likely to earn AI citations, then validate the effect on organic clicks.

Frequently asked questions

How much of one site's Google traffic came from AI Overviews and AI Mode?

According to Search Engine Journal, Shepard estimated that AI Overviews and AI Mode generated about 21% of Zyppy’s Google clicks. When he added the extra lift in standard listings that he linked to AI visibility, the share rose to 23%. The same pages accounted for only about 10% of search impressions, which is why the click share looked disproportionate.

Does Google count AI Overview clicks separately in Search Console?

Google counts clicks on an AI Overview or AI Mode link as a standard click in Search Console’s Performance report, according to Search Engine Journal. Google’s help pages do not show a way to separate clicks from AI features from other web-based clicks. That makes experimental testing important if you need a cleaner view of the traffic mix.

Should companies opt out of Google AI features?

Shepard said Zyppy will stay opted in, and he called working toward AI citations 'the only reasonable action to take,' according to Search Engine Journal. The result came from one site, so other domains could see a higher or lower share. For companies with meaningful search revenue, the better move is to measure before making a blanket opt-out decision.