Are websites getting less traffic because of AI?

How much search traffic are websites losing?

For publishers, a lot, and the drop is getting steeper.

Chartbeat reports a 40.2% year-over-year decline for Google Search across its publisher network, after a 21.9% decline the year before, according to Search Engine Journal. That data comes from news and media sites, so it does not describe every website, but it shows the direction clearly.

Searches that end without any click are rising too. SparkToro found that 68.01% of US Google searches ended without a click in the first four months of this year, up from 60.45% in 2024. When most searches stop on the results page, fewer visits reach any website, whatever its ranking.

What happens to clicks when an AI summary appears?

Most people read the summary, and one study measured fewer clicks on pages that show one.

Pew Research Center found that 63% of US men and 57% of women report reading the AI summaries that appear at the top of search engine results. Those readers get a short answer before they see a single link.

The clicks that remain are few. In a study published on arXiv, only 1% of visits to pages with an AI Overview produced a click on a cited source, and users clicked results on 8% of pages with an AI Overview versus 15% without one.

Where do people go after the AI answer?

Many still check, and the check decides who gets the visit.

Raptive found that among people who double-check AI answers, 76% turn to Google or another search engine. So the answer is often the first step and the search for proof is the second.

Shoppers lean on AI for the comparison itself. KPMG found that 33% of US consumers plan to use AI to find discounts or promotions this holiday season, and thirty-seven percent plan to use AI to compare prices across retailers. When the assistant does the comparing, the stores and brands it names are the ones that get considered.

Is SEO dead now with AI?

No. Search still matters, but it is no longer the only place where buyers form a shortlist.

People still search, and they still click when they need proof, prices or a place to buy. What changes is the order. The AI summary or the assistant's answer comes first, and it decides which names a person carries into the next step. Rankings bring the people who click; the answer decides which names they look for.

That is why the same business can hold a strong position in search and still be missing from the answer that comes before it. Both deserve a regular check.

What should a business check first?

Measure what the answers say before you change your pages.

1. Step 1List your buyers' questions. Write the questions people ask before they know your name, without your brand in them.
2. Step 2Ask several assistants. Put each question to ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok and Perplexity in a fresh conversation.
3. Step 3Record who is named. Note which companies are recommended, which are only mentioned, and whether you appear at all.
4. Step 4Check what is said about you. Compare the description, prices and terms in the answers with your own pages.
5. Step 5Note the cited sources. Write down the pages and reviews the assistants cite when they name a competitor, because those are the places where your business is missing.
6. Step 6Repeat on a schedule. Ask the same questions again after you fix your pages, so you can see whether the answers moved.

How does EntityRise measure the AI side?

EntityRise is an AI visibility audit for agencies and companies that shows how ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok and Perplexity describe and recommend a company and what to improve first.

Each audit asks up to 40 buyer questions: you mark 15 as high priority and they go to all five assistants, and up to 25 more are each asked on one assistant, for up to 100 answers kept with their sources. The AI Visibility Index weighs recommendation at 30%, mention at 20%, prominence at 20%, citation support at 15% and description accuracy at 15%.

The result is a PDF report of around 40 pages with the analysis assistant by assistant, your main competitors compared area by area and an ordered list of what to improve. After the audit, Ask EntityRise, a chat inside the dashboard, answers questions about your results from the audit's own evidence. You can start the audit, and agencies can run it for clients under their own name.