SEO Statistics Report 2025

SEO is constantly evolving, and staying ahead requires keeping up with the latest trends and data. As search engines refine their algorithms and AI continues to shape digital marketing, understanding key SEO statistics can give you a competitive edge. 

Key Takeaways

Here are some of the most interesting SEO statistics that are relevant for 2025:

• AI-generated content now accounts for 19,1% of content in Google's top 20 search results, up from 2.3% in 2020. (Originality.ai)
• 63% of Websites Receive AI Traffic. (Ahrefs)
• The search term 'AI tools' has seen an 8600% increase in popularity over the past 5 years. (Searcherries)
• The global SEO market is projected to reach $143.9 billion by 2030, growing at an 8.3% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). (Research and Markets)
• 75% of searchers never click past the first page of search results. (HubSpot)
• Position #1 in Google has an average CTR of 27.6%. (Backlinko)

AI & Search Evolution Statistics

Right now, we are witnessing a transformation in search. Users are increasingly consuming AI-generated content and seeking information without visiting source websites. As a result, new terms are emerging, such as "answer engines" (instead of the familiar "search engines").

Here are some statistics on what we believe is the most relevant topic in SEO for 2025.

• AI overviews appear in approximately 29.9% of Google searches and nearly 74% of problem-solving queries. (Authoritas)
• The search term 'AI tools' has seen an 8600% increase in popularity over the past 5 years. (Searcherries)
• AI-generated content accounts for 19.1% of content in Google's top 20 search results (up from 2.3% in 2020). (Originality.ai)
• 63% of Websites Receive AI Traffic. (Ahrefs)
• 91% of marketers incorporate AI in their work. (Ad Age)
• 54% of content marketers use AI for idea generation, 41% for headline writing, and 40% for outlining/editing. (Orbit Media)
• AI overviews can lead to an 18-64% decrease in organic clicks for affected queries. (Search Engine Land)
• 75% of Google AI Overviews appear in the first 12 organic results. (Search Engine Land)

Search Engine Landscape Statistics

Google remains the most popular search engine in the world. This statistic is extremely important for a general understanding of trends in the field of SEO.

• Google retains a 90.15% global search market share (Statscounter).
• 75% of searchers never click past the first page of search results. (HubSpot)
• In 2025, SEO specialists in the United States are earning an average salary of $63,193, representing a significant 28% increase from previous years. (Searcherries)
• Organic search produced 33% of overall website traffic across seven key industries. (Conductor)
• Organic traffic grew by 2.39% from January to December 2024. (SE Ranking)
• 51% of searches have informational intent, 33% navigational, 14.5% commercial, and 0.69% transactional. (Search Engine Land)
• 44% of Google searches relate to branded terms, while 56% involve unbranded queries. (SparkToro)
• 53.3% of all web traffic comes from organic search, while 27% is attributed to paid search (HigherVisibility)
• Featured snippets have an average CTR of 35% (MOZ)

Ranking & Visibility Statistics

Users are spending less time selecting a source, trusting that the top search results already represent the most relevant and high-quality content. According to recent statistics, it is not enough to simply be on the first page of the SERP to get noticed.

• Position #1 in Google has an average CTR of 27.6%. (Backlinko)
• On average, over 90% of pages on websites older than five years each receive fewer than 10 visits per month. (Searcherries)
• The top three SERP results get 54.4% of all clicks. (Backlinko)
• Position 2 has an 18.7% CTR; position 3 has 10.2%. (FirstPageSage)
• The #1 result has 3.8x more backlinks than positions #2-#10. (Backlinko)
• 96.55% of all pages get zero traffic from Google. (Ahrefs)
• 91% of marketers say SEO positively impacted website goals in 2024. (Conductor)
• Articles over 7,000 words significantly outperform average-length content (900–1,200 words), generating nearly four times more traffic. (Semrush)
• Improving CTR by 3% could potentially move the page up one position in Google’s rankings. (WordStream)
• 74.3% of link builders purchase backlinks. (Authority Hacker)
• 66.5% of all backlinks created over the past nine years no longer work. (Ahrefs)

Keyword Dynamics Statistics

Users are increasingly using natural language to search for information. This statistic confirms that in 2025, it is worth rethinking approaches to keyword research.

• Most effective content formats: roundups (28%), original research (25%), infographics (25%). (Orbit Media)
• The average blog post length has increased by 77% over the past ten years and is now around 1,400 words. (Orbit Media)
• "People Also Ask" appears in 96% of search queries. (Conductor)
• AI tools have made keyword research faster and more precise by analyzing large datasets to predict future trends. (Neil Patel)

Backlinks & Authority Statistics

Despite Google's statements, recent studies indicate that backlinks are still one of the most important ranking factors.

• The site's overall link authority, as indicated by Ahrefs Domain Rating, shows a strong correlation with higher search rankings. (Backlinko)
• Pages ranking #1 in Google have over 200 referring domains on average, while pages at position #10 have fewer than 80 referring domains (Semrush)
• The #1 result has 3.8x more backlinks than positions #2-#10, emphasizing the importance of link-building strategies. (Backlinko)
• The average cost of a paid link is $83. (Authority Hacker)

Mobile & Voice Search Statistics

Understanding how users utilize mobile devices impacts user experience, as well as technologies related to voice search. 

• 64% of Google searches come from mobile devices. (Sistrix)
• Mobile traffic accounts for around 62% of affiliate-driven visits. (FirstPromoter)
• Approximately 8.4 billion people use voice assistants globally. (OuterBox)
• Around 72% of U.S. consumers use voice assistants to conduct voice searches. (OuterBox)
• 27% of the global online population uses voice search on their mobile devices. (OuterBox)

Local SEO Statistics

Almost half of all Google searches are related to local search. This statistic can be very valuable for businesses.

• 80% of U.S. consumers search for local businesses online at least once a week. (SOCi)
• 90% of local consumers are now diving into online searches daily (Forsta)
• 74% of local consumers usually scan 1 to 6 reviews before deciding on a local business (Forsta)
• 99% of respondents use Google platforms to find local business information. (Forsta)
• 69% of consumers feel positive about using a business if its written reviews describe positive experiences. (Brightlocal)
• 36% of consumers use two review sites when deciding to use local businesses. (Brightlocal)

Video & Visual Search Statistics

We are already seeing how image and video search is becoming a part of users' daily lives through AI tools. According to statistics, this trend will continue.

• Nearly 9 out of 10 businesses use video in their marketing strategy. (Wyzowl)
• Over half of video marketers (51%) have used AI tools to create or edit marketing videos. (Wyzowl)
• On Instagram, users spend 50% of their time watching Reels. (Meta) ​
• While only 10% of U.S. adults regularly use visual search, 42% are at least somewhat interested in using the tool. (EMARKETER)
• Visual search has influenced 22% of consumers aged 16–34, who have either seen or purchased an item through it, compared to 17% of those aged 35–54 and just 5% of consumers 55 and older. (EMARKETER)

E-Commerce & Affiliate SEO Statistics

Despite news that affiliates are receiving less and less organic traffic, the global affiliate marketing market continues to grow.

• Affiliate marketing is growing at a CAGR of 18.6%, with the global market expected to reach $48 billion by 2027. (FirstPromoter)
• On average, between 4 and 7 of Google's top 10 search results containing the word "review" use affiliate links to products. (Searcherries)
• In Q3 2024, smartphones accounted for 77% of retail website traffic and 68% of online orders. (Statista)
• Affiliate marketing programs are used by 81% of advertisers and 84% of publishers. (Rakuten)
• Organic search traffic contributed significantly to e-commerce success, accounting for 23.6% of total e-commerce orders in 2024 (Reboot)
• Aliexpress.com is the world's most visited eCommerce website in 2025. (Semrush)

Technical SEO Statistics

Some believe that the importance of technical SEO is greatly exaggerated. However, statistics show that the technical side is still very important.

• Approximately 35% of websites suffer from slow page loading speeds. (SE Ranking)
• 67.52% of websites have meta tag titles that are too long, 53.69% have duplicate titles, 49.36% are too short, and 5.93% are missing entirely. (SE Ranking)
• Websites loading in just 1 second convert three times more effectively than those taking 5 seconds. ​(Portent)
• 23% of websites have no structured data markup implemented for SEO. (W3Techs)
• 87.3% of websites use HTTPS, enhancing security and trustworthiness. (W3Techs)

Future Trends Statistics

It's no surprise that most forecasts are in some way connected to AI. Those who are already actively using AI technologies in their work are not worried about the future—in fact, they're placing big bets on it. It's worth noting the overall optimism about the future in the search marketing industry—this is evident both in individual company forecasts and in social media activity.

• 29% of SEO professionals predict generative AI will cause the biggest shifts in the next two years. (Search Engine Journal)
• AI has the potential to contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030. (PwC)
• Generative AI is projected to grow into a $1.3 trillion market by 2032. (Bloomberg)
• The global SEO market is projected to reach $143.9 billion by 2030, growing at an 8.3% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). (Research and Markets)