Research shows AI search referrals convert far worse than Google search traffic. But what does that actually mean for us?
Ai search is sending us some traffic, but apparently it’s not buying. One analysis of nearly a thousand ecommerce sites found that referrals from ChatGPT convert far worse than traditional search, email or affiliate links. The study covered 12 months of data, over $20 billion in sales, and more than 160 million sessions. The result was clear: traffic from Ai platforms may be growing, but it still trails traditional Google search on both conversion rate and revenue per session.
It’s early days, of course. ChatGPT and similar assistants (such as Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot and others) made up just 0.2% of total sessions. This was about 200 times smaller than Google organic search. But even at that scale, there was a quality between sources. Affiliate traffic and organic search converted better, and only paid social performed worse.
Researchers suggested that part of the issue is trust. People may use an Ai assistant to research, then jump to Google or a retailer’s site to double-check before buying. That final click — the one that gets credit — still happens in the traditional search area. Ai might help shape the journey, but it does not close the sale.
The implication is subtle but important. We shouldn’t ignore these new channels, but neither should we expect them to replace search any time soon. Ai search traffic is rising, but the commercial intent isn’t there yet. It’s a new layer that talks to customers earlier, but hasn’t yet learned how to sell.