AI Overviews: New Case Study Estimates Just 0.9% Click-Through on AI Impressions
In short: A small case study reported by Search Engine Roundtable on 30 October 2026 estimated a 0.9% click-through rate on AI Overviews and AI Mode impressions for one site. The figure is an estimate calculated from before/after data, not a direct measurement, and comes from a single-site test using Google's AI opt-out control, so treat it as a early, limited data point rather than an industry benchmark.
- SEO consultant Cyrus Shepard used Google's Search generative AI opt-out control to remove one site from AI Overviews and AI Mode, then compared performance before, during and after.
- The 0.9% figure is an estimate derived from before/after click and impression data, not a number Google reports directly.
- AI impressions were about 8% of the site's total impressions during the test.
- Regular organic clicks also dropped when AI features were switched off for the site, which the study's author called the most surprising result.
- This is a small, single-site, informally published study. Do not treat 0.9% as a reliable benchmark for your own site without your own testing.
What the study actually did
SEO consultant Cyrus Shepard ran a small case study, posted on LinkedIn, using Google's Search generative AI opt-out control to block one site from appearing in AI Overviews and AI Mode. He then compared the site's performance before, during and after the block. The site kept appearing in regular AI Overviews and AI Mode results for those queries before and after the test; only during the opt-out period was it excluded.
Where the 0.9% number comes from
The 0.9% click-through rate on AI impressions is an estimate, not a figure Google publishes or exposes directly. Shepard calculated it by taking the site's overall click-through rate and impressions, then subtracting the known AI impressions recorded during the test period. No sample size was given, and the article describes it as a small study with a limited sample.
What else the test found
- AI impressions made up roughly 8% of the site's total impressions during the test.
- AI impressions dropped to zero immediately once the opt-out took effect, as expected.
- Overall impressions for the site dropped during the opt-out period.
- Regular organic clicks also dropped when AI features were disabled — the result Shepard called the most surprising, since the opt-out should, in theory, only have removed AI-generated impressions.
- On the URLs that had the most AI visibility, average position dropped during the opt-out and recovered once AI visibility returned. Sitewide average position improved during the test, but the article attributes that to new posts and brand search rather than the opt-out itself.
Why to treat this as a data point, not a benchmark
This is one site, one tester, one informally published result, with no stated sample size and no peer review. The study also does not isolate clicks on web results that appear alongside AI Overviews from clicks on results where AI Overviews is absent entirely, which the report's author flagged as a gap. Commentator Greg Sterling noted separately that other research has observed AI Overviews creating brand lift that shows up as later searches and clicks, something a short before/after test like this one would not capture.
What to do with this, practically
Don't rewrite your AI-search strategy off one case study. Do use it as a reminder to check your own GA4 and Search Console data for the queries where you are showing up in AI Overviews, and watch whether your organic clicks move when your AI visibility changes — not just whether impressions move. Our own 100-site study found a wide range of outcomes site to site; see is AI search traffic worth it for that data.
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Sources
- Search Engine Roundtable: Google AI Overviews & AI Mode 0.9% Click-Through Rate, Opt Out Study Says · Search Engine Roundtable
Facts in this article come from the sources above, checked on 3 November 2026. Platform features roll out in phases, so check your own account before acting. We update this page when official details change.