What is zero-click search? In the age of AI answers, what happens to SEO?｜にっち

When you ask an AI like ChatGPT to look something up, it summarizes information from multiple websites to provide an answer. It’s convenient, so lately, I often find myself finishing without opening the original sites.

But, I got a little curious.

Until now, I would search on Google and open some website. If that traffic decreases, wouldn’t site operators be in trouble?

When I looked into it, I found that this phenomenon is called “zero-click search.”

Searching without opening any sites

Zero-click search means ending a search without clicking on any of the links displayed in the search results.

Apparently, this phenomenon existed even before the arrival of AI.

For example, when you look up the weather, exchange rates, or simple calculation results on Google, the answer is displayed on the search results screen. You don’t need to go out of your way to open another site.

However, as AI becomes more widespread, even more complex questions can be resolved directly on the search screen.

In an analysis published in June 2026 by the US research firm SparkToro, it was found that from January to April of that year, approximately 68% of Google searches in the US ended without a click on the search results.

SparkToro: In 2026, Less than One Third of Google Searches Still Send a Click

Of course, this is not just the impact of AI. It is a figure that includes the traditional instant display of search results.

When an AI overview is displayed, clicks are fewer

There was another interesting study.

It was an analysis of the Google search behavior of 900 adults in the US in March 2025, conducted by the Pew Research Center.

The click-through rates for regular search results were as follows:

The percentage of users who clicked on source links displayed within the AI overview was also only 1%.

Pew Research Center: Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results (July 2025)

In searches with AI-generated summaries, the click-through rate for standard search results is quite low. However, because there are differences between queries that trigger AI displays and those that do not, this gap cannot be entirely attributed to the influence of AI.

Even so, it is becoming increasingly apparent that there are more situations where a user’s needs are met solely by the search results.

SEO is still effective, but it can no longer be measured by traffic alone.

So, is traditional SEO no longer meaningful?

Google itself explains that the fundamentals of traditional SEO remain effective for AI search as well. This is because AI answers also utilize information on the web that Google has collected and evaluated.

Google Search Central: Optimization Guide for Generative AI Search

When you think about it, AI needs information sources too, so ensuring that search engines can correctly crawl and index website information remains meaningful.

However, appearing at the top of search results and having people visit your site may not be as directly linked as they once were.

Even if your site is cited in an AI answer and provides information, it may not be reflected in your traffic numbers.

From now on, it seems necessary to consider not just how many people come to the site, but also how that information is being used externally as well.

Still, while it is convenient for AI to summarize information, how will the people who create the original content earn revenue?

I’ve started to become curious about this as well.