- We compared the estimated visits from Google Search for 2,130 websites: October 2023 to September 2024 with October 2025 to September 2026. 1,356 of them have fewer visitors, a median of 20% fewer.
- Guides, comparison portals and media are losing the most: guides and comparison portals a median of 38%, media 26%. Reddit is growing by 507%.
- Demand is falling too: the 29,783 search terms analyzed have 11% fewer searches combined. Rankings per website fall by a median of 26%.
- For 81% of the 2,004 most-searched terms, Google shows an AI Overview, and for 67% it appears before the first search result.
We wanted to know how visits from Google Search in Germany have developed since 2024, which websites are growing and why: because of the number of searches, the rankings or Google's AI Overviews.
To do this, we compared 2,130 websites. We compare the twelve months from October 2023 to September 2024 with October 2025 to September 2026.
Three out of four large websites are losing visitors
This is how searches and visits from Google Search have developed since October 2023:
- Visits per website (median)
- Searches (29,783 search terms)
Index: 100 = monthly average October 2023 to September 2024. October 2024 to January 2025 omitted because the estimate of visits jumps there.
Source: estimated visits from Google Search Germany based on rankings and search volume, 2,130 websites; Google Ads Keyword Planner, 29,783 search terms
In September 2026, the median visits per website are at 65% of the 2023/24 average, and searches at 76%.
We divided the websites into four equally sized groups according to their visits from Google Search in the first period:
| Group | Websites | Change (median) | Share with losses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Largest 25% | 532 | −26 % | 75 % |
| Second quarter | 533 | −26 % | 73 % |
| Third quarter | 532 | −23 % | 66 % |
| Smallest 25% | 533 | +33 % | 42 % |
- Largest 25%75%
- Second quarter73%
- Third quarter66%
- Smallest 25%42%
Source: estimated visits from Google Search Germany based on rankings and search volume, October 2025 to September 2026 compared with October 2023 to September 2024, 2,130 websites
In total, 1,356 of the 2,130 websites have fewer visitors than two years earlier. 530 websites lose more than half.
The smallest websites grow in the median. The analysis only includes websites that are on the first results page today. Small websites that have disappeared from there since 2024 are therefore missing.
What you can do: Compare your clicks in Google Search Console with the same months in 2024. A decline of 20% corresponds to the median of all websites analyzed.
Guides, comparison portals and media are losing the most
| Type of website | Websites | Change (median) | Share with losses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guides and comparison portals | 83 | −38 % | 77 % |
| Media | 93 | −26 % | 80 % |
| Provider | 1.875 | −19 % | 63 % |
| Platforms and communities | 22 | −7 % | 64 % |
| Authorities and public bodies | 30 | −5 % | 57 % |
| Directories and reviews | 27 | 0 % | 52 % |
- Guides and comparison portals−38%
- Media−26%
- Providers−19%
- Platforms and communities−7%
- Authorities and public bodies−5%
- Directories and reviews0%
Source: estimated visits from Google Search Germany based on rankings and search volume, October 2025 to September 2026 compared with October 2023 to September 2024, 2,130 websites
Some examples:
- Guides and comparison portals: Finanztip −63%, Biallo −68%, Verivox −43%, Stiftung Warentest −40%, Check24 −23%.
- Media: Computerbild −69%, Wirtschaftswoche −65%, Focus −51%, Stern −50%, t-online −50%, Handelsblatt −49%.
- Health: gesundheitsinformation.de −61%, Jameda −61%, Netdoktor −37%.
- computerbild.de−69%
- biallo.de−68%
- wiwo.de−65%
- finanztip.de−63%
- focus.de−51%
- stern.de−50%
- t-online.de−50%
- handelsblatt.com−49%
- verivox.de−43%
- test.de−40%
Source: estimated visits from Google Search Germany based on rankings and search volume, October 2025 to September 2026 compared with October 2023 to September 2024
What you can do: If you have so far won customers through guide articles, check these pages first. For 81% of the most-searched terms in this analysis, Google shows an AI Overview above the search results.
Reddit, Instagram and Trustpilot are growing
A few large platforms are gaining visitors from Google Search:
| Website | Change | Rankings |
|---|---|---|
| reddit.com | +507 % | +98 % |
| instagram.com | +48 % | +61 % |
| de.trustpilot.com | +41 % | −14 % |
| idealo.de | +35 % | +22 % |
| de.wikipedia.org | +11 % | −6 % |
- reddit.com+507%
- instagram.com+48%
- de.trustpilot.com+41%
- idealo.de+35%
- de.wikipedia.org+11%
Source: estimated visits from Google Search Germany based on rankings and search volume, October 2025 to September 2026 compared with October 2023 to September 2024
The ten largest websites in the analysis have 58% of all visits in the first period and 61% in the second.
What you can do: Check which Reddit posts and review pages appear on the first page for your customers' most important searches. Respond where people are talking about your company, and ask satisfied customers for reviews.
Rankings are falling more than demand
The 29,783 search terms analyzed have 11% fewer searches combined than in 2023/24.
For 1,524 of the 2,130 websites, the number of search terms they rank for on Google has fallen. The median is 26% fewer rankings.
- Searches (29,783 search terms)−11%
- Visits per website (median)−20%
- Rankings per website (median)−26%
Source: estimated visits from Google Search Germany based on rankings and search volume, October 2025 to September 2026 compared with October 2023 to September 2024; Google Ads Keyword Planner
For 1,223 of the 1,356 websites with fewer visitors, rankings have also fallen. Focus has 42% fewer rankings, Wirtschaftswoche 41%, Stern 35%.
What you can do: Check in Search Console for which search terms your pages no longer appear on the first page. First revise the pages with the most lost clicks.
An AI Overview usually sits above the search results
We searched Google for the 2,004 most-searched terms in the analysis (query on October 26, 2026, desktop). For 81%, Google shows an AI Overview, and for 67% it appears before the first search result.
The visit figures in this analysis are based on rankings and search volume. They do not show how many users don't click on any search result after reading an AI Overview.
What you can do: Search Google for your customers' ten most important terms. Check whether an AI Overview appears and whether it cites your website as a source.
How we support you
- Assessment: We compare your clicks, rankings and the demand in your industry over two years, page by page.
- Revision of the most important pages: We start with the pages where the gap to 2024 is largest.
- Visibility in AI Overviews: We write content that AI Overviews and AI systems use as a source.
How we measured
- Websites: all 2,253 websites that appear on the first results page for at least one of 1,227 searches from our study on AI Overviews. 2,130 of them have values for both periods.
- Visits: monthly estimate of visits from Google Search in Germany, calculated from a website's rankings and the search volume of the terms. All search terms of a website are counted.
- Periods: October 2023 to September 2024 and October 2025 to September 2026. We omitted the period in between because the estimate drops sharply for almost all websites in November 2024.
- Demand: search volume from the Google Ads Keyword Planner for 29,783 search terms from our market analyses, identical spellings counted once.
- Type of website: assigned by us; all websites that don't belong to any other group count as providers.
