While artificial intelligence tools are rising in visibility, desktop users in the U.S. and Europe continue to lean heavily on traditional search engines, especially Google, for online navigation. Recent data from Datos and SparkToro paints a nuanced picture as Artificial intelligence (AI) is shifting behavior, but it’s not replacing the core mechanics of search. At least not yet.
These numbers have changed little over the past year. While AI’s share is growing, its overall impact remains limited in scope — strong enough to register, but far from a takeover.
"Despite the media hype, AI is still a tiny fraction of overall usage in the US, EU, and UK.", says Rand Fishkin SparkToro Co-founder and CEO.
At the same time, organic click-throughs declined. In March 2025, only 40.3% of U.S. Google searches led to a non-paid, external site—down from 44.2% in the same month of 2024. European users followed suit, with organic clicks dropping from 47.1% to 43.5%.
This internalization of traffic reflects a broader structural change: rather than guiding users out, Google increasingly serves as both origin and destination.
Video search behavior has intensified since mid-2024, with users conducting more queries on YouTube itself. This trend highlights a growing reliance on video as a medium for both information and entertainment.
Traffic patterns suggest that users are turning to AI not just to retrieve answers, but to complete tasks. Increases in visits to platforms like GitHub, ResearchGate, and YouTube via AI interfaces indicate a shift from passive information-seeking to active problem-solving.
Despite these gains, Google.com remains the top destination even for AI-assisted queries. However, its share is declining as alternatives emerge and diversify the journey.
Temu, in particular, is climbing steadily in both regions, buoyed by its appeal to budget-conscious users and social media-driven growth. Engagement metrics suggest that users are becoming more comfortable searching and browsing within its ecosystem.
YouTube’s explosive growth in search volume hints at another shift: users are bypassing search engines entirely and going straight to content platforms. Meanwhile, Reddit and Pinterest maintain steady performance, especially as their data increasingly fuels AI model training.
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Traditional Search Still Commands Attention
During the first quarter of 2025, the majority of web users in both the United States and Europe stuck with conventional search methods. In the U.S., over 10% of desktop activity was routed through search engines, compared to a fraction of a percent (0.55%) via AI-powered platforms. Europe followed a similar trend, with traditional search claiming 10.25% of activity versus 0.71% for AI tools.Data shows search intent remains heavily informational across platforms. In Q1 2024, over 60% of U.S. desktop queries on Google and Bing were aimed at learning about a topic. Commercial or navigational queries made up smaller shares, while purchase-driven searches were minimal—under 1% for Google and below 2.2% across all engines. Baidu and Yahoo showed higher navigational intent, while DuckDuckGo leaned more toward product research.
These numbers have changed little over the past year. While AI’s share is growing, its overall impact remains limited in scope — strong enough to register, but far from a takeover.
"Despite the media hype, AI is still a tiny fraction of overall usage in the US, EU, and UK.", says Rand Fishkin SparkToro Co-founder and CEO.
Zero-Click Behavior Expands
Although users continue to search, what they do afterward is shifting. In the U.S., the proportion of searches that ended without any clicks rose to 27.2% in March 2025, up from 24.4% the year before. Europe and the UK saw similar movement, with zero-click searches increasing from 23.6% to 26.1%.
At the same time, organic click-throughs declined. In March 2025, only 40.3% of U.S. Google searches led to a non-paid, external site—down from 44.2% in the same month of 2024. European users followed suit, with organic clicks dropping from 47.1% to 43.5%.
Google Keeps More Traffic Inside
As organic clicks declined, Google’s internal traffic circulation strengthened. In the U.S., the percentage of users who clicked into other Google-owned platforms—like Maps, Shopping, or YouTube — increased to 14.3%, compared to 12.1% the year before. The EU and UK saw a similar climb from 11.6% to 12.6%.This internalization of traffic reflects a broader structural change: rather than guiding users out, Google increasingly serves as both origin and destination.
YouTube Emerges as the Top Search Endpoint
Among destinations reached via traditional search, YouTube now leads the pack. It has overtaken platforms like Reddit and Amazon as the top domain visited post-search, both in the U.S. and Europe. YouTube’s rise is not confined to traditional searches either; it has become the second-most visited site from AI tools as well.Video search behavior has intensified since mid-2024, with users conducting more queries on YouTube itself. This trend highlights a growing reliance on video as a medium for both information and entertainment.
AI Search Grows Quietly, Broadens Use Cases
AI tools, including ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot, are showing sustained growth in user numbers—especially in Europe, where adoption outpaces that of the U.S. ChatGPT in particular has moved into the top five most-visited domains from traditional searches in both regions.Traffic patterns suggest that users are turning to AI not just to retrieve answers, but to complete tasks. Increases in visits to platforms like GitHub, ResearchGate, and YouTube via AI interfaces indicate a shift from passive information-seeking to active problem-solving.
Despite these gains, Google.com remains the top destination even for AI-assisted queries. However, its share is declining as alternatives emerge and diversify the journey.
E-Commerce Search Shows Regional Contrast
In online shopping behavior, Amazon still dominates U.S. desktop traffic, commanding more than half of all visits. European e-commerce, in contrast, is more fragmented. While Amazon leads, platforms like Allegro, Zalando, and Temu maintain visible footholds and growing momentum.Temu, in particular, is climbing steadily in both regions, buoyed by its appeal to budget-conscious users and social media-driven growth. Engagement metrics suggest that users are becoming more comfortable searching and browsing within its ecosystem.
Platform Search Intent Is Shifting
Across platforms, informational searches still account for the bulk of queries. But intent is diversifying. In Q1 2025, a slight increase in commercial and navigational queries indicated a move toward more action-oriented search patterns.YouTube’s explosive growth in search volume hints at another shift: users are bypassing search engines entirely and going straight to content platforms. Meanwhile, Reddit and Pinterest maintain steady performance, especially as their data increasingly fuels AI model training.
Conclusion
AI is not ending search; it’s redrawing the map. Google remains the core of the search ecosystem, but it’s adapting by pulling more traffic inward and surfacing answers directly. Users haven’t abandoned traditional search engines—in fact, they're using them more. But what happens after the query is changing fast. As AI platforms gain capabilities and content platforms like YouTube attract search behavior, the definition of “search” itself continues to evolve.Read next: AI’s Rise Pushes Tech Energy Use and Emissions Skyward, Despite Greener Ambitions
