Like most individuals, I used to Google all the pieces with out pondering twice.
Want a recipe? Google. Random trivia at 2 a.m.? Google once more. It was the default, till I spotted one thing large: Google isn’t the one search engine on the town.
There’s an entire world of serps doing issues otherwise, and in some circumstances, higher. Tighter privateness, smarter AI, cleaner interfaces. A number of the Google alternate options and essentially the most used serps genuinely stunned me.
In the meantime, AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Perplexity are altering how we search by answering questions instantly, typically quicker than conventional engines. We’re now not simply typing key phrases and clicking hyperlinks. We’re chatting, prompting, and anticipating curated, immediate solutions a lot in order that some folks have began questioning: The place are folks truly looking out in 2025? Is Google’s reign lastly in danger?
So I dug into the info, taking a look at market share, visitors traits, consumer habits, and the standout options shaping at this time’s prime platforms.
On this article, you’ll discover the prime 10 serps ranked by market share, visitors, and utilization, backed by stats, not simply opinions.
TL;DR:
- Google nonetheless dominates the search world with 89.66% of worldwide visitors in 2025, but it surely’s now not the one sport on the town.
- Bing is slowly gaining floor, and regional and area of interest engines are thriving in pockets.
- AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini are redefining what it means to “search.” They could not present up on market share charts but, however they’re already altering habits, and that is perhaps the true disruption.
What are the highest 10 serps on the planet?
As of 2025, the highest 10 serps on the planet, ranked by market share, are:
Search engine | International market share | Main area(s) | Key options differentiators |
89.66% | International | Quick outcomes, huge index, ecosystem integration | |
Bing | 3.88% | North America, Europe | AI chat, Home windows default, Edge integration |
Yandex | 2.53% | Russia, CIS | Localized search, AI instruments, Cyrillic optimization |
Yahoo | 1.32% | U.S., Japan | Powered by Bing, legacy homepage enchantment, robust information, and content material portal |
DuckDuckGo | 0.84% | U.S., Germany, India | Privateness-focused, no monitoring, nameless search |
Baidu | 0.72% | China | Dominant in China, within the Chinese language language solely |
Naver | 0.33% | South Korea | Curated portal, user-generated content material, webtoons |
Ecosia | 0.11% | Europe | Eco-friendly, advert income funds reforestation |
AOL | <0.1% | U.S. | Legacy portal, powered by Bing |
Seznam | <0.1% | Czechia | Native portal, Czech-focused companies |
Be aware: The market share figures introduced listed below are primarily based on StatCounter information. These rankings replicate conventional serps and don’t account for rising AI search instruments or platform-specific search experiences.
Prime 10 serps in 2025
Search engines like google and yahoo assist us look issues up on-line, or that’s what I assumed, so. However as I went just a little deeper, I may see that every one displays one thing larger: how we search, what we care about, and what we count on from the web after we ask a query.
And now, in 2025, these expectations have shifted. Privateness issues greater than ever. A few of us choose AI-powered solutions. Some don’t. Others wish to search in their very own language, on platforms constructed for his or her area or values. The way in which we search is private, and it’s evolving quick.
On this part, I’ll checklist the most well-liked serps shaping how folks discover data at this time, ranked by utilization, market share, visitors, and relevance.
Supply: StatCounter International Stats – Search Engine Market Share
1. Google
With 89.66% of the worldwide search market share, Google stays the undisputed chief in 2025. It dominates as essentially the most used search engine in almost each area, besides China and Russia, the place native gamers Baidu and Yandex lead.
On desktop, Google instructions 79.4% of the market, and on cellular, it soars to 93.8%, displaying simply how deeply embedded it’s in our on a regular basis searching habits.
It’s a far cry from its humble beginnings. Again in 1998, when Stanford college students Larry Web page and Sergey Brin launched Google, its homepage promoted month-to-month electronic mail updates and boasted a modest index of 25 million pages. As we speak, it’s the go-to gateway to the web for billions.
Google’s prototype homepage from 1998; Supply: Wayback Machine
What retains Google on prime? It is lightning-fast outcomes, huge index, and seamless integration throughout its ecosystem — YouTube, Maps, Gmail, Chrome, Android, and extra. For many customers, it’s the default search engine.
In line with Similarweb information, Google noticed over 81 billion visits in April 2025, making it one of the crucial incessantly used web sites on the planet. It accounts for 83% of the search engine market when it comes to complete visitors share. On common, folks spent about 10 and a half minutes on the location and clicked via almost 9 pages every time they visited.
That’s not only a reflection of dominance; it’s an indication of deep, ordinary utilization. We don’t say “search it,” we are saying “Google it.”
Curiously, 19 % of this visitors got here from the U.S., whereas India accounted for 8.2 %. This highlights how Google’s footprint spans each mature and quickly rising web markets.
It’s not nearly how many individuals use Google, it’s about how typically they depend on it, each second of day-after-day.
What number of Google searches are made day-after-day?
Google handles over 5 trillion searches per 12 months, up from simply 2 trillion in 2016, based on the corporate. This breaks all the way down to:
- 416.7 billion searches per 30 days
- 13.7 billion searches per day
- 571 million searches per hour
- 9.5 million searches per minute
- 158,549 searches per second
Unbiased estimates put that determine even larger. SparkToro locations that determine at 5.9 trillion searches yearly.
Not everybody searches the identical method. SparkToro’s evaluation of U.S. customers discovered that:
- 30% make simply 1–20 searches per 30 days
- 1% search over 1,000 instances month-to-month
- The biggest group, 20.2%, searches between 101 and 250 instances per 30 days
So whereas Google’s dominance is simple, precise search habits varies greater than we would assume.
Supply: SparkToro
2025 hasn’t been with out its challenges for Google. It’s AI Overviews, powered by Gemini, rolled out broadly this 12 months. This function, which summarizes solutions on the prime of search outcomes, now reaches 1.5 billion customers per 30 days. It is usually rolling out AI Mode, a extra interactive, conversational expertise designed to information customers via multi-step queries utilizing pure language within the U.S.
Whereas the corporate frames it as the way forward for search, mixing conventional outcomes with AI-generated summaries, the response has been blended. Some customers recognize the conversational solutions. Others discover the expertise cluttered or query the trustworthiness of the summaries, particularly after a couple of high-profile misfires.
There’s additionally rising criticism round advert saturation, with natural outcomes typically pushed far beneath the fold. And whereas Google has made some privateness enhancements, it continues to face regulatory stress and ongoing skepticism about how consumer information is dealt with.
In a refined however telling shift, Google’s search market share dipped beneath 90% for the primary time on the finish of 2024 and continues to take action. It’s not a collapse, however in an business the place Google has lengthy been untouchable, it’s price watching.
For now, due to its pace, attain, and acquainted construction, Google stays the heavyweight champion of search. Nonetheless, with AI reshaping how folks work together with data, its once-unshakable lead could now not be assured.
2. Bing
Let’s be trustworthy: Bing wasn’t precisely the search engine folks received enthusiastic about. Launched by Microsoft in 2009 to interchange Stay Search, it spent many of the final decade because the quiet various to Google. Strong? Positive. In style? Probably not.
However then 2023 occurred.
Screenshot of Bing search engine
After years of hovering round 2–3% international market share, Bing noticed an actual bump due to the launch of Bing Chat, now known as Copilot. It was the primary main search engine to carry generative AI instantly into the search expertise. Abruptly, Bing wasn’t simply enjoying catch-up. It was main the dialog.
By 2025, Bing holds 3.88% of worldwide search market share. That may nonetheless sound small, but it surely tells a narrative of regular progress. The engine does particularly effectively on desktop, the place it grabs 11.73% of the market, largely due to its deep integration with Home windows 11 and Microsoft Edge. On cellular, it’s a distinct story, with simply 0.64%, displaying how a lot it nonetheless is determined by the PC ecosystem.
Geographically, Bing’s strongest numbers come from North America, the place it holds 7.36% general, together with 7.5% within the U.S. In Europe, it captures 4.1%, with 3.9% within the U.Okay.. In Asia, it struggles to achieve floor, simply 2.35%, together with 1.3% in India, highlighting its comparatively restricted international attain in comparison with Google.
In line with Similarweb, Bing noticed 1.4 billion visits in April 2025, accounting for 1.44% of worldwide search engine visitors. Customers spent about seven and a half minutes per go to and clicked via 5.44 pages — decrease than Google, however nonetheless notable for a longtime underdog.
And Microsoft’s AI guess? It’s working.
Microsoft shared key milestones about Bing after its AI chatbot rollout:
- 100 million day by day lively customers on Bing (March 2023)
- Over 1 billion chats and 750 million AI-generated photographs inside six months of the launch (August 2023)
Whereas Google later responded with its personal AI chatbot, Gemini, AIOs, and AI Mode, Bing’s first-mover benefit gave it a measurable, if nonetheless modest, increase in consideration. The truth that Bing stays the default search engine on thousands and thousands of Home windows PCs, and is deeply built-in into Home windows and Microsoft Edge, continues to provide it a baked-in distribution edge, notably amongst informal or enterprise customers.
It’s nonetheless removed from threatening Google’s dominance, however in a search world reshaped by AI, Bing lastly has one thing it hasn’t had in years: momentum.
Curious how your browser selection impacts your search expertise? Try the finest browsers of 2025 and be taught extra about them.
3. Yandex
With 2.53% of worldwide search market share, Yandex is now the third most-used search engine on the planet, not too long ago overtaking Yahoo, regardless that it’s largely utilized in only one a part of the world. Its power comes virtually completely from Russia and neighboring nations, the place it’s deeply woven into on a regular basis web use.
Screenshot of Yandex search engine
Based in 1997, even earlier than Google launched, Yandex has lengthy been a pioneer in search. As we speak, it nonetheless leads the Russian search market by a large margin, holding 75.25%, whereas Google trails far behind at 22.83%. Russia stays one of many few main markets the place Google isn’t in management.
Supply: StatCounter International Stats – Search Engine Market Share
Usually known as the “Google of Russia,” Yandex provides far more than search. It has its personal ecosystem of companies: maps, electronic mail, cloud storage, translation instruments, and sensible assistants, all designed particularly for Russian customers and their cultural context.
Its largest benefit? Localization. Yandex’s algorithm is constructed to grasp Cyrillic script and the distinctive nuances of the Russian language, giving it a critical edge for native queries. Add to that its funding in AI and machine studying, and also you’ve received a platform that powers all the pieces from personalised suggestions to voice instruments and digital assistants. For a lot of customers, Yandex isn’t only a search engine. It’s their whole on-line expertise.
Globally, Yandex holds 2.97% of desktop search and a pair of.35% on cellular, making it one of many extra balanced serps throughout gadgets, particularly in comparison with Bing, which is way extra desktop-heavy.
In line with Similarweb, Yandex’s Russian homepage had 2.79 billion visits in April 2025. Guests spent a mean of 8 minutes and 28 seconds per session, clicking via greater than 8.5 pages per go to. By visitors quantity, Yandex will get 2.58% of worldwide search engine visitors.
In a world dominated by U.S. tech giants, Yandex exhibits {that a} native participant, with the suitable instruments and focus, can nonetheless maintain its personal globally.
4. Yahoo
My first electronic mail tackle? Yahoo. And if my reminiscence serves me proper, I used to Yahoo issues earlier than “Googling” was even a factor. However now? Not lots. I haven’t used Yahoo Search in years, and I’m not alone.
Screenshot of Yahoo search engine
As soon as the go-to internet portal and a prime search engine within the early 2000s, Yahoo’s affect in search has pale arduous. As we speak, it holds simply 1.32% of the worldwide search engine market share, placing it in 4th place behind Google, Bing, and Yandex.
It does barely higher on desktop, the place it has a 2.93% share, simply behind Yandex. However on cellular, it barely registers a 0.69% market share, an indication of how a lot it is fallen behind in a mobile-first world.
Yahoo Search is now powered by Bing via a long-standing partnership with Microsoft. It serves a loyal (and infrequently older) consumer base who land there through the Yahoo homepage, or stick round for Yahoo Mail, Finance, Information, and different acquainted portals.
Curiously, Yahoo stays unusually fashionable in Japan, the place Yahoo Japan operates as a separate firm and continues to dominate as a search and portal service. It holds 9.17% of the search engine market in Japan, second solely to Google, which leads with 80.5%. In reality, Yahoo Japan (yahoo.co.jp) is the tenth most visited web site globally, based on Similarweb, even outpacing yahoo.com. Within the U.S. and different markets, Yahoo’s share is far smaller, although some loyal customers nonetheless use Yahoo.com for get hold of of behavior.
And it is not all tumbleweeds. Yahoo pulls in 3.09 billion visits each month, as of April 2025. The typical consumer spent 7 minutes and 17 seconds per go to and clicked via 5.34 pages, respectable engagement for a legacy model.
Greater than half of Yahoo’s visitors (51%) comes from the U.S., with Taiwan (4.6%) and the UK (4%) rounding out the highest markets. And this is a enjoyable twist: 5.4% of Yahoo’s visitors finally ends up going straight to Google.com, probably from customers typing queries into the homepage search field, solely to bounce to the search engine they actually wished to make use of.
Yahoo won’t be main the pack anymore, however its legacy as a family web title and its acquainted interface nonetheless give it simply sufficient momentum to remain on the worldwide leaderboard.
5. DuckDuckGo
For those who’ve ever looked for one thing on-line and instantly seen adverts for it on Instagram, you’ve most likely wished your searches have been simply… personal. That’s precisely the issue DuckDuckGo got down to remedy.
Launched in 2008, DuckDuckGo is now the fifth most-used search engine on the planet, with 0.84% of worldwide market share. It performs barely higher on desktop (1.07%) than on cellular (0.74%).
Screenshot from DuckDuckGo search engine
It’s made the worldwide prime 5 by doing one factor rather well: defending consumer privateness. It doesn’t observe you, retailer your search historical past, or construct an information profile round your exercise. Looking on DuckDuckGo is totally nameless — privateness by design, not as an added function.
DuckDuckGo pulls in outcomes from a wide range of trusted sources, together with Microsoft’s Bing index, Wikipedia, Apple Maps, and its personal internet crawler. It doesn’t create a filter bubble, and it doesn’t personalize outcomes primarily based in your previous searches, so everybody sees the identical factor for a similar question. That’s a function, not a flaw.
In line with DuckDuckGo, the engine handles about 3 billion searches per 30 days, which breaks all the way down to:
- 100 million searches per day
- 69,000+ searches per minute
- Round 1,157 per second
As of 2022, the corporate had handed 100 billion complete searches, and it now estimates that over 100 million folks use the platform globally.
That consumer base is clearly mirrored in third-party web optimization instruments, too. Similarweb information exhibits that that DuckDuckGo noticed 713.7 million visits in April 2025. Customers on common spend 7 minutes and 47 seconds per go to and click on via 6.33 pages, a robust engagement for a search engine that doesn’t observe or personalize.
A lot of that visitors comes from privacy-conscious customers within the U.S. (46%), adopted by Germany (8.3%) and India (6.6%), the place curiosity in nameless searching continues to develop.
It’s not aiming to dethrone Google. However for customers who care extra about anonymity than AI or comfort, DuckDuckGo is the go-to various for a privacy-focused search engine, and its numbers show there’s an actual demand for search that doesn’t watch you again.
6. Baidu
If Yandex is the “Google of Russia,” then Baidu is undoubtedly the “Google of China.” With 0.72% of worldwide search engine market share, Baidu could seem to be a distinct segment participant, however its scale in China tells a distinct story.
Screenshot from Baidu search engine
Based in Beijing in 2000 by Robin Li and Eric Xu, Baidu has grown into the dominant search engine in China. Though it’s used virtually completely inside one nation, it constantly ranks among the many prime international serps by question quantity, due to the sheer measurement of its consumer base.
In China, Baidu instructions 53.1% of the home search market, far forward of Bing’s 26% there. Globally, its presence is far smaller. Most of Baidu’s companies are geo-restricted and obtainable solely in Chinese language, limiting their accessibility outdoors mainland China. It holds 0.62% of desktop and 0.64% of cellular market share worldwide — modest, however pretty balanced throughout platforms.
Supply: StatCounter International Stats – Search Engine Market Share
Nonetheless, Baidu’s scale inside China is huge. As of December 2024, the firm had round 679 million month-to-month lively customers on its app, underscoring its robust maintain on the native market.
That attain exhibits up in internet visitors, too. In line with Similarweb, Baidu’s important web site acquired 2.15 billion visits in April 2025, making it the third most-visited search engine on the planet when it comes to visitors. Customers spent a mean of 5 minutes and 27 seconds per go to and considered 8.76 pages, an indication of robust engagement.
Unsurprisingly, that visitors is closely concentrated in China. Practically 95% of Baidu’s visitors comes from China, with smaller shares from Hong Kong (1.4%), Taiwan (1.15%), and fewer than 1% from the U.S.
Baidu will not be a world participant within the conventional sense, however inside China, it stays the undisputed gateway to the web.
7. Naver
With a world search engine market share of 0.33% as of January 2025, based on Statista, South Korea’s Naver may seem to be a small participant globally, however inside its dwelling market, it’s something however.
Screenshot from Naver search engine
Naver holds 48.4% of South Korea’s search engine market and is liable for roughly half of all searches within the nation. Its share has hovered between 40% to 50% in recent times, intently competing with Google. Outdoors of Korea, nevertheless, Naver is barely used, making it a uniquely regional powerhouse.
Supply: StatCounter International Stats – Search Engine Market Share
What units Naver aside is its portal-style, content-rich method. The search expertise is designed much less like Google’s minimalist mannequin and extra like a full-fledged ecosystem. Search outcomes are divided into segments like blogs, questions and solutions, information, photographs, movies, and extra. It leans closely on user-generated content material, particularly via Naver Blogs and Cafes (neighborhood boards), which frequently dominate outcomes for native queries.
Naver’s homepage is a vacation spot in itself. Along with the search bar, it options trending matters, internet comics (webtoons), procuring feeds, and leisure information, all tailor-made to Korean consumer habits. It’s not only a search engine; it’s a curated web expertise that matches how South Koreans devour content material on-line.
And that all-in-one expertise clearly resonates with customers. In line with Similarweb, Naver recorded 1.59 billion visits in April 2025, with customers spending a mean of 16 minutes and 36 seconds per go to and clicking via 11.85 pages — a number of the highest engagement metrics amongst serps.
Unsurprisingly, most of Naver’s visitors comes from South Korea, accounting for about 96%, with a small slice from the U.S. (1.5%) and fewer than 1% from Japan, China, and Indonesia.
Whereas Naver’s international footprint is proscribed, its deep integration into Korean digital life and South Korea’s excessive web penetration be certain that it stays a prime 10 search engine worldwide and an enduring pressure in one of the crucial related markets on the planet.
8. Ecosia
I don’t often consider internet searches as doing a lot good, however Ecosia challenges that assumption.
With simply 0.11% of worldwide search engine market share, Ecosia is a small participant general, but it stands out as one of the crucial distinctive serps on the market. That uniqueness has earned it a spot within the prime 10 serps.
Screenshot from Ecosia search engine
It’s particularly fashionable in Europe, the place it holds 0.36% of the market, due to its fame because the “tree-planting search engine.”
Ecosia runs on Microsoft Bing’s and Google’s search know-how to serve customers’ search outcomes and adverts, but it surely places nearly all of its advert income towards reforestation efforts around the globe. In line with the firm, it has planted over 232 million bushes thus far. For somebody like me who cares about environmental affect, that shift in function makes the expertise really feel extra intentional. You’re not simply looking out. You’re contributing to one thing larger.
And that mission has clearly attracted a loyal viewers. As of 2025, Ecosia experiences round 20 million customers worldwide. In line with Similarweb, it noticed 206.1 million visits in April 2025, with customers spending a mean of 5 minutes and 34 seconds per go to and searching 3.94 pages per session.
Not surprisingly, most of that visitors comes from Europe. Germany (22.7 %) and France (22.6 %) cleared the path, adopted by the US (12 %) and the UK (10.5 %).
So no, it’s not competing with Google or Bing on measurement, however if you’d like your searches to perform a little good, Ecosia makes a compelling case.
9. AOL
Shock, shock: AOL remains to be round. And never solely that, it nonetheless will get visitors. Much more than you’d assume.
As soon as often known as America On-line, AOL was the face of the web within the ’90s and early 2000s. As we speak, it holds simply 0.09% of the U.S. search engine market. However that’s nonetheless (barely) sufficient to maintain it throughout the international prime 10.
Screenshot from AOL web site
In line with Similarweb, AOL noticed 296.2 million visits in April 2025. Guests spent a mean of 9 minutes and 41 seconds on the location, searching 8.04 pages per session. An enormous 86.2% of that visitors got here from the U.S., with the U.Okay. (5.2%) and Germany (3%) trailing behind.
Practically 3% of AOL’s outbound visitors goes straight to Google, which tells you folks nonetheless begin there, even when they don’t keep.
AOL’s search engine is powered by Bing, and the expertise is fundamental at finest. It’s probably not a spot folks go to look anymore. Most customers arrive at AOL.com for information, life-style content material, or to examine their AOL Mail. The homepage feels extra like an online portal than a search engine, which is sensible given AOL’s roots.
I hadn’t typed “aol.com” right into a browser in years, however clearly, loads of folks nonetheless do. And in a search world dominated by AI and mobile-first design, it’s form of fascinating that this relic of the early web remains to be hanging on.
10. Seznam
You won’t have heard of Seznam except you’re from Czech Republic. However for a time, it was a critical competitor to Google on its dwelling turf.
Screenshot from Seznam search engine
In April 2025, Seznam’s important web site noticed 214 million visits, accounting for 0.48% of worldwide search engine visitors by visits. That makes it the seventh most visited search engine on the planet, excluding regional Google domains like google.de.
It’s a Czech search engine and internet portal that when dominated the nation’s search panorama. Within the early 2000s, it was the default selection for Czech customers — acquainted, native, and higher fitted to Czech-language content material than international platforms.
Even at this time, round 12 % of searches within the Czech Republic nonetheless occur on Seznam, with the remaining cut up largely between Google, Bing, and Yandex. On desktop, its share is even stronger, sitting at 14.6%, whereas on cellular it holds 10.56%. A proof that it’s nonetheless a significant participant regionally, even when it’s pale elsewhere.
Supply: StatCounter International Stats – Search Engine Market Share
Globally, although, Seznam’s footprint is small. It holds lower than 0.1 % of the worldwide search market share, making its presence negligible outdoors Czechia and, to a smaller extent, Slovakia. Nonetheless, its native focus has helped it keep relevance, particularly amongst older generations who grew up with the platform.
A part of what makes Seznam stick is its ecosystem. It’s greater than only a search engine — it provides Seznam E-mail, a well-liked information web site (Seznam Zprávy), a Czech-focused map service (Mapy.com), and extra. Its search outcomes are simple, masking internet content material, photographs, movies, and listing listings, with an emphasis on native relevance.
However Seznam’s dominance has slipped over the previous decade. As Google’s Czech-language help improved and Android smartphones with Google because the default search turned ubiquitous, extra customers made the change. Seznam nonetheless hangs on as one of many prime 10 serps globally, however simply barely tied with different minor gamers on the backside of the checklist.
In line with Similarweb, Seznam’s important web site noticed 214 million visits in April 2025. It accounted for 0.48% of worldwide search engine visitors by visits, making it the seventh most visited search engine on the planet, excluding Google’s regional domains like google.co.in or google.de.
The typical go to lasted 9 minutes and three seconds, with customers viewing about 6.14 pages per session. Most of its visitors (96.7 %) comes from Czechia, with small shares from Slovakia (0.83 %) and minimal utilization from Germany, the UK, or the US.
Honorable mentions
Aside from the key gamers listed above, there are a couple of extra serps that, whereas not making it into the worldwide prime 10 most-used or fashionable serps, nonetheless serve area of interest audiences or particular functions:
- Qwant: A privacy-focused search engine primarily based in France, identified for not monitoring customers or promoting information. In style amongst some European customers, particularly in France.
- Startpage: Based mostly within the Netherlands, it provides Google search outcomes however strips out all private identifiers — primarily a privacy-first wrapper round Google.
- Courageous Search: Developed by the workforce behind the Courageous browser, this engine is constructing its personal impartial index whereas emphasizing privateness and transparency.
- Swisscows: A family-friendly and privacy-oriented search engine primarily based in Switzerland, with its personal semantic indexing method.
Wait, that’s a search engine now? Different prime Google alternate options
Now, not each search begins with Google and even with a conventional search engine. Tens of millions of customers flip to those non-search platforms to seek out data, get suggestions, and discover matters in additional visible or social codecs, even when they are not constructed for it. Right here’s some information round the most well-liked ones:
- YouTube is technically a video platform, however with over 28.68 billion web site visits, it ranks because the second most visited web site globally. From “how you can repair a sink” to “which AI device is finest,” customers search and depend on it for visible studying and evaluations from its over 20 billion uploaded movies.
- TikTok is turning into a discovery hub for Gen Z. Google’s personal inside information revealed that 40% of younger customers use TikTok or Instagram for native search as a substitute of Google Search or Maps. Different research have discovered that greater than 40% of Individuals flip to TikTok as a search engine, and near 1 in 10 Gen Zers are extra inclined to look on TikTok than on Google.
- Amazon leads in product searches. 61% of U.S. shoppers start their procuring journeys on Amazon somewhat than Google, based on eMarketer.
- Reddit capabilities as a trusted supply for unfiltered opinions. A lot in order that “Reddit” is among the most incessantly added modifiers to Google searches. Practically two-thirds of Individuals flip to Reddit for search not less than as soon as every week, and 41% of its customers say it truly beats Google at it.
Whether or not it’s product analysis, restaurant searching, or studying a brand new talent, these platforms are shaping search habits with out technically being serps.
Prime 5 AI serps: ChatGPT, Deepseek, Gemini, Grok, and Perplexity
Whereas we’ve simply coated the highest 10 conventional serps and different non-search engines which can be used as search software program, it’s clear that the way in which folks search is evolving quick.
AI serps like Perplexity.ai and chatbots like ChatGPT, Deepseek, and Google’s personal Gemini could not present up in market share charts simply but, however they’re altering consumer habits in significant methods.
AI search vs conventional search: What the numbers say
As this shift unfolds, broader visitors patterns inform an attention-grabbing story. Listed here are some information from the evaluation by OneLittleWeb:
- AI chatbots noticed explosive progress over the previous 12 months, with visitors rising almost 81% between April 2024 and March 2025, including as much as 55.2 billion visits.
- In distinction, search engine visitors dipped barely, falling 0.51% year-over-year to a complete of 1.86 trillion visits throughout the identical interval.
- Nonetheless, the hole is huge. Over time, AI chatbots accounted for simply 2.96% of the entire visitors generated by conventional serps.
- That disparity turns into even clearer after we take a look at day by day utilization. In March 2025, serps averaged 5.5 billion visits per day, whereas AI chatbots drew solely 233.1 million — an almost 24-fold distinction in engagement.
Supply: OneLittleWeb
As talked about earlier, AI assistants aren’t changing serps like Google outright, however they’re shifting how we ask questions, discover matters, and discover solutions. They don’t return an inventory of hyperlinks. As a substitute, they attempt to perceive the intent behind your question and ship a direct, synthesized response, typically full with context, citations, or follow-up ideas.
And, the numbers communicate to their rising momentum.
Let’s take a better take a look at 5 of the most well-liked AI instruments to see how every one is carving out its place within the evolving search panorama.
1. ChatGPT
With over 5.14 billion visits in April 2025, ChatGPT is now not only a chatbot. It’s a significant internet vacation spot. It ranked because the fifth most visited web site on the planet, based on Similarweb’s April information. Customers spend a mean of seven minutes and 15 seconds per session and consider 4.15 pages per go to.
Screenshot from ChatGPT
The dimensions of utilization is staggering. The AI chatbot handles 1 billion messages per day and has an estimated 600 million month-to-month lively customers, a staggering rise that unfolded quickly via 2023 and 2024.
However how a lot of that exercise is “search-like”?
In line with an evaluation by SparkToro, about 30% of prompts despatched to ChatGPT carry search intent. If you break down the maths, that interprets to roughly 37.5 million search-like prompts per day. That’s significant, however nonetheless a far cry from Google’s 13.7 billion searches per day, which makes Google roughly 373 instances bigger when it comes to day by day search quantity.
It’s additionally telling that ChatGPT typically capabilities as a gateway, not the ultimate cease. 8.6% of its outbound visitors goes to YouTube, and 5.6% finally ends up on Google, displaying that customers incessantly proceed their journey elsewhere after getting an AI response.
Geographically, ChatGPT’s visitors is more and more international. The U.S. leads with 15%, adopted by India (9.2%), Brazil (4.9%), the U.Okay. (4.6%), and Indonesia (3.6%).
So whereas it’s not consuming into Google’s dominance simply but, ChatGPT is shaping new habits. For a rising variety of customers, it’s turning into the primary cease for brainstorming, fast summaries, or advanced questions that transcend what a typical search engine delivers.
Wish to discover past ChatGPT?
If this received you eager about all the opposite AI instruments on the market reshaping how we ask questions and discover solutions:
Whether or not you’re after fast summaries, smarter searches, or area of interest experience, these instruments supply recent and quicker methods to get the solutions you want.
2. DeepSeek
DeepSeek won’t have the title recognition of ChatGPT or Gemini, but it surely’s shortly making waves, rating because the second most-visited AI chatbot by internet visitors. 480.1 million folks go to DeepSeek month-to-month, based on Similarweb information.
Screenshot from DeepSeek
It’s constructed by DeepSeek AI, a Chinese language open-source lab, and runs completely on open-source language fashions. Folks spend 4 minutes and 55 seconds with the AI chatbot web site on common and see 3.42 pages per go to.
What makes DeepSeek stand out? For starters, it’s utterly free and totally open-source. That’s a giant deal for builders, researchers, and anybody like me who desires a clear various with out paywalls or login friction. The interface is clear and chat-based, identical to ChatGPT, constructed for multi-turn reasoning, inline citations, and speedy responses. It has 47 million day by day lively customers, based on Statista.
It might not have the bells and whistles of larger gamers or the tight integrations throughout platforms, but it surely excels in delivering fast, research-style solutions.
3. Gemini
Gemini, previously often known as Bard, is Google’s personal conversational AI assistant—and it’s not simply one other chatbot. With over 350 million month-to-month customers and 409.4 million visits in April 2025 alone, Gemini is shortly turning into central to how Google reimagines the way forward for search.
Screenshot from Gemini
What makes Gemini particularly noteworthy is who’s behind it. Because the world’s largest search engine, Google already controls how billions entry data. With Gemini, it’s now layering generative AI instantly on prime of that search infrastructure — primarily mixing sensible, conversational solutions with the attain and depth of conventional internet outcomes.
Though Gemini’s internet visitors is tracked individually from Google Search, it’s not working in isolation. It’s higher seen as an AI-powered enhancement, not a alternative. From AI Overviews on the prime of search outcomes to deep integrations in Gmail, Docs, and different Workspace instruments, Gemini is turning into the connective tissue that hyperlinks consumer queries to smarter, quicker, and extra contextual solutions throughout Google’s ecosystem.
On common, Gemini customers spend 5 minutes and 25 seconds per session and consider 3.43 pages per go to, displaying that engagement runs deep, particularly for a device designed to reply extra and hyperlink much less.
And since it’s constructed by the identical firm that dominates international search visitors, Gemini isn’t simply one other device chasing AI hype. It’s Google’s play to future-proof its dominance by shaping not simply the place folks search, however how. In that sense, Gemini isn’t a challenger within the AI race. It’s the incumbent ensuring they’re a part of the brand new challengers who rewrite the principles.
3. Grok
Grok is the AI assistant developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, and truthfully, I used to be stunned to see it have thousands and thousands when it comes to visitors. I’ve seen a variety of engagement with Grok throughout X (previously Twitter), however I didn’t count on it to be pulling in numbers at this scale.
Screenshot from Grok
As of April 2025, Grok recorded 196.1 million visits, with customers spending a mean of 6 minutes and 31 seconds per session and viewing 4.03 pages. That’s strong engagement for a device that’s nonetheless comparatively new within the AI area.
However Grok isn’t your typical search assistant. It’s constructed round real-time discovery, tapping into the X ecosystem to tug tweets, trending matters, and breaking information right into a chat-style interface. It doesn’t goal to interchange conventional search or serve up long-form analysis. It’s extra about fast solutions, dwell updates, and contextual data straight from the social internet.
Its progress is probably going pushed extra by platform synergy than standalone adoption. However for folks already lively on X, Grok is turning into a handy sidekick, mixing informal queries with the immediacy of social media.
5. Perplexity AI
Perplexity.ai positions itself as an “reply engine” — not simply one other chatbot like the opposite instruments talked about above, however a full-fledged various to conventional serps like Google. From the start, its mission has been clear: ship quick, correct, and well-cited solutions with out making customers sift via an inventory of hyperlinks.
As of April 2025, Perplexity noticed 113 million visits in a single month.
Screenshot from Perplexity AI
What makes Perplexity stand out is the way it handles advanced questions. It generates clear, concise responses backed by citations, supply hyperlinks, and real-time internet information. Customers can toggle between fast summaries and detailed reply threads relying on how deep they wish to go. On common, customers spent 5 minutes and 44 seconds per session, clicking via 4.2 pages every time.
And it’s gaining momentum quick. In line with the corporate, Perplexity now handles 100 million search queries per week, a putting quantity for a comparatively younger search platform. It’s redefining what fashionable search can appear like: AI-first, source-aware, and designed for customers who need solutions, not simply choices.
Curious how these AI chatbots examine head-to-head? Dive into real-world assessments, evaluations, and prompt-based matchups:
There are additionally a number of different AI assistants redefining how folks discover data on-line. Instruments like Copilot by Microsoft, Claude by Anthropic, Meta AI, You.com, Pi by Inflection AI, and Mistral are all a part of this rising panorama.
Whereas they could not but match the visitors of ChatGPT or Gemini, they’re actively shaping how customers work together with search-like experiences, providing all the pieces from contextual Q&A to web-sourced summaries.
Because the AI area matures, these platforms could play an more and more essential function in how search evolves past the standard engine.
The way forward for search: The place are we headed?
Once I began engaged on this text, I simply wished to determine the place persons are truly looking out in 2025 and whether or not something’s actually altering.
What I discovered wasn’t a dramatic takeover, however one thing quieter and extra attention-grabbing. The way in which we search is altering, even when the “the place” hasn’t totally caught up but. Google nonetheless dominates by a large margin, however the edges are beginning to fray. Area of interest engines are carving out loyal audiences. Privateness-first platforms are attracting aware customers. And AI instruments? They’re pushing us to ask higher questions and count on extra considerate, context-rich solutions.
We now not must default to the identical field each time we want a solution. There are engines and assistants on the market doing issues otherwise — some smarter, some easier, some simply… extra pleasant.
Personally, I’ve began utilizing completely different instruments for various duties. Want a fast, dependable abstract? Perplexity. On the lookout for real-time reactions? Grok. Nonetheless leaning on the outdated dependable? That’s Google. However now it’s only one choice in a broader toolkit.
Possibly that’s what the way forward for search actually appears like — not one homepage to rule all of them, however many instruments we select relying on what we’re looking for.
In the long run, it’s not nearly looking out higher. It’s about looking out smarter and perhaps even with just a little extra intention.
For those who’re questioning how the folks shaping this area are eager about all of it, don’t miss this dialog with Kevin Indig in regards to the search within the age of AI.