Traditional Search Is Not Declining, Says Sparktoro
New research released by Rand Fishkin and friends at Sparktoro says that traditional search is not dipping in usage, even as searchers continue to adopt AI search features and tools. “95% of Americans continue to use them each month, and 86% are heavy users,” Rand wrote.
The first chart on the left, in blue, shows the distribution of high-frequency vs. low-frequency traditional searchers. And on the right, in purple, the graph shows the growing share of Americans using AI tools with varying degrees of frequency.
Rand wrote:
My takeaway is that traditional search isn’t going anywhere, even for the heavy adopters of AI. The more data we gather, the more I’m convinced the “AI vs. Search” narrative is largely made-up by media and influencers seeking attention, rather than an accurate reflection of reality.
Rand also referenced new research from Semrush who said ChatGPT is not replacing Google Search.
The report looked at millions of US devices and showed that 95%+ remain regular users of traditional search engines. That’s down by a negligible <1% over the past 2.5 years, even as AI tool use has nearly quintupled (from 8% to 38% over the same period), Rand added.
Here is Rand explaining the data:
NEW research: https://t.co/DUmJkGi2vv
Thanks to @LiveDatos, we’ve got remarkable charts showing:
– The changing growth rate of AI tool use
– Distribution of AI usage
– How traditional search engines have faredTrust me, you don’t want to miss it 😉👇 pic.twitter.com/13w7OcDKzq
— Rand Fishkin (follow @randderuiter on Threads) (@randfish) August 26, 2025
I love this comment from Rand:
That dude in your LinkedIn feed shouting about how AI will destroy Google has been conspicuously lacking in data for years. This new report will make his job even harder (though I have high confidence it won’t slow him down one bit).
NN/G had similar findings recently but they only looked at 9 people.
Forum discussion at X and LinkedIn.
