Paid Search in the AI Overview Era: CTR and Budget

Google AI Overviews change paid search by pushing ads lower on the page and cutting click-through on many research queries. Studies disagree on the size of the drop, and later data shows partial recovery. Brands should audit which queries trigger an overview, shift budget toward high-intent terms, and judge search on conversions and revenue, not clicks alone.

Last updated November 10, 2026.

On this page:

• What are AI Overviews and how often do they appear?
• What do studies show about paid click-through rates?
• Why do the studies disagree?
• Which queries are most exposed?
• How should you adjust paid search budgets?
• How should you measure paid search now?
• How does paid search connect to AI visibility?
• Key takeaways
• Frequently asked questions

What are AI Overviews and how often do they appear?

AI Overviews are AI-written summaries that Google places at the top of many search results pages. They answer a question directly and link to the sources they draw from. For advertisers they matter because they take up the space where the first ads used to appear, and they can satisfy the searcher before anyone clicks.

Their reach has grown over time. One industry summary reports that overviews appeared in about 17% of all Google queries by late February 2025, after dipping to a low of 7% in August 2024. They show up most often on informational and research queries, such as "what is" and "best way to" searches, and far less on queries with clear buying intent. Google has also begun testing ads inside AI Overviews, so the format is both a threat to classic text ads and a new place to buy.

What do studies show about paid click-through rates?

Several studies measure how paid click-through rate (CTR) changes when an AI Overview is present. The results vary by method and period.

Read together, the studies say two things. On informational queries, an overview can sharply reduce paid clicks. And the damage is not fixed: the most recent update points to a stabilizing paid channel, even as organic click-through stays pressured.

Why do the studies disagree?

The studies measure different queries, time windows and definitions, so their numbers cannot be stacked into one average.

• Query mix. Informational queries trigger overviews often and lose the most clicks. Transactional queries trigger them rarely.
• Time window. Google changes where and how overviews appear. A study from late 2024 describes a different results page than one from 2026.
• Citation status. Brands cited inside an overview can see better click-through than brands that are not. Past research found cited links earned a higher organic CTR than uncited ones, at 1.08% versus 0.6%.
• Ad formats. Ads placed inside or next to overviews behave differently from classic text ads.

The practical lesson is to measure your own account. Industry averages are a prompt to check your data, not a forecast for it.

Which queries are most exposed?

Exposure depends on intent. A simple way to sort queries is by how close the searcher is to buying.

1. Informational and research queries. Highest overview rate and the largest click loss. Examples: "how to choose a payroll provider."
2. Comparison and "best" queries. Mixed. Overviews often appear, and paid ads can still win clicks from shoppers who want options.
3. Brand queries. Lower exposure, and brand ads protect against competitors bidding on your name.
4. Transactional queries. Lowest exposure. Searchers want to buy, and ads and shopping results still lead.

To find where you stand, pull queries from Google Search Console, flag the ones that show an overview, and compare their paid performance in Google Ads with queries that do not.

How should you adjust paid search budgets?

Adjust in steps, using your own data, rather than cutting search across the board.

• Protect high-intent terms. Keep full coverage on brand and transactional queries, where ads still lead the page.
• Trim weak informational spend. If a query triggers an overview and converts poorly, lower its budget or move it to remarketing.
• Rebuild bids around conversion value. Use value-based bidding so spend follows revenue, not click volume.
• Keep a display and retargeting layer. Some industry guidance suggests holding 10% to 15% of search-related budget for display and retargeting, to re-engage people who saw your brand in an overview but did not click.
• Test the new formats. Run small tests of ads that appear with AI-generated results and of Google's AI-driven campaign types, then compare them with your control.
• Improve the landing page. If fewer people click, make each click count. Conversion rate work lifts return without added spend.

For a full view of how search sits next to social, programmatic and AI visibility, see the paid media budget guide. For fees, see the paid media management cost guide.

How should you measure paid search now?

Click-through rate alone no longer tells you whether paid search works, because overviews change what a click means. Judge search on outcomes.

• Conversions and revenue from paid search, with value attached.
• Impression share and position on the queries that matter most.
• Cost per acquisition and return on ad spend, compared with break-even.
• Incrementality, tested with geo holdouts or pause tests, to see how many sales paid search truly causes.
• Branded search volume, because people who see your brand in an overview may search for it by name later.

Report these weekly for problems and monthly for trends. If a metric moves, check whether an overview started appearing on the query before changing bids.

How does paid search connect to AI visibility?

Paid search buys a place on Google. AI visibility is about whether AI answers, in Google and in assistants such as ChatGPT, mention and cite your brand. The two work together: a brand that is cited in an overview gets attention that ads cannot buy, and a brand that is absent loses consideration even if its ads run.

AI visibility is earned through accurate owned pages and independent coverage, not purchased. 5W, a PR, creative and AI Visibility agency, runs paid media and AI visibility from one team, all done in house. Paid media and performance marketing programs run $15,000 to $25,000 per month for most accounts, separate from ad spend, and AI visibility programs start at $20,000 per month. See the performance marketing practice and the AI visibility agency page.

What are the key takeaways on paid search and AI Overviews?

• Overviews push ads down and reduce clicks most on informational queries.
• Studies disagree on the size of the loss, and the latest update shows paid CTR stabilizing.
• Protect brand and transactional terms, and trim weak informational spend.
• Measure conversions, revenue and incrementality, not click-through rate alone.

Frequently asked questions

Do AI Overviews reduce paid search clicks?

On many informational queries, yes. Seer Interactive found paid click-through fell 68% on queries with overviews between mid-2024 and September 2025. Later data shows paid CTR stabilizing, so check your own account.

Should I cut my Google Ads budget because of AI Overviews?

Not across the board. Keep high-intent brand and transactional terms, and trim weak informational queries that trigger overviews and convert poorly.

Can ads appear inside AI Overviews?

Google has been testing and rolling out ads in AI Overviews. Test them in small budgets and compare results with classic text ads.

How do I know which of my queries trigger an overview?

Pull queries from Google Search Console and check them in a rank tracker that records overview presence, then compare their paid results with other queries.

Is CTR still a useful metric?

It is useful as a warning sign, not as a goal. Judge paid search on conversions, revenue, return on ad spend and incrementality.

Does AI visibility replace paid search?

No. They do different jobs. Paid search captures demand on Google, while AI visibility earns mentions in answers, and most brands need both.