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AI Referrals to Top Sites Jump 357% While Google Leads

AI-driven platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude delivered 1.13 billion referrals to the top 1 000 websites in June, marking a 357 percent increase since June 2024. Despite this rapid growth, Google Search remains the primary traffic source, sending 191 billion referrals in the same period. News and media sites saw AI referrals jump 770 percent year-over-year, with Yahoo, Reuters, and The Guardian at the top.

Published July 26, 2025 at 10:07 PM EDT in Artificial Intelligence (AI)

New research from Similarweb shows AI-driven referrals to the top 1 000 global websites reached 1.13 billion in June, soaring 357 percent since June 2024. While AI platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude are accelerating traffic growth, Google Search still commands 191 billion referrals over the same period.

AI Referral Growth Continues Rapidly

AI platforms are emerging as influential traffic sources, but they remain a fraction of Google’s reach. Similarweb tracks referrals from services like DeepSeek, Grok, Perplexity, and Claude, with ChatGPT alone driving over 80 percent of all AI referrals to top domains.

News and Media Traffic Shifts

Publishers are bracing for “Google Zero,” when AI overviews replace direct search links. A Pew Research Center survey found AI summaries appeared in 18 percent of 69 000 searches, cutting click-through rates from 15 percent without summaries to just 8 percent with them.

  • Yahoo: 2.3 million AI referrals in June 2025
  • Yahoo Japan: 1.9 million
  • Reuters: 1.8 million
  • The Guardian: 1.7 million

Market Snapshot: Other Industries

AI referrals are expanding beyond news. In e-commerce, tech and social, and specialized domains, platforms are reshaping how users discover content and products.

  • E-commerce leaders: Amazon (4.5 M), Etsy (2.0 M), eBay (1.8 M)
  • Tech & social: Google (53.1 M), Reddit (11.1 M), Facebook (11.0 M), GitHub (7.4 M)
  • Specialty domains: YouTube (31.2 M), Wikipedia (10.8 M), NIH.gov (5.2 M)

Balancing AI and Search Strategies

As AI discovery grows, organizations must track both traditional and AI-driven traffic to stay competitive. A dual-channel approach ensures you capture volume from Google while optimizing for the fast-emerging AI referral ecosystem.

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