State of AI SearchPowered by ZEFO
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MONTHLY BENCHMARK

Track how AI is changing search.

State of AI Search publishes aggregated benchmarks and trends from ZEFO data across thousands of websites. Understand how question-led search, AI traffic, and acquisition channels are changing.

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August 2026 market readout

Question-led search reached a new high

2.83%

of detected Search Console keywords were phrased as questions

â–² +0.03 pp from JulyRead the August analysis

Latest market benchmarks

Traffic acquisition mix

Where Website Traffic Comes From

Monthly share of website visits by acquisition channel, based on aggregated analytics data.

Sample periodJul 2025 – Jul 2026
Channels tracked10
AI traffic share0.31%
Largest sourceOrganic Search
Search share58.84%
0%25%50%75%100%Jul 2025Sep 2025Nov 2025Jan 2026Mar 2026May 2026Jul 2026Share
Organic SearchPaid SearchPaid SocialOrganic SocialDisplay & VideoEmail & CRMReferralDirectOtherAI

AI traffic share over time

Jul 2025Jul 20260.31%
B

AI traffic share over time

AI traffic grew from 0.20% to 0.31% across the observed period.

C

Question keywords as % of all detected Search Console keywords

August closed at 2.83% of detected Search Console keywords phrased as questions, up from July's 2.80% and setting a new benchmark high for the third month in a row.

1.5%2.0%2.5%3.0%1.81%Jan 25Mar 25May 25Jul 25Sep 25Nov 25Jan 26Mar 26May 26Jul 262.83%
Jan 20251.81%
Aug 20262.83%
Change+56%
This month's analysis

August 2026: question-led search extends its record high

August closed at 2.83% of detected Search Console keywords phrased as questions, up from July's 2.80% and setting a new benchmark high for the third month in a row.

  • The month-over-month lift was 0.03 percentage points, extending the steady rise from 2.70% in May to 2.83% in August.
  • Question-led demand is now about 56% higher than the January 2025 baseline, making it a durable signal rather than a short-lived spike.
  • Teams should keep expanding FAQ, comparison, and answer-first content because the latest reading is the benchmark's highest level to date.

Updated monthly with the latest benchmark readout.

Monthly benchmark

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