Curious about what percent of people using Google click on actual search results in comparison to paid advertisements?

To help answer this question, further explanation may be in order…

• Organic Search Results = Non-paid, natural search results (see capture), what SEO is focused on
• Paid Search Results = Targeted advertisements, typically served from Google AdWords (see capture), what PPC is often focused on

Winner: Organic Search Results (80-90%)!

So, 80 to 90% of people using Google click on ACTUAL search results, where 10-20% click on advertisements.

View the annotated Search Engine Results Page (SERP) screen capture…

SERP Cap

While many other quality sources have reported anywhere from 70-95%, the information above was derived from our own research and experience. Not long ago, the percentage of organic search result clicks was much, much lower.

Example

Given: You have a website and don’t pay for advertising. Ten people enter search terms in Google that trigger a listing for your website.

Of those people, approxiatemly 8-9 will click on a listing located within the organic search results (where your site is listed), while approximately 1-2 (of the 10) will click on a paid advertisement.