The first result in Google search has an average click-through rate of 28.5%. That’s according to a new study by Sistrix.
After the first result, the average click-through rate almost gets cut in half, dropping to 15%.
There’s quite a bit more to the study that you’ll appreciate if you’re serious about SEO — Let’s dive in.
The Importance of Clicks in Google Search
You spend a lot of time and money ensuring that your content reaches the top of the search engine results pages (SERPs). But what good is a high rank if you don’t get clicks?
For example, after the first result, the average click-through-rate depreciates to half the value. Links in position three receive a CTR of just 11% and position 10 links gets a click-through rate of only 2.5%.
Sistrix analyzed more than 80 million keywords and billions of search results to gain more insight into click-through rates from search.
That’s not the only reason, though. Sistrix claims that most of the previous CTR studies focused on the behavior of desktop users. Nowadays, mobile searches are more popular than desktop searches in most countries.
In other words, current knowledge about average CTR in Google search is obsolete.
Finally, the Sistrix study also accounted for different SERP layouts. As you may have noticed, sometimes search results include rich snippets and knowledge boxes that look different from simplistic, line-by-line results.
Sistrix compared similar SERP layouts to get an accurate read on clicks.
Please note, Ignite Visibility did their own study and found much different data. Click here to read the study we recently released on CTR and position.
Average Organic Search Result CTR
Most of the keywords in the study delivered “purely organic” results. Those are results that include 10 blue links with no knowledge box or rich results.
You can usually see those kinds of results with obscure, long-tail keywords.
According to the study, the top result on a purely organic page delivers a 34.2% click-through rate. Once again, the second result’s average CTR in Google searches stands at half that (17.1%).
By the way, that means the average CTR for purely organic results is higher than the average CTR overall. That’s one reason why it’s a great idea to rank for long-tail keywords.
Results with Sitelinks
Results with sitelinks deliver an even higher average click-through rate than links on purely organic pages.
If you’re unfamiliar with sitelinks, they’re rich results in Google search that lead to subpages. They take up extra space in the results list.
Sitelinks in Google Search
Just go to Google and search for “Mashable” and you’ll see a result with sitelinks at the top.
Usually, as in the example I gave above, people who see results with sitelinks are looking for a specific website. That’s probably why the CTR for Position 1 is almost 47%.
Pro-tip: be sure to rank for your brand name.
Featured Snippets
The Sistrix study pours some cold water on the need to land a featured snippet.
According to the research, Position 1 results with featured snippets earn a 23.3% click-through rate. That’s about 5% below the average value for that position.
However, the second-place finisher in a results page that includes featured snippets lands a 20.5% CTR. That’s about five percentage points higher than the average click-through rate for that position.
Knowledge Panels
Results with Knowledge Panels fare even worse than results with featured snippets.
SERP features: knowledge panel in position 1 of Google Search
They earn a 16.8% CTR in Position 1 and a 13.2% CTR in Position 2.
Why? Probably because people find the info they need in the panel and don’t need to click on the link for more details.
Wrapping It Up
There’s a lot more great info to glean from the Sistrix study. I suggest you check it out for yourself.
Also, take on this action item: optimize your website to get clicks in the search results and not just earn rank. That’s how you’ll reach people in your target market.
