96.98% of Clicks Happen in the Top 10 Search Results

10/22/25
Source: Data & Studies – SEO Blog by Ahrefs by Ryan Law. Read the original article

TL;DR Summary of How Many Clicks and Impressions Occur Beyond Google’s First Page?

Over 96% of clicks on both desktop and mobile occur within Google’s top 10 search results. Clicks beyond the first page are minimal, often below 4%. While many impressions are recorded beyond page 3, these are likely from bots and scrapers, not genuine users. This highlights the critical importance of ranking on Google’s first page for organic traffic.

Optimixed’s Overview: Understanding Click and Impression Distribution Across Google Search Rankings

Key Insights from Extensive Google Search Console Data Analysis

By analyzing data covering 458 billion clicks and 17 trillion impressions, it is clear that the vast majority of user engagement happens on the first page of Google search results. Here are the main takeaways:

  • Desktop Clicks: Approximately 96.98% of clicks are on the top 10 results, with only 3.03% occurring beyond the first page.
  • Mobile Clicks: Even higher engagement on the first page at 97.56%, dropping to just 2.43% for results beyond position 10.
  • Impression Distribution: While most clicks concentrate on the first page, impressions show a different pattern—54.29% on desktop and 76% on mobile within the top 10 results.
  • Bot Activity Indicators: A significant share of desktop impressions (28.93%) occur beyond position 30, suggesting many are generated by bots or scrapers rather than real users.

Trends and Implications

The data shows consistent trends over two years, emphasizing that ranking within the top 10 is crucial for organic traffic. The increase in impressions beyond page 3, especially on desktop, may explain Google’s recent changes to parameters aimed at reducing bot traffic impact.

This analysis underscores:

  • The critical importance of first-page SEO efforts to capture the vast majority of clicks.
  • The need to consider bot traffic distortion when interpreting impression data beyond the top 30 results.
  • How mobile search behavior increasingly favors top-ranked results, making mobile-first optimization even more important.

Final Thoughts

For website owners and marketers, investing in strategies that improve rankings within Google’s first page remains the best way to maximize organic traffic. Impression data beyond the top 30 positions should be viewed cautiously, as much of it may not represent genuine user interest.