For the First Time in 10 Years, Google Has Less than 90% of Total Search Traffic

We often say we’ll Google something when we want to search online, showing how closely the company is tied to web searches.

For years, Google has dominated the search engine market, handling over 90% of all online searches. However, recent data suggests this might be changing.

According to Statcounter, Google’s global market share dipped below 90% for three months straight—October saw 89.34%, November had 89.99%, and December recorded 89.73%. These may seem like small changes, but it’s notable because Google hasn’t fallen below 90% in any three-month stretch since early 2015.

While many might think AI tools like ChatGPT caused this shift, it’s actually traditional search engines that gained. Bing, Yahoo!, and Yandex saw slight increases, with Bing taking the second spot in December, though still under 4%.

This shift comes at a tricky time for Google, which is under scrutiny in a major antitrust case. The company argues that users have plenty of choices, and these new figures could help reinforce that claim.

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