Keyword Study 2026 — Organic Search CTR
Current CTR benchmarks based on real Google Search Console data from 94 domains. Compared with Sistrix 2020, Backlinko, FirstPageSage, and other industry studies. Search intents, brand vs. generic, position-CTR curves, and Pareto analysis.
Key Findings
What you can take away from this study — the key findings summarized.
- 1 13.6% aller Keywords sind informational, machen aber nur 11.6% der Klicks aus
- 2 Die durchschnittliche Brand-Abhängigkeit liegt bei 19.2% der Klicks
- 3 Position 1 CTR bei transaktionalen Suchanfragen (3.68%) ist 1.1x höher als bei informationalen (3.24%)
- 4 Navigational Keywords haben die höchste CTR (4.37%), unknown die niedrigste (0.76%)
- 5 0.4% der Keywords erzeugen 80% aller Klicks
Search Intent Distribution: 57% Commercial Keywords Account for 37% of All Clicks
How keywords and traffic are distributed across the four intent categories — and what it means for your content strategy.
Brand vs. Generic: 19% of Clicks Come from Brand Keywords
How dependent is a typical website portfolio on brand traffic — and what risk does that create?
CTR by Search Intent: Navigational Highest at 6% Median, Informational Shows Widest Spread
Which search intent delivers the highest click-through rate — and where does the median sit for a typical domain?
Position-CTR Curves: Position 1 = 8.1% CTR for Navigational
How does CTR change with SERP position for each search intent? Positions 1–20.
Clicks per Domain / Month: Median 79, Mean 3,806
What is realistic? Find out where an average domain stands compared to the median.
Impressions & Clicks by Bucket
Why keywords with many impressions often have a lower CTR — and where your biggest optimization potential lies.
Pareto Analysis: 0.4% of Keywords Generate 80% of Clicks
How many keywords generate 80% of clicks and impressions? The Pareto distribution shows the concentration of traffic.
| Intent | Keywords | Keyword Distribution | Generic CTR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial | 744.322 | 57.1% | 36.5% |
| Navigational | 118.638 | 9.1% | 34.0% |
| Transactional | 250.232 | 19.2% | 17.8% |
| Informational | 176.794 | 13.6% | 11.6% |
| Unknown | 13.060 | 1.0% | 0.1% |
Seasonal Trends
How clicks and visibility evolved over the period — and when seasonal peaks occur.
Trend Filter
How does the click-through rate develop over the months — overall, by search intent, and brand vs. generic?
Germany vs. USA
Comparison of search intent distribution and CTR patterns between the German and US markets.
Industry Comparison: CTR Benchmarks 2020–2026
How have organic click-through rates changed since the Sistrix study 2020? Comparison with the most important industry studies.
| Position | Sistrix 2020 | Backlinko 2023 | FirstPageSage 2026 | GrowthSRC 2025 | This Study 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 28,5% | 27,6% | 39,8% | 19,0% | — |
| #2 | 15,7% | 15,8% | 18,7% | 12,6% | — |
| #3 | 11,0% | 11,0% | 10,2% | — | — |
| #4 | ~8,1% | ~6,5% | 7,2% | — | — |
| #5 | ~7,4% | ~5,5% | 5,1% | — | — |
| #6–10 | 2,5–5% | 2,2–3,5% | 1,6–4,4% | +30% YoY | — |
| Study | Sample | Finding |
|---|---|---|
| Ahrefs (Dez. 2025) | 300.000 Keywords | -58% CTR Position 1 with AI Overview |
| GrowthSRC (Jul. 2025) | 200.000+ Keywords | -32% CTR Position 1 (28% → 19%) |
| Seer Interactive (Nov. 2025) | 25,1 Mio. Impressions | -61% organic CTR for AIO queries |
| Amsive (2025) | 700.000 Keywords | -15,5% on average, brand keywords: +18.7% |
| seoClarity (Jul. 2025) | 12 Mio. Keywords | AIO frequency mobile +475% YoY |
| Time Period | Zero-Click Rate | All |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ~50% | SparkToro |
| 2024 | 58,5% (US) / 59,7% (EU) | SparkToro/Datos |
| 2025 | 69% | Similarweb |
| SERP Layout | Position |
|---|---|
| Sitelinks | 46,9% |
| Organic results only | 34,2% |
| Featured Snippet | 23,3% |
| Google Ads | 18,8% |
| Knowledge Panel | 16,7% |
| Google Shopping | 13,7% |
Analyze Your Own Domain
Compare your CTR values with the benchmarks from this study. The EEAT Analyzer and Brand Deep Dive use your real Google Search Console data.
Methodology & Data Foundation
Connect Google Search Console
All data in this study comes directly from the Google Search Console (GSC) — Google's official tool that gives website owners insight into their organic search performance. GSC provides exact metrics for clicks, impressions, average position, and click-through rate (CTR) from Google Search. Unlike estimated third-party data, these are actual user metrics measured by Google.
Sample & Collection Period
The study covers 94 independent domains across various industries and sizes — from niche blogs to established business websites. For each domain, all organic search data was collected over a six-month period (2025-08-27 to 2026-02-23). The analysis covers the German (deu) and US (usa) markets. A total of 1.303.046 keyword data points were included in the analysis.
Intent Classification
Each keyword was automatically classified using the DataForSEO Search Intent API. The four categories — transactional, commercial, informational, and navigational — follow the established taxonomy of search intents by Andrei Broder. Keywords with multiple intents are assigned to the primary intent. The machine-based classification of all 1.303.046 data points ensures a consistent, reproducible picture of intent distribution.
Brand Classification
Brand keywords were identified using a rule-based classifier that automatically detects the domain name and common spelling variants (typos, character substitutions, concatenation). Since only known name patterns are captured, this method provides a conservative estimate — the actual brand share is typically higher.
Data Filtering & Quality Assurance
To ensure reliable statistics, outliers are systematically filtered: CTR distributions are based exclusively on rows with at least one click and at least 10 impressions. This prevents distortions from random hits (e.g., 1 click on 1 impression = 100% CTR). Boxplots aggregate data at the domain level — each data point represents a complete domain, not an individual keyword row.
Anonymization & k-Anonymity
All data is fully anonymized and aggregated. Only distributions and averages across all domains are displayed — individual values for specific domains, domain names, or keywords are not accessible. Each statistic is only published when at least three independent domains contribute to the respective data point (k-anonymity with k=3). This ensures that no conclusions can be drawn about individual participants.
Benchmark Studies
The benchmark comparisons reference the Sistrix 2020 study (80 million keywords, German market), Backlinko 2023, FirstPageSage 2024, and seoClarity. These studies use partly different methods — clickstream data or estimated values — that you should keep in mind when comparing. The data from this study comes directly from the Google Search Console andthus reflects the actual click-through rates of participating domains.
