23 Essential SEO Statistics for 2024 to Improve Your Ranking

Updated · Feb 20, 2024

Every second, Google receives more than 40 thousand search queries, making it a staggering total of more than 3.5 billion searches per day.

People still wonder what the importance of SEO is. Regardless of the business you run or the client you work for, search engine optimization is crucial to making your marketing strategy work. It is important to stay on top of the game with the ever-changing algorithms and customer-tailored creative content.

Understanding SEO statistics is crucial to improving website rankings and can help you make essential decisions to bring traffic to your website.

We made a list of the 15 essential SEO stats of 2022 that will help understand how search engine optimization works.

The Most Telling SEO Statistics:

  • 91% of all websites never get organic traffic from Google.
  • 93% of users start browsing from a search engine.
  • 53% of all website traffic is organic.
  • 75% of users never go to the second page of search engines.
  • The first page of Google accounts for 92% of web traffic.
  • 61% of marketers say that SEO is a central part of their strategy.
  • 67% of traffic goes to the first five Search Engine Results Pages.
  • Google has nearly 87% of the search engine market shares.

General SEO Statistics 2022

The world of digital marketing was always very dynamic, changing as we speak. Looking into the latest data is crucial for recalibrating your marketing strategy. These search engine optimization facts of 2022 will help you catch up and will transform your results.

1. 93% of users start their online journey with a search engine.

(Source: Junto)

Think about this impressive number when creating your content. You need to adjust your perspective and work on your online presence.

When optimizing your website, it is a must to be aware of web search statistics. They can help you understand customer behavior and realign your marketing strategy.

2. 53% of all website traffic is organic.

(Source: Search Engine Journal)

By concentrating on keyword research and link building, you can achieve a higher ranking than paid search results. Focusing on page speed, web design, and user-friendly content is the key to organic traffic and internet search optimization. The reason is the new Google algorithm, which takes into account user experience metrics.

3. 50% of organic searches are long-tail keywords.

(Source: ProfoundStrategy)

Long-tail keywords are often ignored by SEO strategists, but according to SEO stats from 2022, they comprise half of the total number of search queries.

These keywords are used by people who know exactly what they need and have already decided to make a purchase.

Yet, marketers often overlook the ranking of long-tail keywords as they tend to have low search volume. But it is easier to drive traffic that way, targeting audiences in selected niches.

4. 27% of website traffic is generated from paid searches.

(Source: Higher Visibility)

Search engine results pages changed over the past few years. There is a general opinion that no one clicks on Google ads, but numbers say different.

What percentage of Google ads are clicked? Lower than organic results. But nearly half of the users can’t tell the difference between an ad and organic search results. And since Google Ads have a better conversion rate, they became the most popular form of online advertising.

5. Nearly 91% of websites never get organic traffic from Google.

(Source: Ahrefs)

According to SEO statistics from 2020, only 5.7% of a sample of 2 million new websites ended up in the top ten Google search results. The reason for this is poor backlinking, lack of keyword research, and no indexing. This can be a good starting point for implementing a successful SEO strategy.

6. 72% of specialists use content marketing as a go-to SEO strategy.

(Source: Junto)

Companies invested time and money to analyze search engine optimization statistics and realized that the turning point for their success is content marketing. Thinking beyond the plain keyword research is the key to becoming a trusted source. Understanding your audience and creating the content they want to see will naturally result in high quality, valued by Google and users.

7. 300% more traffic comes from search engines than from social media.

(Source: Business2Community)

Content is the key instrument for establishing a relationship with your audience. Social media branding is becoming more popular and many believe it is taking over. While some might argue that this strategy brings the right customers to your business, data is undeniable. SEO statistics clearly show that search engine optimization is more lucrative.

(Source: Junto)

Following the introduction of voice-controlled assistants like Siri or Alexa, trends have shifted—people are using voice search more than ever. SEO stats show us that domains with high authority will show up first in voice search.

Optimizing your content for voice search can also help you make your website more accessible to people with special needs.

9. $80 billion were invested in SEO by 2020.

(Source: Forbes)

With the constant Google algorithm updates, staying up-to-date is harder than ever. Nearly every modern business is investing in SEO.

So how much is the SEO industry worth? Borrell Associates estimated that businesses would spend $72 billion by 2018 and $80 billion by 2020 on SEO in the US alone. Based on this data, we can expect astronomical increases in 2022.

Local SEO Statistics

You are running a small business and struggling to bring in new customers. You invested in your website and social media and did all the research, but you’re still failing. What you’re missing is an understanding of the local SEO from the perspective of your buyer.

When looking for local businesses around them, users tend to turn to social media as it is a source they trust and use regularly. But we compile a list of local SEO stats proving that this strategy can bring you more customers.

10. 88% of users searching for a local business on their phone will visit it within a day.

(Source: Search Engine Watch)

Potential customers searching locally do it for a reason. They made a purchase decision and simply need to find a physical store that has what they need.

Once discovered, half of them will go to the store within the same day. Local business searches that result in a visit lead to a guaranteed purchase.

11. 56% of local businesses are not on Google My Business.

(Source: WebFx)

Many local business owners are not aware of this powerful tool and, most of the time, never claim their listing. But GMB is the first thing users see when conducting a search for local businesses. This is a tool that brings credibility to your local business and provides useful information to your customers.

12. “Near me” search option increased by 500%.

(Source: WebFx)

Once your business is listed at GMB, it shows up in “Near me” searches. Local SEO stats show that people looking for specific items/services close to them intend to visit them. Local business owners can use this to attract customers and close a sale.

13. 67% of customers read online reviews before making a purchase.

(Source: Sagapixel)

Customers have access to numerous services, offering the same goods for similar prices. One thing that can convince them to buy a product is online reviews. Local search statistics reveal that reading a negative review can decrease the number of potential customers by a massive 70%.

14. 78% of mobile searches convert to in-store purchases.

(Source: Sagapixel)

Customers that went online searching for specific products or services already have a business in mind. However, searching for local businesses implies they are open to visiting a store nearby and will most probably make a purchase.

SEO & SEM Statistics

When creating our digital marketing strategy, we might come across many different acronyms. The two most important for a complete online marketing campaign are SEO and SEM.

15. Google receives 3.5 billion search queries each day.

(Source: Oberlo)

Have you ever wondered how many unique Google searches are there per day? Google has now become an inseparable part of your everyday life. You use it every time you need to buy or learn something. It is integrated with your smartphones and web browser.

Now imagine this process repeating itself for the entire internet user population. This amounts to 3.5 billion searches a day—that’s 40 thousand search queries every second.

16. Nearly 51% of searches come from a mobile device.

(Source: Smart Insights)

Web search stats reveal that the gap between mobile and desktop users is getting smaller, with the former outnumbering the latter. The reason for this is the frequent mobile device software upgrades, which make internet browsing easier. This shows the increasing need to create mobile-friendly content.

17. Using video content increases organic ranking 50 times.

(Source: SEOInc)

If ranking high in search engines is your primary goal, then you need to step up your game. Using videos will increase your organic traffic 50 times compared to text content. This will improve the impact SEO has on your position in Google searches. Besides, the competition in video ranking is much smaller compared to text.

First Page of Google Statistics

Getting to the first page of Google requires a lot of hard work. It includes the implementation of numerous strategies like keyword research, working on your metadata, tweaking URLs and Alt tags, and much more. But why is it so important to achieve these results?

18. 75% of users never go to the second page of search engines.

(Source: Junto)

Ever wondered what percentage of Google searches go past the first page? Let’s just say that if your website isn’t among the top ten results, you won’t be getting a lot of traffic.

The first page of search engines is the Holy Grail of search results, but it might seem intimidating to beginners. And it’s not that easy to get there—it requires marketing power, keyword research strategy, backlinking, and ads.

19. 25% of users click the first organic Google search result.

(Source: Search Engine Journal)

Studying first page Google statistics uncovered that a quarter of all search engine users click the first organic result. It is all about the click-through rate and the first result, as expected, is what most users go for.

20. 79% of Google Ads users say investment had a positive impact on their business.

(Source: PPC Protect)

Ranking high on Google is a priority for many businesses. Investing in paid advertising will position your content at the top of the page, which will inevitably drive search engine traffic your way.

Latest Stats in Search Engine Market Share and Demographics

Last but not least, we looked into the ways people use search engines and how behavior changes depending on the country.

21. Google has 91.45% of the market share.

(Source: Oberlo)

Google remains the biggest fish in the tank, holding 91.45% of the market share worldwide and 87.78% in the US. The internet giant has a monopoly on the search engine industry. When comparing Bing vs Google usage, Bing comes in second with only 2.69%.

22. 62% of Gen Z and Millenials prefer visual search to other technologies.

(Source: Business Wire)

Younger users want dynamic and visually appealing searches. Trying to satisfy their requests, the SEO industry is adapting quickly. Images and videos are becoming an inseparable part of SEO strategies as this new trend is taking over the internet. Focusing on these specific age groups is a growing opportunity—they are the biggest consumers at the moment.

23. The most frequently searched word in 2020 was Coronavirus.

(Source: Google)

One thing Google Trends’ recap of 2020 revealed is that search engines are becoming more advanced, adapting to natural language use. Question-type queries are taking over—people all over the world are asking “why?”.

And what is the most Googled thing in 2020? The answer is somewhat expected—Coronavirus.

Let’s Wrap It Up, Folks!

All this might seem overwhelming and impossible to apply. But don’t worry—digital marketing is not an easy thing to master, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll love it.

These SEO statistics will help you understand the importance of search engine optimization. It is an ever-changing industry, so it is important to stay up to date and work on your strategies accordingly.

Share:
Nick Galov
Nick Galov

Unaware that life beyond the internet exists, Nick is poking servers and control panels, playing with WordPress add-ons, and helping people get the hosting that suits them.