ChatGPT Referral Traffic to Publishers Stays Low

ChatGPT referrals to publishers have seen a notable increase since the introduction of web search capabilities. However, despite this growth, AI-generated traffic still represents a small fraction of overall website visits for most publishers. While ChatGPT is becoming a more prominent tool for content discovery, it has yet to significantly impact the digital publishing landscape in the way traditional search engines do.

Recent data highlights that ChatGPT-driven referrals have increased eightfold, yet they still account for less than 0.1% of total publisher traffic. This suggests that while more users are clicking on links generated by ChatGPT’s web search functionality, the overall effect on web traffic remains minimal. Compared to major traffic sources such as Google and Bing, ChatGPT’s contribution is still in its early stages.

Some publishers, however, have seen higher-than-average engagement from ChatGPT referrals. Leading the way are The New York Post, The Guardian, and Forbes, which have received the most visits from users clicking on ChatGPT-generated links. This could indicate that certain types of content, particularly news and in-depth reporting, resonate more with AI-powered search users.

Despite these gains, traditional search engines remain the dominant source of traffic for publishers. Google, Bing, and other search platforms continue to drive the majority of visits, underscoring their established role in how users find and engage with online content. While ChatGPT’s influence may grow over time, for now, it remains a supplementary source of traffic rather than a major driver for publishers.

According to data from Similarweb, referrals from OpenAI’s ChatGPT to 14 major news publishers have seen significant growth over the past few months. In August, these publishers received approximately 435,000 visits from ChatGPT referrals. By January, this number had surged to 3.5 million monthly visits, marking a substantial increase.

However, despite this notable rise, ChatGPT-driven traffic still makes up less than 0.1% of the total visits to these news sites. This suggests that while AI-generated referrals are increasing, they remain a small fraction of overall website traffic, especially when compared to traditional search engines.

A recent report compiled by Press Gazette provides further insights into how ChatGPT referrals are evolving and how they compare to other traffic sources.

Key Findings

Significant Growth, But Limited Impact
ChatGPT-driven traffic to publishers has grown eightfold over six months, showing a substantial increase in referrals. However, despite this rise, the overall share of traffic coming from ChatGPT remains a small fraction of total visits for most publishers.

Leading Beneficiaries
Among news sites, The New York Post benefited the most from ChatGPT referrals in January, receiving 760,000 visits. While this may seem like a large number, it still accounted for only 0.5% of the site’s total 143.5 million monthly visits.

Other Publishers Seeing Growth
Other major publishers also saw notable increases in ChatGPT-driven traffic. The Guardian recorded 730,000 referrals, while Forbes received 560,000 visits. Though these figures highlight growth, traditional search engines continue to dominate referral traffic to news websites.

Perplexity vs. ChatGPT

Top Publishers Benefiting from AI Referrals
In January, several major news publishers received notable traffic from Perplexity, another AI-powered search tool. The New York Times led the way with 146,000 visits, followed by CNN with 139,000 and India Times with 117,000.

ChatGPT’s Six-Month Referral Growth
Over the past six months, Forbes saw the highest number of ChatGPT-driven visits, totalling 1.7 million referrals. Close behind were The New York Post and The Guardian, each receiving 1.6 million visits during the same period.

The Impact of AI-Driven Web Search
ChatGPT’s rising referral numbers correspond with OpenAI’s introduction of web search, a feature that cites and links to publishers, providing them with additional traffic. Meanwhile, Perplexity has sent between 450,000 and 850,000 visits per month to the same 14 news publishers. However, unlike ChatGPT, Perplexity’s referral growth has fluctuated month to month, showing no consistent upward trend.

Looking Ahead

As the number of users for ChatGPT and Perplexity continues to grow, publishers are closely monitoring whether these AI tools will divert traffic away from their websites or, instead, drive more visits through citations and linked sources.

Although AI-driven search traffic is increasing, its overall influence remains relatively small. For now, publishers still depend on traditional search engines like Google for the majority of their website traffic.