Top 150 SEO Statistics Every Business Should Know in 2024

Online businesses are constantly striving to improve their online visibility and reach a wider audience. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) plays an important role in achieving these goals. However, staying ahead of the ever-evolving SEO landscape can be challenging.

To help you achieve this goal, we have compiled the top 150 important SEO statistics that every business should know in 2024. From understanding user behavior to optimizing your website, these statistics will shed light on the latest trends and strategies, ensuring your business stays competitive online.

What is SEO?

SEO stands for search engine optimization. It is the practice of optimizing a website to improve its visibility on search engine result pages (SERPs). By implementing various strategies and techniques, businesses can increase their organic (non-paid) traffic and rank higher on search engines like Google.

Why is SEO Important for Online Businesses?

• 68% of online experiences begin with a search engine, highlighting the significance of ranking well on search engines. (BrightEdge)
• Organic search drives 53.3% of website traffic, making it a major source of potential customers. (BrightEdge)
• SEO leads have a 14.6% close rate, compared to only 1.7% for outbound leads, indicating the higher conversion potential of organic traffic. (HubSpot)
• 75% of users never scroll past the first page of search results, emphasizing the importance of ranking high. (HubSpot)

Now, let’s explore some specific SEO statistics that will help businesses understand the current trends and make informed decisions

Top 150 SEO Statistics in 2024

These statistics highlight the importance of various SEO strategies and provide valuable insights for marketers and businesses looking to improve their online presence and visibility.

1. General SEO Statistics

• 75% of users never scroll past the first page of search results, emphasizing the importance of ranking high. (HubSpot)
• As of February 17, 2024, Google dominates the search engine market with over 91.47% of total search engine traffic followed by Bing at 3.43%, Yandex at 1.78%, Yahoo at 1.1%, and DuckDuckGo at 0.85%. (Statcounter Global Stats)
• Quality content and link building are crucial for SEO success, as they have the potential to significantly increase web traffic. (Backlinko) also check Google Developer.
• Websites on the second page of Google receive just 0.63% of clicks, emphasizing the importance of ranking on the first page to attract organic. (Backlinko)
• A recent survey by SEMrush found that 41% of businesses invest most of their digital advertising budget in SEM for instant visibility and targeted reach. On the other hand, research by Moz suggests that SEO provides long-term benefits, with organic search driving 53% of website traffic, making it a cost-effective investment in the long run.
• 73% of clicks in Google search results go to organic listings, while 27% go to AdWords, underlining the importance of investing in SEO. (BrightEdge)
• 97% of consumers research a company online, emphasizing the need for comprehensive and easily accessible company information. (BrightLocal)
• 92% of traffic goes to page 1 of Google.(SafariDidital)
• 82% of people who implemented an SEO strategy reported positive effects on their business. (SafariDidital)
• 88.2% of all search queries in the US contain 3 or less words (Statista)
• Businesses that combine SEO with PPC advertising see 25% more clicks and 27% higher profits compared to those using a single-channel approach. (Business Community)
• SEO is 5.66 times more effective than paid search advertising.
• Position #1 in Google enjoys a 27.6% click-through rate (CTR). (Backlinko)
• Pages with videos are 53% more likely to be displayed on page 1 of Google. (Search Engine People)
• 75% of users will not scroll past the first page on Google. (Forbes) and (Blacksheep)
• Implementing SEO drives 1,000%+ more traffic than organic social media. (BrightEdge)
• 21% of users will view more than one page in the search results. (Moz)
• Google doesn’t share its search volume data. However, it’s estimated Google processes approximately 63,000 search queries every second, translating to around 5.6 billion searches per day and 2 trillion searches per year. (General)
• Approximately 39% of online purchasers are influenced by a relevant search. (Think With Google)
• The average duration of an initial SEO campaign is 4-12 months. (Semrush)
• The biggest pain point for customers working with an SEO agency is communication. (General)

2. Backlink Statistics

• Link building is considered the most difficult aspect of SEO, with 41% of digital marketers admitting its challenges due to Google’s evolving algorithms. (Conductor)
• Almost 50% of those in the SEO industry spend $5,000 to $10,000 a month on link building. Demonstrating the investment businesses are making to maintain their search engine rankings. (uSERP)
• In a Semrush study, nearly all of the top-ranking domains had at least one backlink. (Semrush)
• Pages with the highest number of total backlinks usually rank best in Google. (Backlinko)
• On average, it takes around 3.1 months to see the impact of links on search rankings (Authority Hacker)
• 89.2% of link builders report seeing results within 1 to 6 months (Authority Hacker)
• Long-form content is ideal for backlink acquisition. (Backlinko)
• 65.4% of SEOs believe that domain authority is crucial for search rankings, more so than the number of links on a page(Authority Hacker)
• The top-ranking page on Google typically has 3.8 times more backlinks than other pages (Backlinko)
• The top result in Google has an average of 3.8x more backlinks than those in second to tenth place. (Backlinko)
• 0.44% of links use “rel=ugc” and 0.01% use rel=“sponsored”. (Ahrefs)
• Approximately 94% of all blog posts have zero external links. (Backlinko)

3. Ranking, SERP, and Click-Through Statistics

• 61.5% of desktop searches and 34.4% of mobile searches result in no-clicks. (SparkToro)
• Top traffic source for all websites is organic search. (HubSpot)
• Ranking in the top position on the first page of Google translates to a 39.8% organic click-through rate. (First Page Sage)
• Over 68.7% of all clicks go to the top three organic search results. (First Page Sage)
• Search snippets have the highest overall click-through rate at 42.9%. (First Page Sage)
• The first organic result in Google is 10x more likely to receive a click than the page in the #10 spot. (Backlinko)
• The top five organic results results in the SERPs account for 69.1% of all clicks (Up Inc.)

4. Keyword Statistics

• Longtail keywords result in higher click-through rates (CTR) compared to shorter search titles, indicating their effectiveness in organic search results. (SafariDidital)
• Using a keyword in your title tag does not necessarily correlate with ranking higher on the first SERP. (Backlinko)
• Keywords that are roughly 10-15 words long get 1.76x more clicks than single-word terms. (Backlinko)
• Blog posts that contain main keywords or similar terms in the URL have a 45% higher click-through rate. (Backlinko)
• Website titles with a positive sentiment have a 4% higher click-through rate. (Backlinko)
• 0.0008% of keywords receive over 100,000 monthly searches, as reported by Ahrefs.
• According to Moz, approximately 8% of search queries are formulated as questions.
• Google reveals that 15% of all searches have never been conducted before. (Google)
• 91.45% of search volumes in Google Ads Keyword Planner are actually overestimations (Ahrefs.)
• Long-tail keywords make up the majority of all Google searches. Emphasizing the importance of utilizing longtail keywords for higher conversion rates. (Semrush)

5. Mobile SEO Statistics

• 30% of Google searches from mobile devices include a location, emphasizing the need for a local SEO strategy.
• 96.5% of mobile phone users access the internet from their devices, making mobile browsing the most popular way to access information.(Statista)
• 69% of mobile device users are more likely to buy from a website that addresses their questions easily, highlighting the importance of user-friendly mobile experiences.
• Mobile sites that take more than 5 seconds to load have a 70% lower mobile session rate, emphasizing the need for fast-loading websites.
• 57% of users would not recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile website, underlining the importance of a seamless mobile experience.
• More than 30% of mobile searches are made right before visiting a store, showcasing the influence of mobile in driving offline purchases.
• 43% of users do online searches from their smartphones even when they’re in physical stores, indicating the need for visibility through SEO throughout the customer journey.
• While 66% of e-commerce browsing time comes from mobile, less than 30% of sales come from mobile devices, suggesting the importance of optimizing mobile experiences for conversions.
• 88% of customers call or visit a store within 24 hours of making a search from a mobile device, highlighting the impact of local SEO and mobile optimization on generating leads.
• Over 60% of all Google searches are done through mobile devices, indicating the dominance of mobile traffic in online search.
• 51% of consumers trust sites that are optimized for mobile search, emphasizing the importance of mobile-friendly websites for building trust.
• Mobile e-commerce sales are expected to surpass desktop sales, underscoring the need for businesses to have mobile-ready websites.
• There are 5.44 billion unique mobile phone users worldwide. (We Are Social)
• Just under 96% of internet users ages 16-64 own a smartphone. (We Are Social)
• Users submit 57% of local search queries with a mobile device or tablet. (ReviewTrackers)
• Searches from mobile devices make up 41% of web traffic. (HubSpot)
• Over 70% of shoppers use their phones to buy online. (Semrush)
• Shoppers go online first in over 60% of shopping occasions. (Google)

6. Voice Search Statistics

• Some 36% of Americans own a smart speaker. (Edison Research)
• Half of US consumers use voice search every day. (UpCity)
• Queries about the weather and local “near me” searches are the most popular uses for voice search. (UpCity)
• By 2024, it is predicted that 50% of all searches will be voice-based. This highlights the importance of optimizing your website for voice queries to stay ahead of the competition.
• Health and beauty, electronics, and household supplies are the top three categories of smart speaker purchases. (Comscore)

7. Video SEO Statistics

• 91% of companies now use video as a marketing tool. (Wyzowl)
• Around 70% of marketers who weren’t using video yet planned to start in 2023. (Wyzowl)
• YouTube brings unexpected inspiration to 75% of shoppers, enhancing their traditional shopping experience (Google)
• Shopping on YouTube helps 87% of consumers make purchasing decisions faster (Google)
• Nearly 90% of viewers trust recommendations from YouTube creators (Google)
• A whopping 89% of YouTube viewers agree that creators offer the best information on brands and products (Google)
• Video content is projected to account for 82% of all internet traffic by 2024. 
• YouTube is the most popular video marketing platform.  (Wyzowl)

12. Social Media SEO Statistics

• 61.7% of link builders utilize social media channels outreach activities (Authority Hacker)
• Social media signals, such as shares, likes, and comments, influence search engine rankings.  (Semrush)
• Link builders who incorporate social media into their outreach efforts typically receive an extra 22% of links each month. (Authority Hacker)
• Facebook is used by 23.5% of link builders for outreach and locating contact information, based on data from (Authority Hacker)
• Search engines are 10 times more effective than social media at driving traffic to shopping sites. This highlights the importance of having a solid SEO strategy in place for Ecommerce businesses.
• LinkedIn is utilized by 17.3% of link builders for outreach and finding contact information (Authority Hacker)
• Content that is widely shared can attract 2-5 times more organic traffic and backlinks (Authority Hacker)

13. Content Marketing Statistics

• Updating existing content with fresh images and written content can increase organic traffic by 111.3%. Republishing and updating existing content is a time-effective SEO strategy for increasing organic reach.
• Content creation and marketing are still ranked as the number one way to drive results in search marketing, according to 57% of SEO experts. Social media marketing and backlinks rank as the second and third most effective ways to increase traffic.
• The average page one result on Google contains 1, words of content. This statistic emphasizes the importance of creating detailed articles and landing pages to position your business as an industry leader.
• Relevancy is key to a successful SEO, according to 72% of marketing experts. Creating relevant content improves search ranking potential and generates natural backlinks.
• Regularly updating website content through content creation improves indexation rates by more than 434%. Google rewards websites that are frequently updated with higher rankings and faster indexing.
• Less than 40% of marketers publish content once per week, despite knowing its potential for improving brand awareness and reach. Consistently publishing high-quality, relevant content is essential for a successful organic search campaign.

8. Local SEO Statistics

• Approximately 98% of people read online reviews for local businesses. making reviews a valuable tool for building trust and driving conversions. (BrightLocal)
• Around 87% of consumers researched local businesses with Google Search in 2023. (BrightLocal)
• Customers are more likely to consider your business reputable if they see a complete Business Profile on Google.
• 72% of users who do a Google search visit a store within 8km of their location, highlighting the conversion potential of local SEO.
• 46% of all Google searches have a local intent, emphasizing the importance of delivering local results to users.
• 28% of searches with local intent result in a purchase, underscoring the effectiveness of a local SEO strategy.
• Surprisingly, 56% of local businesses have not claimed their Google My Business listing, missing out on a crucial aspect of local SEO.
• “Near Me” searches increased by over 130% in 2020, indicating users’ preference for local solutions to their needs.
• More than 50% of “Near Me” searches lead to an offline conversion within 24 hours, showcasing the high conversion rates associated with local intent.
•  88% of users seek online reviews for local businesses, highlighting the importance of maintaining a positive online reputation.
• 78% of location-oriented searches result in an offline conversion, demonstrating the continued relevance of physical stores.
• Surprisingly, 82% of businesses have not claimed their Bing Business listing, neglecting a potential market share of 7.27% of total web searches.

9. Ecommerce SEO Statistics

• According to a Google survey, 59% of shoppers use Google to research both in-store and digital purchases (Google)
• Over 50% of consumers discover new brands through Google (Google)
• Mangakakalot.com is world’s most-visited ecommerce site (Semrush)
• The number of keywords for transactional and commercial searches increased, while it has decreased forational and informational searches (Semrush)
• Amazon.com is the most-visited ecommerce site in the US. (Semrush)
• Organic search contributes to about 33% of overall traffic to ecommerce sites (Wolfgang Digital)
• Google is a popular platform for shoppers to research potential purchases before buying online, with around half of shoppers relying on it (Google)
• The ecommerce industry saw 10 years of growth within three months during the pandemic. (McKinsey)
• Almost 70% of consumers head to the search bar when they land on an online retailer’s site. (Nosto)

10. B2B Marketing Statistics

• Approximately 94% of B2B buyers are well-informed about their purchase before reaching out to sales representatives (Google)
• B2B companies generate double the revenue from organic search than any other channel. (BrightEdge)
• When it comes to learning about a product or service, 81% of B2B buyers prefer watching videos rather than reading content (Brightcove)
• 80% of B2B buyers prefer initiating contact with vendors themselves (Google)
• About 57% of B2B sellers believe that the marketing content produced by their team is generic and unresponsive (McKinsey)
• SEO is the third most-implemented marketing tactic for B2B businesses. (Sagefrog)
• By enhancing the relevance and engagement of your content, you can witness a 5-10% increase in B2B revenue (McKinsey)
• 57% of B2B sellers feel their marketing team produces “generic and unresponsive” content.  (McKinsey)
• B2B buyers spend the highest percentage of their buying journey researching online independently. (Gartner)
• 61% of B2B marketers believe that SEO is the key to online success, recognizing its effectiveness in increasing awareness, traffic, and growth. (Hubspot)

11. SEO Industry Statistics

• 94.74% of keywords get 10 monthly searches or fewer. (Ahrefs)
• Exciting findings from marketing experts’ survey reveal that organic traffic is the top metric for measuring content performance  (Semrush)
• Approximately 88% of marketers who already invest in SEO plan to allocate more or maintain the same amount in 2023. (HubSpot)
• More than 70% of marketers have internal SEO staff, demonstrating their commitment to optimizing their online presence, while 38.7% rely on external consultants (Searchmetrics)
• 46.08% of clicks in Google Search Console go to hidden terms. (Ahrefs)
• A recent SEO survey highlights that an impressive 40% of respondents allocate over 40% of their total marketing budget to organic search, recognizing its importance (Searchmetrics)
• Over half of businesses (53%) have planned to increase their spending on SEO in the past year, with a majority also anticipating an increase in PPC spend (Searchmetrics)
• Google Ads Keyword Planner overestimates search volumes 54.28% of the time and is roughly accurate 45.22% of the time. (Ahrefs)
• Search Engine Optimization remains one of the top trends marketers are leveraging in 2024. (HubSpot)
• Excitingly, 84% of bloggers acknowledge the impact of AI and automation on their SEO strategy for 2023, indicating a significant shift in their approach (HubSpot)
• Marketers hold diverse opinions on the future of AI, with 44% foreseeing a positive impact on their SEO strategy, 51% predicting no impact, and 5% expressing concerns about a negative impact (HubSpot)
• Organic search and referral traffic are the largest and most effective sources of marketing ROI for brands. (HubSpot)

FAQs

Conclusion

Staying informed about the latest SEO statistics is crucial for businesses aiming to thrive in the digital landscape of 2024. By optimizing for voice search, mobile devices, user experience, and leveraging video content, backlinks, and social media, businesses can enhance their online visibility and attract a larger audience. Embracing these trends will undoubtedly give businesses an edge in the competitive world of SEO. So, gear up and make the most of these exciting SEO statistics to propel your business forward!

Hope you find this article insightful. Let me know in the comment section below with of this data you find interesting.