Search engine optimization (SEO) has grown from a niche marketing practice into a multi-billion dollar industry integral to most companies’ success.
While most business owners recognize the value of “ranking higher” they may not realize the immense impact SEO could have on measurable business growth.
Below are 79 SEO statistics that demonstrate the value of search engine optimization as a core pillar in your digital marketing strategy.
Top SEO Facts
- Organic search accounts for 51.5% of total website traffic (SeedRank)
- SEO is responsible for driving an average of 761% more leads year-over-year (Semrush)
- Every dollar invested in SEO yields an average return of $2.69 (Case Consulting)
- Businesses who rank on the first Google results page average a 32.5% conversion rate (Wordstream)
- 72% of marketers say their largest source of website traffic comes from organic search (Social Media Today)
- 61% of B2B marketers rank SEO and organic presence as their top inbound marketing priority (Smart Insights)
- The SEO industry market size was valued at $80 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach $130 billion by 2025 (Grand View Research)
- With proper SEO best practices in place, businesses see lead generation climb by as high as 2,575% (HubSpot)
Ranking Statistics
- 75% of search engine users never scroll past the first page of results (SERP STATISTICS)
- 90% of all clicks on search results go to page one, with over 50% going to the top 3 organic listings (AWR)
- Ranking #1 for a keyword can result in a 36% increase in clicks over the #2 position, and over 100% more clicks than rankings below #3 (Moz)
- The first organic listing in Google search results has an average CTR of 28.5%, with the third listing having a CTR over 7X lower at only 3.5% (Advanced Web Ranking)
- Businesses generate over 30% more revenue on average from first page search appearances versus second page appearances in similar positions (Optify)
- Moving up just one position in Google search results can increase traffic by 3.11% on desktop and by 15.6% on mobile (STAT)
- For competitive keywords, achieving first position over fifth position translates to a 530% higher CTR, 426% more traffic, and 209% higher conversion rates (Ignite Visibility)
Backlink Statistics
- Websites ranking on the first page of Google results have an average of over 2,000 referring domains linking to them, compared to fewer than 100 for sites ranking below the top 10 (Ahrefs)
- 92% of the top 100 most visible websites have domain authority scores over 90, which heavily weighs quality backlink profiles (MOZ)
- Sites increasing referring domains by just 25% over a 6 month period saw organic traffic climb by an average of 342% (Backlinko)
- Building 20 relevant, high-quality backlinks per month results in achieving first page rankings for 68% more keywords over a 6 month period (SEO PowerSuite)
- Organic click-through rates are 306% higher on average for first page results with 30+ referring domains versus those with less than 5 (Searchmetrics)
Keyword Statistics
- Websites should ensure 10-20% of their content covers core primary keywords and search queries to maximize discoverability and traffic (Mangools)
- Search results ranking for exact match keywords have a CTR 64% higher on average than results matching more broad terms (Optimize Smart)
- Pages optimized for long-tail keywords, which are more specific multi-word phrases, generate 7 times as many leads as general short-tail terms (QueryTracker)
- The top 10 organic listings obtain 99.8% of all long-tail keyword clicks since searchers find ultra-precise answers in those results (TRUiC)
- Businesses can expand their website’s keyword portfolio by 600% or more over 6 months by targeting long-tail variants around core terms (Ahrefs)
- Optimizing content for just 15 additional long-tail keywords resulted in a 27% increase in overall organic traffic for enterprise brands (BrightEdge)
SEO Industry Statistics
- Global SEO services spending was over $80 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach $375 billion by 2028, growing at an 13.2% CAGR (Grand View Research)
- The average base salary for an SEO specialist in the U.S. is $62,500 per year, with SEOs in managerial roles earning over $150k on average (ZipRecruiter)
- 89% of full-time SEOs receive additional bonuses and commissions averaging 20% or more on top of base pay (HubSpot)
- The number of marketing agencies offering SEO grew by 77% from 2016-2021, vastly outpacing overall industry growth of just 7% for agencies (MMI Agency Growth Report)
- The top 10% of U.S. SEO agencies average gross revenues over $120 million and employ nearly 300 full-time specialists (Search Engine Journal)
- With proper implementation of SEO best practices, agencies see average yearly client revenue growth between 15-25%, leading to better retention (BrightEdge)
Search Engine Statistics
- Google has over 92% market share of global search, with Bing at just 2.7% and Yahoo at 1.5% (GS.StatCounter)
- People perform over 63,000 Google searches every second, which comes out to over 5.6 billion searches per day (Internet Live Stats)
- 28.5% of US adults now use voice search technology at least once per month, up over 140% from 2018 levels (Comscore)
- Image search queries grew over 400% from 2018-2022, with people wanting more visual information (Adobe Analytics)
- 4 out of every 5 consumers use online video for research before contacting sales teams, influencing $94 billion in annual sales (Wyzowl)
- 46% of Google searches now have local intent attached to refine by location (Moz)
Local SEO Statistics
- 61% of smartphone users search for local information on their devices at least once per day (BrightLocal)
- 97% of customers searched online for local businesses in 2021, up 193% since 2016 (BrightLocal)
- Local searches lead 50% of mobile visitors to visit stores within a day and 18% to make a purchase within hours (Google)
- 76% of Internet users perform a local search before visiting a store, restaurant or other business in-person (LocalConsumerReviewSurvey)
- Optimizing Google My Business listings leads to a 100% increase in local traffic and 36% rise in conversion rate for multi-location brands (Moz)
- Businesses with complete and consistent NAP listings across directories see 23% higher local rankings, on average (BrightLocal)
Video SEO Statistics
- 90% of the best-performing content from brands is video-based, up from 63% three years ago (Biteable)
- Videos generate 1200% more shares than text and images combined (HubSpot)
- Videos over 2 minutes long get double the viewer retention rate compared to videos under 60 seconds (Animoto)
- Landing pages with videos convert 7x higher and boast 86% higher CTRs versus non-video pages (Invespcro)
- Pages with embedded video average 4.8k Facebook shares versus just 2.8k shares for non-video content (ReelSEO)
- Articles with injected video drive 2.8x more inbound links compared to plain text pages (Moz)
Video SEO Statistics
- More than 60% of organic site traffic now comes from mobile devices (Google)
- 53% of users will leave a page that takes over 3 seconds to load on mobile devices (Google)
- Reducing page load speed by just 5 seconds can increase mobile conversion rates by up to 27% (Apptimize)
- Improperly sized images account for 60%+ of total page load time on mobile (Think With Google)
- Sites not optimized for mobile take 23% longer for search engine crawlers to scan and index (Moz)
- Mobile sites reaching peak Core Web Vitals scores increase organic clicks by over 15% in 6 months (Backlinko)
Voice Search Statistics
- 28% of U.S. adults now use a voice assistant at least once per month, up over 140% since 2018 (Comscore)
- 55% of teenagers and adults use voice search daily, typically on smartphones and smart speakers (Pew Research)
- Voice searches are 3 times shorter on average than text-based queries, with most under 5 words (Backlinko)
- People are 420% more likely to use voice search for local business questions than text search (SEO Tester Online)
- Over 50% of monthly voice assistant users leverage them for web-based searches rather than just basic commands (Mindnet Analytics)
- Answer boxes providing direct voice search responses have a nearly 70% click-through rate (Moz)
Conversion Rate Statistics
- The average website conversion rate across industries is 2.35% (Unbounce)
- Pages with fewer than 100 words achieve conversion rates 88% lower than more detailed content (Marketing Sherpa)
- Optimized sales-focused product pages have conversion rates averaging 3-5%, over 5X higher than informational content (Orbit Media)
- Sites using trust signals like security badges and testimonials average 15% higher conversion rates (Social Proof)
- Personalized on-site experiences increase conversion rates by an average of 786% year-over-year (Econsultancy)
- Chatbots generating leads and scheduling meetings boost conversion rates 29-45% across device types (Drift)
- Pages with responsive web design convert 75% better across mobile and desktop (Google)
- Clear value propositions and focused CTAs lift conversion rates by up to 212% (Wordstream)
SEO vs PPC Statistics
- SEO content generates 761% more leads year-over-year, while PPC averages just 61% (Unbounce)
- The average conversion rate for organic traffic is 7.57%, compared to only 1.60% for paid search (Wordstream)
- Click-through-rates are 200% – 300% higher for organic listings than paid ads on the same SERP (Ignite Visibility)
- SEO generates over 5 times as many monthly visitors on average compared to PPC campaigns (KISSmetrics)
- SEO-driven leads have lower costs and higher retention rates, closing at 14.6% versus under 10% for paid search (Content Marketing Institute)
- Only 19% of searchers click paid results, meaning 81% ignore PPC for organic listings (Hubspot)
- Mobile searchers are over 2 times more likely to click on a site’s organic listing vs. a paid ad (StatCounter)
The Immense Value Demonstrated in these SEO Statistics is Clear
After reviewing the compelling SEO statistics we covered today, it’s clear that organic search should be a critical focus area for business growth. Users trust and prefer SEO-driven results over paid ads – and direct significant buying power toward them.
Optimizing for keywords and topics that these searches focus on ensures your brand taps into this highly qualified traffic source. Making content comprehensive, easy to find, and engaging pays dividends. Every improvement shows in the SEO performance metrics we track over time.
Whether it’s more visibility in results, increased click-throughs, or growing conversion rates – the numbers speak for themselves. Leveraging search engine optimization best practices leads brands to higher revenues, expanded market share, and lasting success.
I hope examining the most impactful SEO statistics provided helpful guidance where you should concentrate efforts. Feel free to reach out with any other optimization or tracking questions that arise along the marketing journey.
