(12 Jan 2026) Google search traffic to publishers declined globally by a third in the year to November, according to new Chartbeat data.
In addition, referrals to more than 2,500 publisher websites from Google Discover, a feed served to users on Google’s native mobile apps and within its Android operating system, were down 21% year on year.
The new Chartbeat data was published in the Journalism and Technology Trends and Predictions 2026 report published by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism.
Since May 2023, Google search referrals were down 21% globally, with Google Discover down 18% and all external referrals down 24%.
The report, authored by senior research associate Nic Newman, is based on a survey of 280 media leaders (including 64 editors-in-chief, 64 CEOs or managing directors, and 51 heads of digital or innovation) from 51 countries carried out in November and December.
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