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Blog > 130 SEO Statistics Every Marketer Must Know in 2025
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SEO statistics can provide foresight, but they can also reveal prediction errors.
Case in point: the biggest SEO statistics story of 2025 was that generative AI would devour much of Google Search traffic by now. That has not happened.
Instead, Google continues to dominate. Monthly queries per user on GenAI platforms are a tiny fraction of those performed on Google Search.
And 99% of GenAI users still use search engines.
Below, you’ll find surprising statistics and some that reveal not much has changed.
Get a complete view of your competitors to anticipate trends and lead your market
Takeaway: Leverage projected SEO growth trends to future-proof your marketing strategy. Try Semrush today and get ahead of your competitors with the most trusted SEO tools in the market.
Takeaway: Many media outlets made false predictions of GenAI’s cannibalization of Google by 2025. Focus on the data and what impacts your prospects today.
Use trending keywords to create content your audience craves.
Takeaway: Reports of Google Search’s imminent decline are popular but unsupported by data. Prepare to optimize for Google’s AI Overviews this year.
According to original research by FirstPageSage (FPS), the top-ranking industries per ROI on SEO are as follows:
Other leading sectors include:
SEO ROI timeframe: According to B2B SEO statistics, it takes anywhere from 6 months to a year to achieve positive ROI for an SEO campaign. Peak results are seen in the 2nd or 3rd year of the campaign, per FPS.
Takeaway: Targeting high-value, low-competition keywords is still key. (I call this “blue ocean SEO.”)
Takeaway: Google rewards excellence and originality. SEO marketing statistics suggest a continued focus on information gain over keyword stuffing.
Perspective: Link building is awash with mediocre guest posting initiatives that annoy prospects. Winning requires building a carefully differentiated strategy formed around high-quality blog posts.
A Whitespark survey of marketers asked how much weight Google attributes to various factors that impact Local Pack rankings.
Perspective: In my experience, small business owners often underestimate the impact of an optimized Google Business Profile and regular reviews.
Takeaway: Factor in screen sizes when planning your SEO strategy.
Perspective: In my experience, broken link building is still a great way to get more backlinks. It can significantly increase your site’s valuation. However, it requires meticulous attention to detail.
Takeaway: The rising popularity of voice search highlights the importance of long-tail keywords in SEO strategy, and careful keyword research is still essential.
Perspective: After production, don’t forget to optimize your YouTube videos by taking full advantage of the description field.
Takeaway: Simplify mobile site navigation and checkout. And automate requests for Google Reviews.
Because social media develops search trends of its own and because social referral traffic is often part of SEO strategy, we’ve shared related stats below.
Facebook is #1 in social media referral traffic. It drives 3.62% of all referral traffic in the U.S.
Here’s how the top social platforms stack up. (SparkToro / Datos)
Takeaway: With the steep rise in social commerce, digital marketers may need to adjust their social strategy to span more than brand awareness. Bluesky is likely to gain traction.
The future of SEO is likely to involve more AI-driven search. But it’s important to focus on data, not hypotheticals.
Most importantly, demand for SEO tools, like Semrush, is likely to surge in tandem with global SEO growth.
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Exploding Topics is owned by Semrush. Our mission is to provide accurate data and expert insights on emerging trends. Unless otherwise noted, this page’s content was written by either an employee or a paid contractor of Semrush Inc.
Use real-time topic data to create content that resonates and brings results.
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Written By
Sherrie Gossett
Small Business Consultant
Sherrie Gossett has a knack for uncovering hidden trends and opportunities that others overlook, drawing on her extensive experien… Read more
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