In the past year, ChatGPT has moved from a niche curiosity to a mainstream web‑browsing companion. A deep dive into 17 months of clickstream data reveals how the AI chatbot is reshaping online traffic, where users are headed after a ChatGPT session, and why marketers should pay close attention.
ChatGPT’s Growing Influence on Web Traffic
Between October 2024 and February 2026, researchers sifted through more than one billion lines of U.S. clickstream data collected from both mobile and desktop devices. The data set, drawn from Semrush’s 200‑million‑user panel, captures every page a user visits, the time spent on each, and the sequence of interactions. This granular view allowed analysts to map the path from a ChatGPT prompt to the next website a user lands on.
One of the most striking findings is the explosive rise in outbound referrals. In 2025 alone, traffic that ChatGPT sends to other sites jumped 206% compared with the previous year. By November 2025, total ChatGPT visits had plateaued at roughly one billion sessions per month, a level that has held steady through early 2026.
When users leave ChatGPT, the destinations are surprisingly concentrated. Over 30% of all referrals funnel to just ten domains, and more than 20% head straight to Google. The rest of the traffic is spread across a wide range of niche sites, e-commerce platforms, and content hubs.
How Users Are Engaging With ChatGPT
Beyond the sheer volume of referrals, the way people interact with the chatbot is evolving. The AI’s built‑in search feature—available when users click the “search” button—has seen a decline in usage. As of February 2026, only 34.5% of queries trigger the search function, down from 46% in late 2024. This means that for the majority of sessions, ChatGPT’s responses are generated from its internal training data rather than live web results.
At the same time, user engagement per session is increasing. After a year of flat activity, the average number of prompts per session rose by 50% during the last four months of the study period. Users are asking more questions, exploring deeper topics, and spending more time within the ChatGPT interface before moving on.
These trends suggest that while the AI is still a powerful knowledge source, its role as a gateway to the broader web is becoming more pronounced. Marketers who can align their messaging with the contexts in which users leave ChatGPT stand to capture a larger share of the traffic funnel.
Implications for Marketers
Understanding the dynamics of ChatGPT traffic is essential for any brand looking to reach audiences where they are most active. Here are three actionable insights:
- Target the Top Referral Destinations: With 30% of referrals directed to just ten domains, focusing on those sites—especially the high‑traffic ones—can amplify brand visibility. Partnering with or advertising on these platforms can create a direct link between ChatGPT users and your content.
- Leverage
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