In a surprising turn of events, Google’s global search market share dropped below 90% for the first time in nearly a decade. According to Statcounter, this marks the first time since 2015 that Google’s share fell below this critical threshold, with its market share staying under 90% throughout the final quarter of 2024.

The Numbers: Google’s market share dipped to 89.34% in October, 89.99% in November, and 89.73% in December. For comparison, the last time Google’s search share was below 90% was in 2015, when it recorded 89.62% in January, 89.47% in February, and 89.52% in March.

Why It Matters: As the saying goes, “one’s a dot, two’s a line, and three’s a trend.” Clearly, we’re witnessing a trend of Google losing ground in the search engine market.
Where’s the Decline? Most regions saw relatively stable figures, but Asia stands out as a major factor in the global drop, contributing significantly to Google’s overall decline.

U.S. Impact: Google’s U.S. search market share peaked at 90.37% in November, only to fall to 87.39% by December. Throughout the rest of 2024, Google’s U.S. share fluctuated between 86-88%.
The Bigger Picture: Google has long been under scrutiny for the diminishing quality of its search results, even as it maintained a near-monopoly with 90-92% market share over the past decade. Could this be the first sign of a shift, with users moving away to alternative search engines? This trend will be crucial to watch in the months ahead.

Where Are Users Going? Statcounter’s data shows that while alternatives like AI-powered search engines (ChatGPT Search, Perplexity) aren’t directly tracked, platforms like Bing, Yahoo, Yandex, and Baidu gained some of Google’s lost market share. Bing, in particular, hovered around 4% during the last five months of 2024.
Is This a Fluke? You might remember the excitement earlier in the year when it seemed like Google had lost a significant chunk of market share. However, Statcounter later revised those figures. This time, however, the dip seems legitimate, as Google’s share remained under 90% for three consecutive months in the final quarter of 2024.

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