AI search statistics for local businesses in 2026
The numbers that matter if you sell to local buyers: how many use AI to find a business, how big the AI tools are, and what AI answers do to clicks. Each one links to where it came from.
In BrightLocal's 2026 survey of 1,002 US adults, 45% had used ChatGPT or another AI tool for local business recommendations, up from 6% the year before. That makes AI the third most-used source of local recommendations, after Google and Facebook. And when Google shows an AI summary, Pew Research found people click a normal result in 8% of visits instead of 15%.
How many people use AI to find a local business?
From BrightLocal's Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (1,002 US adults, published 11 February 2026):
| Finding | Number |
|---|---|
| Used ChatGPT or another AI tool for local business recommendations | 45%, up from 6% the year before |
| Where AI tools rank as a source of recommendations | Third, after Google and Facebook |
| Use Google to read reviews | 71%, down from 83% in 2025 |
| Trust AI platforms to recommend a business | 40% (32% don't) |
| Trust AI as much as traditional reviews for local picks | 42% |
| Read AI-written review summaries | 82%, and 23% would decide on the summary alone |
| Use Apple Maps to read reviews | 27%, up from 14% |
These are quoted from BrightLocal. They describe the people surveyed, not every US adult.
How big are the AI tools themselves?
| Tool | Number | Who said it |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | More than 900 million weekly active users | OpenAI, 31 March 2026 |
| Google AI Mode | More than 1 billion monthly active users | Google (Alphabet Q2 2026 earnings remarks), 22 July 2026 |
| Gemini app | 950 million monthly active users | Google, same remarks |
Each number is the company's own claim about its own product.
What happens to clicks when Google shows an AI answer?
Pew Research Center tracked the real Google searches of 900 US adults in March 2025 (68,879 searches), published 22 July 2025:
- 18% of searches showed an AI summary.
- With an AI summary, people clicked a normal search result in 8% of visits. Without one, 15%.
- They clicked a link inside the AI summary in 1% of visits.
- They ended their browsing session 26% of the time after an AI summary, against 16% without.
In plain words: when AI answers the question on the page, fewer people click through. Pew also found only 1% of visits clicked a link inside the summary. Our reading (not Pew's): being named in the answer is more about being seen and remembered than about the click.
Is Google search going away?
No one has shown that. In February 2024 Gartner predicted that "by 2026, traditional search engine volume will drop 25%" as people move to AI chatbots. That was a forecast, and we haven't measured whether it came true. Google, for its part, says AI Mode "is driving an incremental increase in Search queries overall" (22 July 2026).
The safe reading: people now use both. They search Google, and they ask AI tools. A business needs to show up in both places.
What does this mean for a local business?
- AI is now a real source of local buyers. 45% of the people BrightLocal surveyed used it for recommendations.
- Being named in the answer matters more than it did (our view). When an AI answer appears, fewer people click the links below it.
- Reviews still matter, but AI reads them for buyers. 82% read AI review summaries.
To turn these numbers into a dollar figure for your own business, try the free AI Revenue Calculator. It has starting numbers for roofers, HVAC and plumbing, law firms, real estate agents, med spas and dentists and remodelers.
Sources
- Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 — BrightLocal. Read Sep 24, 2026.
- Google users are less likely to click on links when an AI summary appears in the results — Pew Research Center. Read Sep 24, 2026.
- OpenAI raises $122 billion to accelerate the next phase of AI — OpenAI. Read Sep 24, 2026.
- Alphabet earnings call Q2 2026: Sundar Pichai remarks — Google. Read Sep 24, 2026.
- Gartner Predicts Search Engine Volume Will Drop 25% by 2026, Due to AI Chatbots and Other Virtual Agents — Gartner. Read Sep 24, 2026.
Common questions
What percentage of people use AI to find local businesses?
In BrightLocal's 2026 survey of 1,002 US adults, 45% had used ChatGPT or another generative AI tool for local business recommendations, up from 6% the year before.
Do AI Overviews reduce clicks?
Pew Research found that when Google showed an AI summary, people clicked a normal result in 8% of visits, against 15% when there was no summary (March 2025 data, published July 2025).
How many people use ChatGPT?
OpenAI said on 31 March 2026 that ChatGPT has more than 900 million weekly active users.
Will search engine traffic drop 25% by 2026?
That was a Gartner prediction from February 2024, a forecast rather than a measured result. Google, for its part, says its AI Mode "is driving an incremental increase in Search queries overall" (22 July 2026).
Related pages.
What are these numbers worth to you?
Put in your leads, close rate and what a client is worth. The free calculator shows the extra revenue if AI named you more often.