{"id":3026,"date":"2025-07-21T16:49:41","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T16:49:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/does-ranking-higher-on-google-mean-youll-get-cited-in-ai-overviews\/"},"modified":"2025-07-21T16:49:41","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T16:49:41","slug":"does-ranking-higher-on-google-mean-youll-get-cited-in-ai-overviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/does-ranking-higher-on-google-mean-youll-get-cited-in-ai-overviews\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Ranking Higher on Google Mean You&#8217;ll Get Cited in AI Overviews?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>If you rank well in traditional search results, does that mean you\u2019ll get cited in AI Overviews?<\/p>\n<p>We decided to find\u00a0out.<\/p>\n<p>We pulled one million keywords that triggered AI Overviews and extracted the top three links cited within those AIOs: a total of 1.9 million citation links in our database.<\/p>\n<p>We then analyzed the relationship between:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Where websites ranked in Google\u2019s traditional top 10 results<\/li>\n<li>Whether and where those same websites got cited in AI Overviews<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewbox=\"0 0 14 14\" style=\"\"><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\"\/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style=\"\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Rankings matter for AI Overviews, just not as much as you think\" data-section=\"rankings-matter\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-190027-_7brhel9xr0i5\"\/>Rankings matter for AI Overviews, just not as much as you\u00a0think<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>We calculated the Spearman correlation between ranking in the top 10 and being cited in the top 3 AI Overview results. The correlation was <strong>0.347<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>This is a positive moderate correlation, which suggests that higher SERP rankings are associated with a greater likelihood of being cited in AI Overviews.<\/p>\n<p>However, it\u2019s not a guarantee.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1782\" class=\"wp-image-190028\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/percentage-of-pages-cited-in-ai-overviews-by-organ.png\" alt=\"Percentage of pages cited in AI Overviews by Organic ranking position\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/percentage-of-pages-cited-in-ai-overviews-by-organ.png 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/percentage-of-pages-cited-in-ai-overviews-by-organ-382x425.png 382w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/percentage-of-pages-cited-in-ai-overviews-by-organ-768x855.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/percentage-of-pages-cited-in-ai-overviews-by-organ-1379x1536.png 1379w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Even pages ranking #1 only appear in the top three cited links in AI Overviews about 50% of the time. So yes, while it\u2019s true that if you rank #1 in the SERPs, you\u2019re more likely to be cited in an AI Overview than if you were ranked lower.<\/p>\n<p>But that chance is a coin flip at\u00a0best.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewbox=\"0 0 14 14\" style=\"\"><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\"\/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style=\"\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"When you are cited, your ranking matters\" data-section=\"rankings-matter-when-you-are-cited\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-190027-_ffpydcggz6ik\"\/>When you are cited, your ranking matters<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Here\u2019s where it gets interesting. We also looked at the correlation between the position of the cited URL versus their organic ranking positions.<\/p>\n<p>The correlation was <strong>0.445<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, pages that rank higher in the SERPs don\u2019t just have a better chance of being cited; they also tend to be cited more prominently in the AI Overview when they\u2019re included.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-190027-_7895zbq06wr0\"\/>Wrapping up<\/h2>\n<p>From our research, it seems that Google <em>does <\/em>use some overlapping signals for both traditional rankings and AI Overviews selection. But the correlations tell us that AI Overviews aren\u2019t simply repackaging the top search results.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\"><strong>SEO<\/strong><\/a><strong> still matters<\/strong>. Higher rankings improve your chances of AI Overview citations. And if you can rank high and get cited, you\u2019re more likely to be featured prominently in the AI Overview.<\/p>\n<p>However, our study also suggests that there <em>is <\/em>something beyond traditional SEO. While we don\u2019t yet know all the factors Google uses for AIO selection, it\u2019s clear they\u2019re not simply lifting the top search results.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe, as our research suggests, it\u2019s all about your <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/ai-overview-brand-correlation\/\">brand and web mentions<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1769\" class=\"wp-image-190029\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai.png\" alt=\"Factors that correlate with brand appearance in AI Overviews\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai.png 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai-384x425.png 384w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai-768x849.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai-1389x1536.png 1389w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1769\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-190029\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai.png\" alt=\"Factors that correlate with brand appearance in AI Overviews\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai.png 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai-384x425.png 384w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai-768x849.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/factors-that-correlate-with-brand-appearance-in-ai-1389x1536.png 1389w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>If you\u2019d like to track your branded mentions in AI Overviews, make sure to check out <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/brand-radar\">Brand Radar<\/a>:<\/p>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Go to Ahrefs <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/brand-radar\">Brand Radar<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Hit the \u201cGoogle AI Overviews\u201d tab<\/li>\n<li>Search for your brand\u00a0name<\/li>\n<li>Select \u201ckeyword OR AI Overview\u201d from the dropdown<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1819\" height=\"2048\" class=\"wp-image-190030\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar.jpg\" alt=\"Brand Radar\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar.jpg 1819w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar-377x425.jpg 377w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar-768x865.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar-1364x1536.jpg 1364w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1819px) 100vw, 1819px\"\/><\/noscript><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1819\" height=\"2048\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-190030\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar.jpg\" alt=\"Brand Radar\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar.jpg 1819w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar-377x425.jpg 377w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar-768x865.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/brand-radar-1364x1536.jpg 1364w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1819px) 100vw, 1819px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>This will show your total AI Overview ownership, and any growth or decline over\u00a0time.<\/p>\n<p>Any questions or comments? Let me know on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/si-quan-ong\/\">LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script>!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\nif(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()n.callMethod?n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments);if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)(window,document,'script','https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');fbq('init','1511271639109289');fbq('track','PageView');<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/does-ranking-higher-on-google-mean-youll-get-cited-in-ai-overviews\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you rank well in traditional search results, does that mean you\u2019ll get cited in AI Overviews? We decided to find\u00a0out. We pulled one million keywords that triggered AI Overviews and extracted the top three links cited within those AIOs: a total of 1.9 million citation links in our database. We then analyzed the relationship [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3027,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-seo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3026\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ewebtoolz.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}