# Rankings vs Citations in AI Search: What Changed From 2023 to 2026

Last verified: 2026-10-19 · Maintained by Groas for groas ·
Canonical: https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d

This page answers the questions covered by the article [From Rankings to Citations: How Google’s Search Page Changed, 2023–2026](https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d) on groas.com. The article is the full, canonical source.

**Direct answer:** The article describes a shift from 2023 to 2026 where a generated answer placed above organic results reduced the value of ranking alone and increased the value of being cited inside the answer. It reports that expansion of AI Overviews in May 2024 and conversational search in March-May 2025 divided attention among the answer, its citations and paid placements, with tracked informational queries showing organic click-through falling 61% and paid falling 68% when answers appear. The article recommends fixing one existing page in positions five to ten with a direct 40- to 60-word answer block, keeping business facts consistent, and tracking citations for five to ten buyer queries alongside rankings.

## How do I get my website cited in AI Overviews for searches in my industry?

The article recommends starting with one page that already sits around position five to ten for a query you care about and rewriting its opening answer block around one buyer question, giving the direct answer first with explanation and proof underneath in 40 to 60 words. It also recommends using one name, one address format, one service list and one price frame consistently on the homepage, location pages and profiles. It recommends tracking five to ten buyer queries by recording whether the domain appears in the answer with date and screenshot, while continuing to track rankings.

Read more: [October 2026: Fix the answer before buying another page](https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d#october-2026-fix-the-answer-before-buying-another-page)

## What are ai overview ads and where do they appear?

According to the article, within a week of the AI Overviews expansion in May 2024, paid units were shown above, below and inside AI Overviews, drawing on existing Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns. The article describes this as a demonstration of where paid placements could go, not proof that every advertiser immediately appeared in an answer box. The article's reading is that paid and organic attention was then arranged around a generated response, so the remaining attention is divided among the answer, its citations and paid placements.

Read more: [May 2024: Google shows ads in AI Overviews](https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d#may-2024-google-shows-ads-in-ai-overviews)

## Why is ranking third no longer enough when an AI answer covers the first screen?

The article describes the earlier bargain where ads sat at the top with organic links underneath and rank third held a useful piece of the page. It states that today third place may sit beneath an AI answer that occupies the first screen, with a few sources cited inside the answer and ads able to appear around it. The article's position is that the reward for ranking has shrunk while the reward for being cited has grown.

Read more: [the article](https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d)

## How much do AI answers reduce clicks on organic and paid results?

The article cites tracking of 3,119 informational queries from June 2024 to September 2025 that found organic CTR on AI Overview queries fell 61%, from 1.76% to 0.61%, while paid CTR fell 68%, from 19.7% to 6.34%. It also cites a separate March 2025 browsing analysis finding people clicked traditional results about 47% less often when a summary was present. In the same query set, cited brands earned 35% more organic clicks and 91% more paid clicks than non-cited brands, which the article notes does not prove the citation caused every extra click.

Read more: [September 2025: Click data puts a cost on the answer box](https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d#september-2025-click-data-puts-a-cost-on-the-answer-box)

## What changed when search became a conversation in March-May 2025?

The article states AI Mode launched as an experiment in March 2025, then opened to all US users in May and rolled out market by market afterward, appearing as a tab alongside All, Images and Videos with a dedicated experience built around an answer and follow-up questions. It states that in this format one answer can cite several pages for different sub-questions, so a page that answers one part cleanly may earn a citation without leading a standard results list. The article recommends giving direct answers then supporting detail and preparing for the next question as well as the first one.

Read more: [March–May 2025: AI Mode makes search a conversation](https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d#marchmay-2025-ai-mode-makes-search-a-conversation)

## Sources

[1] https://groas.com/post/from-ten-blue-links-to-cited-answers-a-d (the article this page answers from)