Are Google Ads CPCs Higher When AI Overviews Are Present?

Over the last few months, a recurring observation has started to surface across paid search teams, agencies, and tooling providers: Google Ads cost per click (CPC) often appears higher on queries where an AI Overview is present, compared to similar queries where it is not.

This is not a universal rule. It will not apply evenly across every account, vertical, or keyword set. But the pattern is appearing frequently enough, across enough independent datasets, that it is worth understanding what might be driving it and why it matters for advertisers managing meaningful search budgets.

What We Are Seeing So Far

Multiple industry sources have reported that when AI Overviews appear on the search results page, overall click-through rates tend to fall. This has been discussed across publications and platforms such as Search Engine Land, agency research from groups like Seer Interactive and Adthena, and broader paid media analysis from Martech-focused consultancies.

At the same time, many advertisers are reporting (and VEN is also observing from our own client accounts) that CPCs on these same queries are higher than expected, particularly when compared to historical benchmarks or similar keywords without AI Overviews.

In some cases, conversion rates appear broadly stable, or even slightly improved, suggesting that the remaining clicks may be higher intent. However, this is not consistent enough to treat as a guarantee.

Why AI Overviews Might Be Pushing CPCs Up

The mechanics behind this are not especially complex, even if the system behaviour is. AI Overviews change how attention is distributed on the page. When a large portion of the answer is delivered directly at the top of the SERP, fewer users scroll. That reduces the total pool of available clicks. And with fewer clicks available, competition intensifies for those that remain.

In parallel, ads are often pushed further down the page when an AI Overview is present. This compresses premium inventory and increases the pressure on advertisers to bid more aggressively to maintain visibility.

There is also a behavioural element. Users who do click after reading an AI Overview may be further along in their decision-making. Advertisers are often willing to pay more for those clicks, which adds additional upward pressure on CPCs.

The Control Problem Advertisers Cannot Solve…Yet

One of the most challenging aspects of this shift is that advertisers currently have no direct control over which queries trigger AI Overviews.

AI Overview coverage is not static. It changes frequently. A query that shows an AI Overview today may not tomorrow, and vice versa. This volatility makes measurement extremely difficult. And Google does not currently provide a native way to segment performance by AI Overview presence inside Google Ads.

As a result, advertisers are often forced to infer impact by correlating third-party data, query-level changes, and performance volatility.

It is not surprising that several third-party platforms have already launched, or announced plans to launch, tooling designed to track how often AI Overviews appear for specific queries. Without that context, it becomes very difficult to distinguish between normal performance fluctuation and structural change to the page itself.

Does Higher CPC Automatically Mean Worse Performance?

Not necessarily! Higher CPC does not automatically mean poorer return on investment. In some cases, reduced click volume paired with stable conversion rates can result in broadly neutral outcomes.

However, what it does mean is that the economics of search are shifting.

Assumptions built on pre-AI SERPs, such as expected CPC ranges, click volumes, and efficiency curves, are becoming less reliable, which is understandably frustrating. Forecasting becomes harder. Scaling decisions require more judgement.

What This Means for Teams Managing Large Search Budgets

For teams spending significant amounts on paid search, this shift is not so much a tactical adjustment as a structural change.

It reinforces a few uncomfortable truths:

• Visibility on Google is becoming more expensive
• Measurement increasingly requires external context, not just platform data
• Automation and AI increase the need for human judgement, not reduce it

The advertisers best positioned to navigate this are not necessarily those who optimise hardest inside the interface, but those who understand how and why the environment itself is changing.

A Final Thought on Google Ads CPCs and AI Overviews

AI Overviews are still evolving. Coverage, placement, and behaviour are changing constantly, and it would be a mistake to draw confident conclusions too early.

But ignoring the signal entirely would be just as risky.

At minimum, this is another reminder that paid search no longer operates on a fixed surface. The SERP page continues to move, and the rules continue to shift. And understanding context continues to matter, more than ever.