Observed Signal · Jun 25, 2025 · Market Research & Intelligence · Source: OnlineMarketing.de · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
State of Search 2025: How Germans search
Claneo, in collaboration with Appinio, surveyed 2,000 people in Germany and the USA to understand how people search and how brands can benefit. Google remains the leading information source (67% primarily using it), but reliance on traditional Googling is waning as AI chatbots (ChatGPT, Perplexity) and social platforms (TikTok, Instagram) gain traction. Weekly Google usage declined to 77% in 2025 (down from 81% in 2024), while AI bots saw 33% of users weekly (up 15 points from last year), and 13% of Germans use AI chatbots daily. Trust in AI tools rose to 79% for AI bots and AI-powered search engines, with traditional search engines still trusted by 90%. For product searches, Google leads (53%), Amazon (50%), while Gen Z favors social platforms (TikTok 19%, Instagram 17%). The findings indicate increasingly specialized search behavior and the need for cross-platform strategies.
New insights from a cross-market survey on AI-assisted search behavior and platform usage
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Claneo and Appinio surveyed 2,000 people in Germany and the USA.
- Google remains the top information source with 67% using it primarily.
- 77% of searchers use Google several times weekly (down from 81% in 2024).
- 33% of users weekly use AI chatbots (up 15 points vs. 2024) and 13% use AI chatbots daily in Germany.
- For product search, Google leads at 53% and Amazon at 50%; Gen Z uses TikTok (19%) and Instagram (17%).
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Google Trends 2025: Top German Searches
This article analyzes Google’s 2025 Trending Searches for Germany, highlighting how people searched across politics, daily life, and AI topics over the past year. Google notes more than five trillion total queries in 2025 and introduces AI Overviews and AI Mode available in Germany. It provides Top-Ten lists of queries with the largest growth, including questions about the Bundestag election, the Israel–Iran conflict, and everyday curiosities, as well as trending topics like Labubu and the 67. The piece also covers rising interest in AI tools and features such as Nano Banana, Gemini 3, NotebookLM, Apple Intelligence, Perplexity, and Sora. Content is organized into Why-, How-, May-, and Will- question categories, alongside mentions of entertainment, politics, and viral trends. Overall, the article underscores the breadth of 2025 search interest, spanning global events, AI capabilities, and consumer technology.
AI reshapes local search; chatbots join Google
Yext's "Consumer Search Behaviors Report 2026" finds that AI is increasingly a starting point for local search but has not displaced traditional search engines. 84% of respondents say they use such applications more often than a year ago. While 77% still search for nearby businesses via conventional search engines, 41% use AI tools and 39% use social networks. In Germany, 27% of consumers say an AI recommendation led them to contact or visit a previously unvisited local business in the past six months, especially restaurants. Trust in AI answers is mixed: 79% partly trust AI responses, 11% fully trust them, and 96% verify AI answers via other sources. The report signals a hybrid customer journey in which chatbots initiate discovery and users then consult search engines, websites and reviews.
AI Answers Become Second‑Most Important Source
A YouGov study (Germany sample n=1,005; fieldwork 2026-04-21 to 2026-05-29) finds AI assistants and chatbots have become a major information source: 39% of German online searchers used an AI assistant in the past 30 days while 79% used traditional search engines. Usage is stronger among younger cohorts (49% of Gen Z use AI assistants; 56% of Gen Z query them at least daily; 31% of all respondents use them daily). Top use cases are direct answers (64%), summarising web content (37%), fact‑checking (32%) and comparing options (26%). Trust remains low (36% trust AI answers vs. 72% for search engines), and the study highlights risks from hallucinations, source opacity and legal friction (e.g., disputes over AI‑generated overviews). The report notes integration of AI Modes and Information Agents by major platforms and growing industry concerns over discoverability, citation practices and news trust.
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