Key takeaways
- A new study suggests that Google AI Mode is displaying 95% fewer product listings overall than conventional Google search.
- The study showed that standard search displayed products for 88% of queries, compared with just 23% in AI Mode.
- The findings suggest that ranking in Google Shopping does not guarantee that a product will be recommended by Google’s AI.
Google’s AI Mode is displaying dramatically fewer shopping products than conventional Google search results, according to a new study—raising questions about how the growth of AI search could affect ecommerce visibility.
The research was carried out by Productrise, a platform that tracks organic product visibility in Google. Over 21 days in July 2026, the company analyzed more than two million product listings across over 100,000 standard Google search results pages and AI Mode responses.
For each test, Productrise ran the same product-focused query through both search experiences on the same day, using non-personalized sessions in the US and UK.
Its headline finding was striking: AI Mode displayed around 95% fewer product listings overall than standard Google search.
AI Mode shows products less often
The difference was partly caused by AI Mode displaying products for far fewer searches.
Conventional Google search showed shopping listings for around 88% of the queries studied. By contrast, AI Mode returned products for just 23%.
And when products did appear, AI Mode showed a much smaller selection. Standard search displayed an average of 22.5 products on results pages containing shopping listings, while AI Mode displayed an average of only 4.3.
Productrise also found very little overlap between the two sets of results. Just 0.8% of the products appearing in standard search were also displayed in AI Mode for the same query on the same day. That may be the most surprising finding in the study.
This suggests that performing strongly in Google’s existing shopping carousels doesn’t necessarily mean that a product will also be selected for an AI-generated response.
A different type of shopping experience
Over the past year, Google has been turning search into a more conversational experience. Its AI Mode shopping features combine Gemini with the company’s Shopping Graph, allowing shoppers to describe what they need, compare options, and refine their searches via follow-up questions.
That experience is very different from a traditional results page, where users are often presented with a large grid or carousel of products. Rather than showing shoppers dozens of options at once, AI Mode tends to select a small number of products that it considers especially relevant to a query.
This potentially makes AI search visibility more competitive. Appearing among four recommended products is likely to be more difficult than securing one of 20 or more positions on a standard search page.
However, the study’s 95% figure needs to be taken with a grain of salt. It does not mean that ecommerce businesses will automatically lose 95% of their Google traffic, visibility, or sales. The research measured the total number of products displayed for individual queries, rather than their overall exposure across complete shopping journeys.
Because AI Mode is conversational, a shopper can ask several follow-up questions about price, features, delivery, brands, or alternative products. Those additional prompts can create new opportunities for different products to appear.
A smaller number of placements may also make each recommendation more valuable. A product selected as one of four tailored suggestions could receive more attention than an item displayed among dozens of competing listings.
Study limitations
The findings, while interesting, should be treated with caution. First, the study was produced by a company that sells Google Shopping visibility tools, and its conclusions have not been independently verified.
The study also covered only the US and UK and focused specifically on product-centric searches. The findings therefore should not be treated as a complete picture of how AI Mode affects every retailer, industry, or type of shopping query.
Why this matters for ecommerce merchants
For merchants, the main takeaway here is that AI search seems to involve fewer product placements than conventional Google results. This will make using accurate, detailed product data more important than ever—merchants will need to give Google’s systems as much information as possible to understand and recommend products.
Merchants may also need to monitor traditional shopping performance and AI visibility separately. Strong rankings in existing product results may not translate into AI Mode exposure.
Chris Singleton is the Founder and Director of Ecommercetrix.
Since graduating from Trinity College Dublin in 1999, Chris has advised many businesses on how to grow their operations via a strong online presence, and now he shares his experience and expertise through his articles on the Ecommercetrix website.
Chris started his career as a data analyst for Irish marketing company Precision Marketing Information; since then he has worked on digital projects for a wide range of well-known organizations including Cancer Research UK, Hackney Council, Data Ireland, and Prescription PR. He then went on to found the popular business apps review site Style Factory, followed by Ecommercetrix.
He is also the author of a book on SEO for beginners, Super Simple SEO.