Google shows a People Also Ask box, the list of related questions that expand into short answers from websites, on 88.2% of desktop searches and 88.1% of mobile searches. For roofing searches the rate is 98%.
Analysis of 30,000 Google results pages · Google US search results, September 2026
Key Findings
- 1.Google shows a People Also Ask box on 88.2% of desktop searches and 88.1% of mobile searches, nearly nine searches in ten.
- 2.Google searches that show an AI Overview also show a People Also Ask box 94.3% of the time, against 79.8% for searches without one.
- 3.Google shows a People Also Ask box on 98% of roofing searches, against 72.2% of real estate searches.
- 4.Google shows a People Also Ask box on 92.2% of commercial searches, where people compare options, against 65.4% of searches for a specific website.
- 5.Dental searches show a People Also Ask box on 92.3% of Google mobile results, against 81.3% on desktop, an 11-point gap between devices.
Summary
Someone searches "how much does a new roof cost". Before any website appears, Google shows a box of related questions: "How long does a roof last?", "Does insurance cover roof replacement?", "What is the cheapest roofing material?". Each one opens to a short answer taken from a website, with a link underneath. For a roofer, every one of those questions is a chance to be seen on page one.
People Also Ask gives a business extra space on Google's first page without outranking anyone for the main search: a good answer to one related question can put your website in the box. The questions also show what searchers want to know next, which makes them a free list of content ideas for every keyword you target.
It is now close to a fixed part of the page. Google shows a People Also Ask box on 88.2% of desktop searches and 88.1% of mobile searches. It appears alongside AI Overviews more often than not, and in home service and legal searches it is almost guaranteed, reaching 98% for roofing.
What we measured
On September 23, 2026 we checked 20,000 desktop and 10,000 mobile Google results pages for US keywords across 24 industries and recorded every feature on page one. A page counts if it shows a People Also Ask box.
We split the rate by device, by industry, by monthly search volume, by whether the same page also showed an AI Overview (the AI-written summary Google places above the ordinary results), and by search intent, what the person searching wants: to compare options (commercial), buy or hire (transactional), learn something (informational) or reach a specific website (navigational).
Nine searches in ten show People Also Ask
The rate is the same on both devices, 88.2% on desktop and 88.1% on mobile, so the box is a standard part of Google's page rather than a mobile or desktop feature. Unlike the featured snippet, the single boxed answer that has almost vanished from Google, People Also Ask is everywhere.
What the searcher wants shapes the rate. Commercial searches, where people compare options, show a People Also Ask box 92.2% of the time and transactional searches 90.9%. Navigational searches, where people look for a specific website, show it 65.4% of the time, because the searcher already knows where they are going. The busiest keywords show it slightly less often: 82.9% for keywords searched 100,000 or more times a month.
People Also Ask and AI Overviews travel together
The two features appear side by side more often than not. When a Google search shows an AI Overview, a People Also Ask box appears 94.3% of the time. When it does not, the rate drops to 79.8%, about 15 points lower.
Source: Suff Digital analysis of 30,000 Google results pages · Google US search results, September 2026
Both features show up on searches where people need explanation, so the same page often carries an AI summary at the top and a list of follow-up questions below it. For a business, that means two separate ways onto page one for the same search: being cited in the AI Overview, and answering one of the questions in the box.
Home service and legal searches show People Also Ask the most
By industry, roofing searches show a People Also Ask box 98% of the time, pest control 97.8% and personal injury law 94.8%. Software and insurance searches sit near 95%. These are searches where people have many questions before they hire or buy: what it costs, how long it takes, what is covered.
Source: Suff Digital analysis of 30,000 Google results pages · Google US search results, September 2026
Real estate (72.2%) and senior care (78.6%) are lowest. Dental searches show a wide device gap: 81.3% on desktop against 92.3% on mobile, so a dental practice that checks its keywords on a laptop misses boxes its patients see on their phones.
What this means for businesses
Search your main keywords on your phone and your computer and write down every People Also Ask question. Answer the most relevant ones on your service pages or in an FAQ section, with a direct one- or two-sentence answer followed by detail. That format is easy for Google to lift into the box.
Treat the box as research as well as a ranking target. The questions show what buyers worry about before they call, and a service page that answers them serves buyers better whether or not it wins the box. Repeat the exercise every few months, because the questions change.
Turning those questions into service pages and FAQs is a core part of our seo copywriting services.
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<p style="font:14px/1.5 system-ui,sans-serif">Source: <a href="https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/people-also-ask-frequency">Google Shows a People Also Ask Box on 88% of Searches - Suff Digital</a></p>
Cite this study
Suff Digital. (2026). Google Shows a People Also Ask Box on 88% of Searches. https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/people-also-ask-frequency
Google Shows a People Also Ask Box on 88% of Searches - Suff Digital - https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/people-also-ask-frequency
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