--- title: "YouTube in AI Overviews: 54.9% Cite at Least One Video" url: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/youtube-share-ai-overview-sources description: "YouTube in AI Overviews: 54.9% of Google AI Overviews with sources cite a YouTube video, and YouTube supplies 14.8% of all citations. See the data." lang: en --- Share Share on X: https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fyoutube-share-ai-overview-sources&text=54.9%25%20of%20Google%27s%20AI%20Overviews%20Cite%20at%20Least%20One%20YouTube%20Video Share on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fyoutube-share-ai-overview-sources Share on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fyoutube-share-ai-overview-sources Share on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fyoutube-share-ai-overview-sources&title=54.9%25%20of%20Google%27s%20AI%20Overviews%20Cite%20at%20Least%20One%20YouTube%20Video **54.9%** of Google's AI Overviews that list sources cite at least one YouTube video, and YouTube supplies 14.8% of all AI Overview citations, six times as many as Reddit. For roofing searches, 86.7% of AI Overviews cite a YouTube video. Analysis of 55,442 citations in 7,505 Google AI Overviews · Google search results for 20,000 commercial searches, September 2026 ## Key Findings 1. 1. **54.9%** of Google AI Overviews that list sources cite at least one YouTube video. Copy stat 2. 2. YouTube supplies **14.8%** of all citations in Google's AI Overviews, 8,220 links, more than any other website. Copy stat 3. 3. Google's AI Overviews cite YouTube **8,220** times, six times Reddit's 1,366 citations and eight times Wikipedia's 1,025. Copy stat 4. 4. **86.7%** of Google AI Overviews for roofing searches cite a YouTube video, against 8.1% for real estate searches. Copy stat 5. 5. On mobile, YouTube supplies **12.9%** of the sources cited in Google's AI Overviews. Copy stat ## Summary A homeowner searches Google for how to fix a leaking roof vent. The AI Overview at the top of the results explains the steps, and among the sources under it is a YouTube video of a roofer doing the job. That is not unusual: for roofing searches, nearly nine AI Overviews in ten cite a video. AI Overviews are the AI summaries Google shows above its search results, and the sources they cite are the links searchers see first. Knowing how often those sources are videos tells a business whether a short video could earn a place in that answer, next to or ahead of written articles. **54.9%** of AI Overviews with sources cite at least one YouTube video, and YouTube is the most-cited website by a wide margin, with 14.8% of all citations. In trades and software, video is cited in most AI Overviews; in real estate, it barely appears. ## What we measured On September 23, 2026 we searched 20,000 commercial and service keywords from 24 industries, from roofing and HVAC to banking and real estate, on Google desktop in the US. 7,505 of those searches showed an AI Overview with a list of sources, and those AI Overviews cited 55,442 links. We repeated the searches on mobile for the first 10,000 keywords, which produced 29,093 citations. A citation is one source link shown with an AI Overview. For each citation we recorded its website, then counted YouTube's share of all citations and the share of AI Overviews that cite at least one YouTube video, overall and by industry. An AI Overview cites 7.4 sources on average, with a median of 7. ## YouTube is the most cited source in AI Overviews 14.8% of all Google AI Overview citations point to YouTube. YouTube receives 8,220 citations. The next entry is google.com itself, mostly Google Shopping cards and search links, at 12.1%. Among independent websites, Reddit (2.5%) and Wikipedia (1.9%) are far behind, and real estate portals, retailers and finance sites fill the rest of the top 12. Share of AI Overview citations by website YouTube 14.8% google.com 12.1% Reddit 2.5% Wikipedia 1.9% Facebook 1.4% Amazon 1.1% Zillow 1% Redfin 0.8% IRS.gov 0.8% Realtor.com 0.7% NerdWallet 0.7% Home Depot 0.7% Source: Suff Digital analysis of 55,442 citations in 7,505 Google AI Overviews · Google search results for 20,000 commercial searches, September 2026 YouTube is the most-cited source in Google's AI Overviews, ahead of every publisher, forum and reference site. For a business, that makes a video one of the most direct routes into the sources a searcher sees first. ## More than half of AI Overviews cite a video 54.9% of AI Overviews with sources link at least one YouTube video. With 7.4 sources in the average AI Overview, a video is usually one of several links rather than the only one, but it is present in more AI Overviews than not. On mobile the pattern holds: YouTube supplies 12.9% of the 29,093 citations shown on phones. A business that makes a video answer to a common question can appear in the AI Overview whichever device the searcher uses. ## Trades and software rely on video, real estate does not Roofing AI Overviews cite YouTube 86.7% of the time and software (SaaS) 85.4%. Auto dealers (80.3%), home remodeling (76.9%), plumbing (74.2%) and HVAC (71.8%) follow. These are subjects where people want to see how something works or how to fix it, and a video shows it better than text. AI Overviews citing YouTube by industry Roofing 86.7% SaaS 85.4% Auto dealers 80.3% Home remodeling 76.9% Plumbing 74.2% HVAC 71.8% Pest control 70% Home security 69% Insurance 49% Weddings 45% Accounting 38% Mortgage 37.4% Banking and loans 36.7% Higher education 32.8% Real estate 8.1% Real estate AI Overviews cite YouTube 8.1% of the time, far below every other industry. Listing portals such as Zillow, Redfin and Realtor.com take those citations instead, because real estate searches are about specific homes and prices. Higher education (32.8%), banking (36.7%) and mortgage (37.4%) are also low, as official and financial sources lead those answers. ## What this means for businesses in trades and software If you sell to people who need to understand or fix something, publish short YouTube videos that answer the exact questions your customers search, and title each one with the question. In roofing, HVAC, plumbing, home remodeling and software, AI Overviews cite a YouTube video more often than not, so a short video answer can put your business among the first sources a searcher sees. Add a clear description and chapters to each video, link it from the matching page on your website, and keep it current. In finance and real estate, video carries less weight, and listing portals and finance publishers take the citations, so match the format to your industry. Working with an ai seo company (https://www.suffdigital.com/seo/ai-seo-services) shows which formats and sources Google's AI Overviews cite for your searches. ## Embed this research Paste this on your site to embed the charts. It links back to the source automatically.

Source: 54.9% of Google's AI Overviews Cite at Least One YouTube Video - Suff Digital

## Cite this study APA Suff Digital. (2026). 54.9% of Google's AI Overviews Cite at Least One YouTube Video. https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/youtube-share-ai-overview-sources Plain link 54.9% of Google's AI Overviews Cite at Least One YouTube Video - Suff Digital - https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/youtube-share-ai-overview-sources ## Frequently asked questions ### How often do Google's AI Overviews cite YouTube? ### What is the most-cited website in Google's AI Overviews? ### Which industries see the most YouTube citations in AI Overviews? ### Which industry sees the fewest YouTube citations in AI Overviews? ## Related studies - AI SEO Google Cites Google: AI Overviews Link to Google-Owned Sites in 66.2% of Answers: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/ai-overviews-cite-google-owned-sites - AI SEO Google Now Shows an AI Answer on 57.6% of Commercial Searches: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/ai-overviews-share-of-searches - AI SEO Google AI Overviews Cite User-Generated Content 27.8% of the Time vs 0.2% for ChatGPT: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/user-generated-content-ai-sources - AI SEO YouTube Tops AI Citations: Google's AI Cites It 6,894 Times vs 5 for ChatGPT: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/top-cited-websites-in-ai ## Structured data ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#organization", "name": "Suff Digital", "alternateName": "Suff Digital Marketing", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#logo", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/logo.png", "contentUrl": "https://www.suffdigital.com/logo.png", "caption": "Suff Digital" }, "image": { "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#logo" }, "description": "Suff Digital is a full-stack digital marketing agency that turns websites into predictable revenue engines, SEO, paid media, content, CRO, and web design built around revenue, not vanity metrics.", "slogan": "Digital marketing built for what's next.", "email": "hello@suffdigital.com", "telephone": "+1-629-236-0099", "foundingDate": "2022", "founder": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Matt Suffoletto", "jobTitle": "Founder & CEO" }, "contactPoint": [ { "@type": "ContactPoint", "telephone": "+1-629-236-0099", "email": "hello@suffdigital.com", "contactType": "sales", "areaServed": "US", "availableLanguage": [ "en" ] } ], "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "addressLocality": "Nashville", "addressRegion": "TN", "postalCode": "37219", "addressCountry": "US" }, "areaServed": { "@type": "Country", "name": "United States" }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/company/suff-digital/", "https://www.instagram.com/suffdigital/", "https://www.youtube.com/@suffdigitalmarketing", "https://www.tiktok.com/@suffdigital" ], "knowsAbout": [ "Search Engine Optimization", "Pay-Per-Click Advertising", "Paid Social Advertising", "Conversion Rate Optimization", "Web Design", "Digital PR", "Link Building", "Website Migration", "Website Maintenance and Support", "Technical SEO", "Local SEO", "AI Search Optimization" ], "hasOfferCatalog": { "@type": "OfferCatalog", "name": "Suff Digital Services", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Search Engine Optimization (SEO)", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/ppc" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Paid Social Advertising", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/paid-social" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/cro" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Web Design", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/web-design" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Digital PR & Link Building", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/digital-pr" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Website Migration", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/website-migration" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Website Maintenance & Support", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/services/website-maintenance" } } ] } }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#website", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/", "name": "Suff Digital", "inLanguage": "en-US", "publisher": { "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#organization" } } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Article", "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/youtube-share-ai-overview-sources#article", "headline": "54.9% of Google's AI Overviews Cite at Least One YouTube Video", "description": "54.9% of Google's AI Overviews that list sources cite at least one YouTube video, and YouTube supplies 14.8% of all AI Overview citations, six times as many as Reddit. 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