Researchers Maximilian Kaiser of WU Vienna and Christian Schulze of the Frankfurt School analyzed 1,898 online shops and found that a paid ChatGPT ad visit in the United States generated $0.89 in revenue, compared with $2.45 from a paid Google search ad. The October 2026 study covers data through August 2026 and highlights a stark gap in return on ad spend for AI-driven placements.
What happened
- The paper "Can Advertising Fund Free AI? Evidence from ChatGPT's International Advertising Rollout" tracked 1,898 shops over 60 weeks, from June 29, 2025 to August 22, 2026.
- In the United States, a paid ChatGPT ad visit produced $0.89 in revenue, while a paid Google search ad visit produced $2.45.
- The authors estimate a ChatGPT click is worth about $0.26 to an advertiser, far below the $1.72 paid by the largest known account.
- The rollout began on February 9, 2026 in the US and later expanded to other markets, leaving the EU as a control group.
- Paid ChatGPT sessions accounted for only 0.007% of all visits to the paid panel, and conversion rates stayed near 2%.
Why it matters
- Advertisers are paying for clicks that deliver less than a third of the revenue generated by comparable Google search clicks.
- The study notes a 6-8% drop in free organic referrals from ChatGPT when ads were introduced, though purchase rates among remaining visitors stayed steady.
- OpenAI’s own economics show advertising brings roughly $1 per free user per year, while inference costs about $5 per user, rising to $40 by 2030.
- If ad clicks remain low-value, ChatGPT will struggle to fund its free tier without compromising user experience.
What this means for marketers
- Marketers should treat ChatGPT ad placements as experimental and monitor cost-per-acquisition closely.
- The low revenue per visit suggests traditional search ads still deliver superior ROI for direct-response campaigns.
- Brands may consider pairing ChatGPT ads with verified lead generation, an ADFLU service that pre-qualifies prospects, to improve traffic quality and offset low click value.
- Early adopters should run A/B tests against Google search ads to quantify incremental lift before committing large budgets.
"ChatGPT's ads don't pay. Fixing them could cost ChatGPT its users." the paper
The bottom line
- Early data shows ChatGPT ad clicks generate far lower revenue per visit than Google search ads, questioning the ROI of AI-driven ad placements.
- Until OpenAI improves click value or introduces new monetization models, marketers are likely to see better returns from established search platforms.
- Ongoing measurement and strategic testing will be essential to avoid wasted spend on low-performing AI ad inventory.
Sources
- 1.ppc.land