Google Search Results Study & Survey

Lots of consumers start their research for the best financial products on Google, which makes the quality of Google’s results extremely important to people’s financial wellbeing. To help people make informed decisions, WalletHub evaluated popular credit card and banking terms searched by consumers to see if Google is really returning the best results. We also conducted a nationally-representative survey to see how consumers feel.

Study Findings

Only 41% of the top 10 search results meet the user’s intent.

 

On average, the top product recommended by the first five relevant search results could cost consumers around $202.

 

34% of the relevant pages appearing in the top 10 search results show only advertiser products to consumers.

 

58% of the relevant search results only displaying advertiser products are not transparent about doing so.

 

Choosing the top product shown by the first relevant search results can cost consumers up to $1,347.

10 Most Costly Credit Card Search Terms

 

10 Most Costly Banking Search Terms

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Survey Results

We conducted a nationally representative online survey of over 810 people on July 19, 2024 and February 4, 2025 to gauge consumer sentiment toward Google search results. You can find the complete results below.

63% of people think that Google search results were better the previous year.

 

66% of people think Google shows too many ads, while 35% think it shows too many irrelevant results.

 

85% of people expect Google to show the best result first.

 

55% of people think Google emphasizes Reddit too much in search results.

 

72% of people think Google has a bias toward big brands.

 

82% of people wish there were more independent websites in Google’s search results.

 

68% of people think Google unfairly favors their own products and services in search results.

 

66% of people think there are “too many” or “way too many” ads on Google search results pages.

 

68% of people wish Google had more competition.

 

85% of people would prefer better results from less well-known brands over worse results from more well-known brands.

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Ask The Experts

We posed the following questions to a panel of experts to get additional perspectives on what’s going on with Google. You can check out their bios and responses below. Just click “Read More” under an expert’s name.

1. Do you think Google search results have deteriorated? Why or why not?
2. Do you think Google has a bias toward big brands?
3. What do you think Google needs to do to improve?
4. Do you think that the average Google user assumes that Google has done the work to identify the best results for them?

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Study Methodology

The study portion of this report analyzed 48 of the most popular credit card and banking terms searched by consumers on Google with the intent of identifying the best financial products. Sponsored results and other Google features were not considered. For each Google result, we looked at a few metrics, such as:

1. 1. Does the content meet the intent of the search?

We classified the first 10 search results into four groups:

1. • pages that satisfy the searcher's intent and contain product recommendations in text format
   • pages that don’t satisfy the searcher's intent
   • forum pages (which contain a wide mix of responses that take time and effort to decipher and may be outdated and unreliable)
   • video pages

1. 2. Are the products featured on the page exclusively from advertisers?

We evaluated whether the website receives compensation from the products prominently displayed on the page.

1. 3. Are the top results pages transparent about their advertiser status?

We assessed whether the top results are sufficiently transparent with consumers about their advertiser status. If they disclosed this in the top part of the page, in a font that is not considered fine print, and avoided using vague language (such as “may receive compensation”) when showing only advertiser products, they were considered to be transparent.

1. 4. What is the cost to consumers?

CREDIT CARDS

We estimated how much the top credit card from each page would save or cost consumers and compared that result to the top card on WalletHub’s relevant page. This gave us the overall cost consumers incur by choosing a card recommended by one of the top Google results rather than WalletHub. Any savings relative to WalletHub are expressed as a negative cost. We compared each result to WalletHub’s picks because WalletHub’s selections consider far more products than competing sites and are not based on advertiser relationships.

For balance transfer, low interest, and no interest comparisons, we considered the cost of paying off a $5,000 balance over three years. For cards with special interest rate promotions, such as 0% APR, we took into account the introductory APR promotions, the regular APRs applied afterward, and any relevant fees.

For the rest of the comparisons, we considered rewards and fees. In assessing the rewards value of the cards, we used spending data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which you can find below, to calculate each card’s monetary value. Exact values were used whenever possible. We assumed that half of one’s utility expenses would be charged to a credit card. Similarly, we have excluded any categories that cannot be paid by credit card. “Other” spending represents the sum of small household spending categories: healthcare, apparel and housekeeping supplies, for instance. We did not consider earning or redemption bonuses that require the cardholder to use the credit card issuer’s travel portal. Such portals limit customers’ options and often have relatively high prices.

Annual Consumer Spending By Category

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Consumer Expenditures Report).

For pages looking at benefits in specific categories, such as airlines, hotels, gas, and groceries, we increased the standard spending in these categories and assumed users would be using the cards to make purchases only in these categories. This approach ensures the card is used exclusively for spending in its intended categories to maximize benefits.

For bad or limited credit, we adjusted the standard spending down to match the average spend capability that comes with these cards.

BANKING

For the banking portion of the analysis, we estimated how much interest the top account from each page would earn over 1 year on a $10,000 balance and compared that result to the top account on WalletHub’s relevant page. For business and jumbo products, we adjusted the balance to $100,000 to align with the typical use of these types of accounts. Similarly, for student and kids' products, we lowered the standard balance to $1,000 and $500, respectively.

For products offering tiered rates for different balances, we used the interest rates applicable to those balances for the calculations. These calculations ultimately gave us the overall amount that consumers might lose when choosing a banking option recommended by one of the top Google results rather than WalletHub. Any savings relative to WalletHub are expressed as a negative cost. We compared each result to WalletHub’s picks because WalletHub’s selections consider far more products than competing sites and are not based on advertiser relationships.

Data for credit cards was collected on 6/18/2024 using a Chrome browser in incognito mode with a Virginia IP address.

Data for banking products was collected on 7/4/2024 using a Chrome browser in incognito mode with a Virginia IP address.

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