Pakistan
USA
Canada
UK
Dubai
Australia
Germany
- Most AI assistants show up in GA4 as referral traffic by default.
- A custom channel group puts them in one clear AI line.
- AI Overviews and AI Mode clicks count as Google organic.
- Judge AI visits by key events and leads, not sessions alone.
Which AI tools pass a referrer?
When someone clicks a link inside an AI answer, the browser usually tells your site where the visit came from. In GA4 that appears as the session source, such as chatgpt.com, perplexity.ai, gemini.google.com or copilot.microsoft.com. ChatGPT also adds a utm_source=chatgpt.com tag to many of the links it shows, which makes those visits easier to spot.
Not every visit is labelled. Some clicks come from mobile apps, privacy settings or copied links, and these can arrive with no referrer at all. GA4 then files them under Direct. This means any AI number you see is a floor, not a full count, and you should treat sudden changes with some caution before drawing conclusions.
How do I build an AI channel group in GA4?
This adds a permanent AI line to your acquisition reports.
- Open channel groupsIn GA4 go to Admin, then Data display, then Channel groups, and create a new group by copying the default one.
- Add a new channelName it AI assistants and set the condition to Source matches regex, using the pattern in the next section.
- Move it above ReferralChannels are checked in order, so the AI channel must sit above Referral or the visits will be claimed by Referral first.
- Save and select itSave the group, then pick it in the Traffic acquisition report using the channel group selector.
- Mark key eventsMake sure your form submits, calls and WhatsApp clicks are set up as key events so the report shows results, not just visits.
What regex should I use for AI referrers?
A practical starting pattern is .*(chatgpt\.com|openai\.com|perplexity\.ai|copilot\.microsoft\.com|gemini\.google\.com|claude\.ai).*. The leading and trailing .* mean it matches whether GA4 compares the whole value or part of it, and the backslashes stop the dots matching any character. Paste it exactly as shown into the condition field, with no spaces. If you later add a new tool, put its domain inside the brackets, separated from the others by a vertical bar.
Test it before relying on it. In Explore, create a free-form exploration with Session source as the dimension and Sessions and Key events as metrics, then add a filter with the same regex. Check the list of matched sources by eye. New AI tools appear regularly, so review the pattern every few months and add any new sources you see in your referral report.
Where does AI Overviews traffic show up?
Clicks from links in AI Overviews and AI Mode go to your site from Google Search, so GA4 counts them as Google organic. There is no separate source for them. Google says AI feature data is included in the Search Console Performance report under the Web search type, alongside normal results.
Google has also been rolling out a separate generative AI performance view in Search Console to some sites, which shows impressions from AI features but not clicks. If your property has it, use it to see which pages appear in AI features. If not, watch for queries where impressions rise but clicks do not, which can point to answers being given on the page. Our guide on searches that end without a click covers what to do about that.
Where do I find each type of AI visit?
A quick map of sources and reports.
AI source | Where it appears | Best report |
|---|---|---|
ChatGPT | Referral, source chatgpt.com | GA4 custom channel group |
Perplexity | Referral, source perplexity.ai | GA4 custom channel group |
Gemini and Copilot | Referral from their domains | GA4 custom channel group |
AI Overviews and AI Mode | Google organic search | Search Console Performance report |
Unlabelled app clicks | Direct | Landing page trends only |
How do I track conversions from AI visits?
Sessions alone tell you little. A small number of AI visits that turn into enquiries is worth more than a large number that bounce. In the Traffic acquisition report with your AI channel group selected, add key events and the key event rate, then compare the AI line against Organic Search and Paid Search.
Look at landing pages too. AI tools often send people deep into a site, to a specific guide or service page rather than the homepage. Check those pages have a clear next step, such as a call button, a WhatsApp link or a short form. If your CRM records lead source, add an option for AI tools so sales staff can note when a caller says they found you through ChatGPT.
How we handle this for clients
We first check that GA4 and Search Console are recording correctly, including consent settings and key events, because AI segments built on broken tracking are misleading. Then we add the AI channel group, test the regex against real data and set up a monthly exploration. We also annotate known tracking changes, such as a new consent banner, so later comparisons are fair.
Each month we report AI referrals, their key events and landing pages next to organic search, plus Search Console trends for queries likely to show AI features. We note known gaps, such as visits that land in Direct, so nobody reads the numbers as complete. This reporting sits within our AI SEO, AEO and GEO services, and our guide to checking whether your SEO agency is working explains what good reporting looks like.
What about Pakistan, Gulf and UK sites?
If you serve several countries, add Country as a secondary dimension to your AI channel report. You may find AI visits come mostly from one market, which helps you decide where to focus content. Use the same approach for language, since people in the Gulf may ask AI tools in Arabic and land on Arabic pages.
UK and EU visitors are subject to consent rules, so where consent mode is in place some sessions will be modelled or missing. Keep that in mind when comparing UK numbers with Pakistan or the UAE. Many local leads also arrive by phone or WhatsApp rather than forms, so track those clicks as key events or you will undercount results.
Common tracking mistakes
These make AI numbers look better or worse than they are.
AI channel below Referral
Visits get claimed by Referral first and the AI line stays empty.
Counting sessions only
Without key events you cannot tell whether AI visits bring business.
Expecting an AI Overviews source
There is none; those clicks are part of Google organic.
Never updating the regex
New assistants and domains appear, and old patterns miss them.
Junaid has more than 18 years in SEO, paid media, web development and custom software. He founded SEOnumber1, builds WordPress plugins, CRMs and web applications, has served 500+ clients in 48 countries, and holds Google Ads, Analytics and Google Blue and Green Belt certifications. He is a National Level Award Winner in Digital Marketing. Read his story or ask a question about this article.