Google AI Mode shows the same products 21.6% more expensive than traditional search

Over 23 days (August 9 to 31, 2026), we tracked more than 2 million product listings across more than 100,000 SERPs and AI Mode responses. We ran the same shopping queries through both Google AI Mode and traditional search on the same day at the same moment. When the exact same product showed up on both, the price in AI Mode was 21.6% higher on average. When the same product appears on both sides, how do the prices compare? And how does the overall mix of recommended products differ between the two? That's what this study set out to answer. Key findings at a glance: For matched products ranking in both AI Mode and traditional search, AI Mode is 21.6% more expensive. Looking at all products on each side (not just the matches), AI Mode listings sit 49% higher than traditional search listings. Only 1.28% of products ranking in traditional search also appear in AI Mode for the same search on the same day. Matched products show a price discrepancy 38.1% of the time; when they do, AI Mode is more expensive 68.4% of the time (about two-thirds). The main seller differs on 49.6% of matched products. Finding 1: the same products cost more in AI Mode This is the most direct comparison in the study. Same product, same search, so the only thing changing is which search type you are on. We matched products across AI Mode and traditional search, then compared the lead price on each side. Across those matched pairs, AI Mode was 21.6% more expensive. Same product, same query, same day Price difference: AI Mode vs traditional search, for matched products only. +21.6% more expensive in AI Mode on matched products Source: Productrise · productrise.app This is a fascinating study that reveals more about Google's Shopping Graph and the inconsistencies between classic search and AI Mode for free listing placements. While the higher price might be displayed within the grid result in AI Mode (making the top-level comparison less accurate), what we tend to see is that the retailer with the lowest price gets the click in the end. This research is useful from a consumer perspective, as it is helpful to understand that the products being recommended in AI Mode might not be giving 'price' as much weighting as we would have expected. B Brodie Clark The screenshots below are real examples from our dataset. Each pair is from the same search: traditional search on the left, AI Mode on the right. SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode Same product, same query, and the price on the right is consistently higher.

On this broader basis, the typical product in AI Mode is priced well above the typical product in traditional search: a median of $149 in AI Mode versus $100 in traditional search, about 49% higher. The chart below shows the full spread of prices on each side. Traditional search is on the left, AI Mode on the right, and each dashed line marks that side's median price. Price distribution: traditional search vs AI Mode All priced listings in the study window. Left = traditional search (gray). Right = AI Mode (teal). Bar width = share of all listings on both sides combined. Each side uses its own horizontal scale so the smaller AI Mode distribution stays readable. Y-axis is logarithmic. Dashed line = median price per side. Source: Productrise · productrise.app The AI Mode side looks smaller for a simple reason: AI Mode shows far fewer products to begin with, so it makes up a much smaller share of all the listings we tracked. This is in line with our previous study. In the current data set, AI Mode makes up just 12.3% of all the products shown, an average of 3.9 products versus 27.8 in traditional search. SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode Finding 3: very little product overlap between AI Mode and traditional search Even when both sides respond to the same search, they rarely show the same products on the same day. Across our data, only 1.28% of products ranking in traditional search also appeared in AI Mode. Our July study found a similar pattern at a broader level: AI Mode ranked just ~5% of the products that rank in traditional search overall. Products shown per search, and how many overlap Average number of products shown when both sides respond to the same shopping search. Each square is one product. Traditional search 27.8 AI Mode 3.9 Overlapping products 0.94 Source: Productrise · productrise.app The overlapping product number is an interesting finding: when both sides respond to the same query, they rarely land on the same products. And the ones AI Mode does pick are going against the grain with how Google usually rewards the cheapest listing. Seeing that prices in AI Mode are +21.6% more expensive is a stark contrast to the way we've seen Google rank products within product listings. It's often the cheapest product getting the most attention (and the best visual treatment). Not to mention, Google has rolled out features specifically for price-conscious shoppers. Those same pricing treatments are effectively forgotten in the AI Mode examples. Not only is AI Mode showing fewer products, they're showing more expensive ones. I think this is a small win for merchants who don't always want to compete solely on price. One thing not explicitly stated in the study but something I observed from the screenshots: AI Mode seems more likely to link to the brand's website itself over the marketplace, as we also tend to see. If we're seeing that it's the merchant's website taking priority over third-party marketplaces (for applicable products), this is huge. This is another reason why enriching your product feed data with things like Product Highlights and Product Details helps AI better serve your product. J Jamie D'Alessandro Finding 4: when prices disagree, AI Mode is more expensive two-thirds of the time When the same product appears on both sides, the two prices actually disagree 38.1% of the time. When they do, AI Mode is the pricier one in about two-thirds of cases (68.4%). When AI Mode is the more expensive side, the median price difference is 22.2%. The average is 88.5%, but that figure is heavily influenced by extreme outliers (for example, a used item in traditional search matched against a new one in AI Mode). Price difference when AI Mode is more expensive Among matched products where AI Mode is more expensive than traditional search. +22.2% median price difference +88.5% average (skewed by outliers) Source: Productrise · productrise.app SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode When prices do disagree, AI Mode is more often the expensive side, and often by a significant margin. As a consumer, this hits hard given the pressures around cost of living and economic instability. It also challenges the general consensus that AI provides a better, more customer-focused shopping experience, particularly when you look at AI's ability to lower cognitive load compared with a more traditional search experience, with the price discrepancy in mind. Depending on the market, between 30% and 75% of consumers cite price as the most important factor in a purchase decision, so this discrepancy could directly impact revenue even if you are performing in both experiences. As a brand, it highlights the need for increasing visibility on what AI is showing users. 'Fact-checking' AI in shopping experiences just got a whole lot more important. I'll be considering exactly how 'aligned' SEO and GEO are, focusing more on how I might track shopping feed visibility and aiming to align every data-source I have to 'one price'. T Tristan James Finding 5: when AI Mode is cheaper, the gap is smaller On the remaining cases where AI Mode is cheaper, the median price difference is 7.8% and the average is 11.9%, a smaller gap than when AI Mode is the expensive side. Price difference when AI Mode is cheaper Among matched products where AI Mode is cheaper than traditional search. −7.8% median price difference −11.9% average price difference Source: Productrise · productrise.app SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode Finding 6: different sellers nearly half the time When the same product ranks on both AI Mode and traditional search, the main seller is different 49.6% of the time. Price and seller changes often travel together. Seller mismatch on matched products Same product. Different lead seller. 49.6% of matched products show a different main seller Source: Productrise · productrise.app SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable. AI Mode SERP screenshot unavailable. Traditional search AI Mode screenshot unavailable.