At Jademond, we’ve recently started tracking search engine market shares in China due to the lack of reliable sources. Using combined data from both desktop and mobile usage, our analysis provides an up-to-date view of key players like Baidu, Sogou, and 360 Search, helping businesses optimize their digital strategies for China’s unique market.
In October 2024, Baidu maintained its position as the leading search engine in China with a 39% share, though it saw a decline from the 50.06% calculated over the summer. Bing followed closely at 35%, with a slight increase of its previous 36.41%. Google’s share increased to 19%, up from 11.23% over the summer. Notably, 360 Search (so.com/Qihoo) experienced a rise to 4% from 0.84%, while Sogou also grew to 2% from 0.46%. Yahoo’s presence, however, dropped significantly from 1.00% to just 0.01%.
Why calculating our own Search Engine Market Share data?
Our approach to tracking search engine market shares in China stems from a lack of reliable sources, as no official data has been available for quite some time. Since spring of last year, we began distrusting Statcounter’s data due to irregularities that seemed implausible. Upon closer inspection, we found their data sample for China to be too random, likely irrelevant, and too small to be reliable. This prompted us to turn to our own data sources, gathered through GA4, Baidu Analytics, and various Search Consoles/Webmaster Tools from our China SEO clients.
Who is our data relevant for?
While one could argue that our sample size is smaller than Statcounter’s, we believe our data is more relevant and representative for our clients, as it comes directly from them. Our clients are primarily B2B businesses selling in China, so the data reflects this specific target group.
Our Methodology
We focus exclusively on Chinese websites, removing any multilingual sites from the data pool. We then look at visitor numbers from organic search traffic in GA4 and Baidu Analytics (Tongji), calculating the percentage share for each search engine.
To verify these percentages, we cross-check click data from Webmaster Tools/GSC, particularly for Baidu, Bing, and Google. Finally, we take the average percentage values across our data set to provide an accurate representation of search engine market shares relevant to our clients.
About the author: Marcus Pentzek, Director of SEO, Jademond Digital - Marcus Pentzek has been shaping the SEO landscape since 2008, beginning as a consultant in Germany and later pioneering SEO strategies at Searchmetrics GmbH. His deep dive into the Chinese market began in 2012 while directing marketing at Yoybuy Ltd in Beijing, gaining firsthand experience in e-commerce SEO in China. Since 2022, he leads SEO at Jademond Digital, focusing on innovative, data-driven methods tailored for Chinese audiences. His blog posts merge over a decade of global SEO expertise with practical insights into the Chinese digital environment.