Since the advent of ChatGPT, there has been an accelerating downward trend in growth rate of traffic in StackOverflow. If one were to extrapolate the traffic from before the release of ChatGPT, currently there is a ~12% difference between expected traffic and real traffic. Over 60% of the difference has happened in the last 7 days.
by aix1 on 4/2/23, 1:48 PM
1. What's the source of the data?
2. How is the extrapolation done? ("If one were to extrapolate...")
3. The headline (12% drop in the last week) contradicts the body of the post (60% of a 12% difference in the last week).
It would not surprise me in the slightest if Stack Overflow was becoming less popular. However, without more details the post comes across as just pulling numbers out of thin air.
by mwint on 4/2/23, 2:32 PM
How are you measuring this? SO often sees a drop in traffic on/around spring break.
However, there is a broader falling trend in traffic dating back to ~2019, if I remember correctly.
by glanzwulf on 4/2/23, 7:24 AM
Either it's ChatGPT or it's all the layoffs. You don't need StackOverflow if you're not working
by matjazdrolc on 4/2/23, 9:06 AM
This is anecdotal. In my search results, StackOverflow is less often the top result. Often I find solutions in GitHub issues, blogs, or first-party documentation. The bar for first-party docs has been raised in recent years - new React docs are one such example.
by d0mine on 4/2/23, 2:28 PM
Clickbaity as hell:
- title: "traffic .. falls ~12% last week"
- body: "accelerating downward trend in _growth rate_"
what it means if true: the SO traffic grows but slower than some implicit "before chatgpt" model predicts.
by muzani on 4/2/23, 10:28 AM
12% isn't very much. 15% change in traffic per month is normal for many sites. I'd watch for a longer term pattern - year, month on month.
by RattlesnakeJake on 4/2/23, 3:16 PM
Oh, that's just because I'm off this week.
by tough on 4/2/23, 2:21 PM
I just have this amazing extension that answers stack overflow questions with chatGPT, let me tell you, that's the real deal
by wkdneidbwf on 4/2/23, 3:16 PM
stackoverflow can be useful, but it’s not and never has been great. it’s very much the definition of good-enough. so i think with AI chat tools giving traditional search engines a run for their money at the moment, stackoverflow is looking at tough times ahead.
by endisneigh on 4/2/23, 11:44 AM
Where’s this information?
by badpun on 4/2/23, 3:04 PM
Please correct the title to reflect what has actually taken place.
by mejutoco on 4/2/23, 12:07 PM
Maybe closing the jobs sections removed some seasonal visits too.
by revskill on 4/2/23, 1:22 PM
Stackoverflow and reddit has broken login. I dont have sny sccounts on them.