In the second quarter of 2026, Average Engaged Time remained highest in Central/Eastern Europe, search traffic increased in Africa, and reader loyalty was strongest in Northern and Southern Europe.
Read on for more audience insights from our second quarter research below.
Compare to our previous insights: Q1 2026 | Q4 2025 | Q3 2025
Average Engaged Time remained highest in Central/Eastern Europe
Average Engaged Time remained highest in Central/Eastern Europe at 38.4 seconds. The Middle East and
Africa followed with 32.2 and 27 seconds, respectively.
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Mobile traffic grows in Africa and Northern Europe
Central Asian and African publishers continue to receive the vast majority of their traffic from a mobile audience as 82% of pageviews came from this device type in both regions. The Middle East wasn’t far behind at 77% and all regions saw at least 60% of pageviews come from mobile devices in the second quarter.
Search traffic continues falling outside of Africa and Central Asia
Search traffic fell across many regions in the second quarter. Southeast Asia, Southern Europe, and Latin America saw the steepest declines, with pageviews from search falling 5% in each region. Meanwhile, Africa saw a large gain in pageviews from search engines, rising from 41% to 48%.
Search traffic is shifting. Learn which sources are filling the gap and what you can do about it in our report, Navigating the New Traffic Landscape.
Social traffic increased in Southeast Asia and Africa
26% of pageviews in Southeast Asia came from social platforms in the second quarter, up from 19% in Q1. Africa and North America followed at 23% and 17%, respectively.
Loyalty strongest in Northern and Southern Europe
Reader loyalty increased across most regions, with the Middle East seeing the largest increase. Northern Europe had the highest percentage of pageviews coming from loyal readers at 58%, up from 55% during the previous quarter. Southern Europe followed at 48%.
Takeaways from our first quarter research
Average Engaged Time across the globe is 26 seconds.
Average Engaged Time ranged from 38.4 seconds in Central/Eastern Europe to 21.3 seconds in Latin America. Overall, average audience engagement fell less than a second compared to Q1.
Audiences are mobile-first.
In any given region, at least 60% of site visits occur on mobile devices, and in two regions, it’s more than 80%.
Pageviews from search continue to decrease.
Outside of Africa and Central Asia, search traffic decreased across all regions. While search traffic is declining, overall traffic to publishers in the Chartbeat network remains steady, a sign that audiences continue to trust their preferred sources for news and entertainment despite changes to the way they find them.
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