February 2025 Sees Traffic Decline Across Major U.S. News Websites
Latest Rankings Indicate Mixed Results Post-Eventful Month
According to Press Gazette’s monthly ranking of the top 50 news websites in the United States, traffic to the majority of leading news outlets experienced a decline in February 2025. The results were drawn from data provided by Similarweb, which tracks and analyzes website visits in the rapidly evolving digital news landscape.
Following a surge of activity around the inauguration of Donald Trump and various significant news events in January—including an airplane crash in Washington, D.C., and a controversial Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy—February seems to have experienced a return to lower traffic volumes.
Overall Trends
Among the 50 most-visited news websites, only 11 managed to increase their traffic compared to January, while a concerning 19 sites suffered declines greater than 10%. February 2025 marked a reversal of the previous month’s trend, where only nine sites saw traffic losses, and 21 enjoyed considerable gains.
Major Declines
The steepest fall was noted at The Los Angeles Times, which had previously experienced significant growth due to the city’s intense wildfires. The publication jumped to 42.3 million visits in January—an astonishing 118% increase compared to December—but saw its web traffic plummet to 20.8 million in February, representing a dramatic 51% decrease.
In the broader context, year-on-year evaluations for various outlets presented a more nuanced picture. The Associated Press (AP) stood out with a staggering 76% increase in traffic compared to February 2024, tallying 122.8 million visits, making it the only top-ten site to register month-over-month growth amidst declines elsewhere.
Notable Highlights
Despite the downturn, a couple of publications showcased commendable performance. The Hill’s traffic rose 17% to 42.9 million visits, and UK publication The Independent also performed well with a 12% increase, reaching 26.5 million. The Gateway Pundit, which has had previous controversies for spreading misinformation, saw a 9% uptick to 29.5 million visits.
In the upper echelons of traffic, The New York Times maintained its lead as the most-visited news website in the United States with 452.4 million visits, albeit with a modest increase of 6.4% compared to the previous year.
Year-Over-Year Analysis
From a year-on-year perspective, several sites reported notable growth. Athlon Sports, for instance, astonished observers with an 854% increase in visits, reaching 41.4 million compared to February last year. Similarly, India Times and Substack also experienced significant increases, displaying the changing dynamics of the news consumption landscape.
However, not all outlets fared well. The Sun’s U.S. edition saw a staggering 62% decline, while Business Insider and the LA Times also suffered marked decreases, with respective drop-offs of 33% and 27%.
Data Collection Methodology
The traffic data analyzed in this ranking is derived from Similarweb, which employs machine learning and comprehensive data modeling techniques. The platform gathers information from a variety of sources, including first-party analytics from websites and apps, ensuring a statistically representative dataset for their analytics.
Press Gazette refines the final list by streamlining it to focus on those sites with a clear journalistic mandate, thus excluding platforms that may not primarily serve news content.
As media consumption habits continue to evolve, the February 2025 rankings underline the inherent volatility in the digital news arena. Observers will be keenly watching future trends as the media landscape adjusts to the ongoing shifts in reader preferences and emerging events.