Google Gemini Stopped Attaching UTM Parameters To Cited URLs

Google stopped appending UTM parameters to URLs cited in Gemini responses around September 28, roughly three weeks after it began adding utm_source=gemini tags in early September, according to tracking by Natzir and corroborated by @Xyborg. Google still passes referrer data from the desktop version of Gemini, and visits with a gemini.google.com referer stayed flat throughout, but the iOS app opens links in its own WebView and sends no referrer, so those sessions land in Direct in GA4 with only the GeminiiOS user agent in server logs as a trace. Google's John Mueller had commented on Reddit about a month earlier that he saw the UTM parameters on Gemini links.

Google seems to have stopped appending UTM parameters on Gemini links, the cited URLs in Gemini's AI responses. Google started adding UTM parameters to links in Gemini in early September, but then, around September 28th, Google stopped. Natzir has been following this closely and he shared a graph showing how Gemini's UTM tags grew for three weeks but then vanished overnight. The UTM parameter was utm source=gemini but I do not see them on any Gemini links anymore. Here is that chart he shared on X https://x.com/natzir9/status/2115404736266666451 : Google does still pass the referrer data from the desktop version of Gemini and he said visits with a gemini.google.com referer stayed flat the whole time. But Google seems to have removed the UTM parameters it started adding https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-gemini-adds-utm-parameters-for-referral-attribution/591754/ in September. John Mueller from Google even commented on Reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/SEO/comments/1wsf8tv/google gemini add utm to results/? that he saw the UTM parameters on Gemini links a month or so ago. Not just me. @Xyborg sees the same drop around Sep 28 in Gemini's answers The cited URLs stopped carrying utm source https://t.co/mCXJAy11c4 ☝️ I've added it to my post on the state of AI traffic measurement cc: @rustybrick — Natzir @natzir9 October 27, 2026 https://x.com/natzir9/status/2115152372842545508?ref src=twsrc%5Etfw It does still pass referrer: @Xyborg @rustybrick On web, yes. From the iOS app, no. It opens links in its own WebView and sends no referrer, so in GA4 it lands in Direct. The only trace is the GeminiiOS user agent in server logs, the one I found and @rustybrick covered: https://t.co/c750oAz0U1 New test 👇 iOS app vs Web App https://t.co/QMFA7QnOdP — Natzir @natzir9 October 28, 2026 https://x.com/natzir9/status/2115404736266666451?ref src=twsrc%5Etfw Forum discussion at X https://x.com/natzir9/status/2115404736266666451 .