Top search engines by user experience: Google, Yahoo!, Ask

Keynote study of search engine user experience put Google at the top of list of preferred search engines in North America. Google was followed by Yahoo! Search, Ask, MSN Search and AOL Search. Yahoo! performs most competitively with Google in the local and image search categories. When searching for local services or information, 82% of Yahoo! users reported task success, as compared to 83% of Google users, and 66% of Yahoo! users were very satisfied with their search as compared to 71% of Google users. Among new and infrequent search engine users, 82% of those sent to search on Google were "very satisfied" with their experience, as compared to 53% "very satisfied" with their experience on MSN. However, among their regular or primary users, Google received a 92% satisfaction rate and MSN receives an 84% satisfaction rate.