15.01.2018 Media industry
Online News Portal Readers in Poland. Loyalty Analysis
Bartłomiej Dwornik
Among news portals, Onet has the highest number of users. However, in terms of reader loyalty, it falls behind Wirtualna Polska. When looking specifically at news readers, Gazeta takes the lead, though it ranks poorly in Google search positioning.
Poczytaj artykuł
w wydaniu polskim- Onet.pl - 17,322,160 users, 321.33 million visits (email traffic share: 11.6%)
- WP.pl - 14,802,675 users, 321.93 million visits (email traffic share: 18.3%)
- Interia.pl - 13,242,657 users, 174.09 million visits (email traffic share: 12.6%)
- Gazeta.pl - 9,525,665 users, 99.47 million visits (email traffic share: 3.9%)
- O2.pl - 6,522,097 users, 82.85 million visits (email traffic share: 49.24%)
These data indicate that Onet has the most readers, while Wirtualna Polska’s audience is the most engaged. Notably, each of these top horizontal portals offers email services, which generate significant traffic. For O2.pl, email traffic constitutes nearly half. If email users were excluded from reader counts, Onet would surpass Wirtualna Polska in content engagement, and O2 would lose its fifth place to TVN24.pl (62.53 million visits and no email service).
Reader Loyalty of News Portals
Interesting insights also come from comparing SimilarWeb data on the traffic structure of each portal. Although this data covers only desktop traffic, it provides a glimpse into reader loyalty, measured by the share of direct traffic (e.g., visits from bookmarks or manually typed URLs).
Wirtualna Polska leads in this metric, with over 70% of traffic coming from direct visits. Gazeta takes second place, while Onet drops from the top three.
source: Reporterzy.info based on SimilarWeb data for December 2017What if we exclude direct visits generated by each portal’s email services? If we consider this to reflect true reader loyalty—meaning visits for information alone—the rankings change significantly.
Reader Loyalty by Excluding Email-Generated Traffic
- Gazeta - 64.0%
- Onet - 39.8%
- Interia - 38.0%
- Wirtualna Polska - 27.6%
- O2 - 5.3%
In this view, Gazeta emerges as the clear leader, followed by Onet and Interia.
Effective SEO Positioning
SimilarWeb data also reveal which major portal excels at content SEO and optimization. The share of visits generated by search engines indicates this.
source: Reporterzy.info based on SimilarWeb data for December 2017Onet leads in attracting search engine traffic, slightly ahead of Interia and notably ahead of Gazeta, when SEO-generated traffic share is used as a success measure. In absolute visitor numbers, the ranking changes slightly.
Estimated Monthly Visits from Search Engines
- Onet - 72 million
- Wirtualna Polska - 42 million
- Interia - 33 million
- Gazeta - 15 million
- O2 - 7 million
In this ranking, Onet remains the leader, but Wirtualna Polska takes second place. Though its SEO traffic share is lower than Interia and Gazeta, WP achieves significantly higher absolute results.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
New articles in section Media industry
Social Media in 2025. Generational Differences Are Crystal Clear
KFi
More and more people are saying they’re cutting back on time spent on social media. And while this doesn’t mean a mass exodus, the trend is clear. According to latest GWI report, 31% of users said they had reduced their social media use. There’s also a subtle frustration.
Can a Robot Be Good Boss? Researchers from SWPS Look for Answers
SWPS
A robot giving orders at work is no longer a science fiction scenario - it's a research topic. Scientists from SWPS University in Poland set out to find out whether a robot can effectively manage human workers.
Equality and Diversity in Media: European Broadcasting Union Report
KFi
European public media are increasingly focusing on diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) as the foundation of their operations. Public broadcasters in Europe are implementing diversity strategies - both in content and within their teams. The findings from the report are clear: although progress is visible, many challenges remain.
See articles on a similar topic:
Milgram Experiment 2023. AI Can Encourage Violence
KrzysztoF
Researchers from SWPS University replicated the famous Milgram experiment, in which participants were instructed to inflict pain on another person under the authority’s command. This time, the authority was a robot. It’s the first study showing that people are willing to harm another person when a robot commands them to do so.
YouTube vs. Television. The 50+ Generation Shifts to Computers
Krzysztof Fiedorek
For years, so-called "silvers" were primarily associated with traditional media like television. However, research by IQS for SilverTV and Lifetube shows that this view is outdated. The report’s findings clearly demonstrate that YouTube is becoming the new “television.”
Mass Media in Poland
Agnieszka Osińska
Into the decade of years 90. Poland entered with media national, subjected to the political control. Starting from the half of 1989 our media market underwent transformations, biggest probably from the time of the World War II.
Automation of Disinformation. Global Risks Report 2025 and Media
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Disinformation and information manipulation have ranked first among global threats in both the two-year and ten-year perspectives. A particularly concerning factor is that social media algorithms often favor controversial or shocking content, further fueling disinformation.
