Based on data from the BuzzFeed network, a set of tracked partner sites that collectively have over 300 million users, Google Reader was a major source of traffic right up until it was closed. In fact, in its last few months, traffic from Google Reader increased by 6%.
Most strikingly, it remained a far greater source of traffic than Google+, Google's social network and official Google Reader replacement — by the day of its death, it had actually widened its lead.
Providing over a million referrals a day to tracked sites, Reader died as a formidable source of traffic with an engaged user base. Google+, on the other hand, remains both mysterious to the average user and seemingly powerless in the grand scheme of the internet.
RIP, Reader. You will be missed:
