AEO vs GEO
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) — also called Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Two terms for improving AI search visibility, with a useful distinction between being named and being cited.
What is GEO?
Generative Engine Optimization is the work of making a brand and its content findable, understandable, and usable in AI-generated answers. The goal is visibility when someone asks ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, or Perplexity a question — not just a ranking on a search results page.
Some teams use AEO and GEO interchangeably. Others use AEO for being named in an answer and GEO for being cited as the source behind it. Neither label makes mentions and citations the same thing: an engine can name your brand while citing someone else's page.
AI search visibility remains the umbrella. Measure both outcomes separately, so the terminology never hides what actually happened.
Compare AEO and SEOMeasure the outcome, not the label.
See how much of your traffic now comes from AI engines, and what it converts to. AI share of visits and AI conversions show observed results, alongside readiness scores and competitor visibility — without revenue-uplift projections.
AI visits and conversions
Track the share of visits attributed to AI engines and the conversions those visits produce. Measure what is happening now, not a forecast.
Readiness score
See how accessible, understandable, authoritative, and answerable your content is, scored separately across the four engines.
Named in answers: Presence, Competitors
See whether engines name your brand and which competitors appear instead. Compare visibility across prompts and engines.
Cited as a source: Citations, Sources
Track which pages engines cite as evidence, whether the source is yours, a competitor's, or a third party's. Keep source authority distinct from brand mentions.
Crawlability retains responses and citations as evidence. Because answers vary, repeated measurements show trends rather than turning one response into a definitive verdict.
Common questions
What is GEO?
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the practice of improving a brand's visibility in AI-generated answers. It includes helping engines find and understand your content and cite it as a source. AI search visibility is the umbrella for measuring these outcomes.
Is GEO the same as AEO?
Some treat Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) as the same discipline. Others use AEO for being named in AI answers and GEO for being cited as a source. These are different outcomes, so Crawlability measures both separately regardless of which term you use.
How do you measure GEO?
Crawlability measures named visibility in Presence and Competitors and source citations in Citations and Sources across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity. It also tracks AI share of visits and AI conversions, alongside readiness scores and competitor visibility. Responses are retained as evidence and measured over time rather than treated as a single definitive snapshot.