To check if ChatGPT recommends your business, open ChatGPT and ask it the exact question a buyer would ("what is the best [your service] in [your city]?"), then see whether your name appears and who gets named instead. Do the same in Perplexity and Google AI. If you are not named, you are invisible to the buyers who now ask AI first. It takes two minutes by hand, or 30 seconds with a tool that checks every engine at once.
Most owners have never run this test. They assume that because they rank on Google, they show up everywhere. Then they actually ask, and a competitor's name comes back. Better to know.
How to check it yourself (by hand)
- Ask the buyer's real question, not your brand name. Use "best [service] near me" or "best [service] in [city]," because that is how buyers actually ask. Searching your own name only tells you the AI can find you when prompted, not that it recommends you.
- Ask in a fresh/incognito session so your history does not bias the answer.
- Repeat across engines: ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews each answer differently and cite different sources.
- Write down two things: were you named, and who was named instead. Those competitors are your benchmark.
- Note the cited sources. The links the AI used to build its answer are your roadmap to getting included.
The faster way: a free AI visibility check
Doing this by hand across every engine and a dozen questions gets tedious fast. Our free AI Visibility Score runs the live engines against the questions your buyers ask, then shows you a single score, whether you were named, the competitors named instead, and an estimate of what that invisibility costs you each month. It takes about 30 seconds and there is nothing to buy.
What do I do if ChatGPT does not recommend me?
Being invisible is fixable. The work is disciplined fundamentals, not tricks.
- Answer the real questions on your own site - direct answer first, the buyer's question as the heading, structured Q&A, real evidence. (Full mechanics in our answer engine optimization guide.)
- Get onto the sources the AI already cites - the roundups, directories, and forums it pulled into its answer.
- Build a balanced reputation - reviews and mentions across many platforms, not Google alone.
- Measure it - track your visibility and your AI-crawler visits over time so you can see it working.
For the deeper how-to, see AI SEO: how to show up in ChatGPT and what GEO is and how it works.
How often should I check?
Monthly is plenty for most local businesses, because AI answers shift as the engines re-crawl and as competitors publish. Check more often right after you make changes, so you can see what moved.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if ChatGPT recommends my business?
Ask ChatGPT the question a buyer would use ("best [your service] in [your city]") in a fresh session, and see whether your name appears and who is named instead. Repeat in Perplexity and Google AI. Or run a free AI Visibility Score to check every engine at once.
Why doesn't my business show up in ChatGPT if I rank on Google?
Ranking on Google does not guarantee you appear in an AI's answer. AI assistants pull from sources they trust and synthesize a short list of names; if those sources do not mention you, you are absent even with strong Google rankings.
Is checking my AI visibility free?
Yes. You can do it by hand in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI for free, or run a free AI Visibility Score that checks the engines for you in about 30 seconds.
What should I do if I'm not recommended by AI?
Answer your buyers' real questions clearly on your site, get onto the sources the AI already cites, build reviews and mentions across many platforms, and track your visibility over time.
Find out where you stand right now. Get your free AI Visibility Score in about 30 seconds and see whether AI names you or a competitor.