Introduction
Search has changed forever.
People are no longer stopping at Google’s blue links; they’re getting instant, conversational answers from AI platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and more. This shift means that showing up on page one is no longer enough. Brands now need to be part of the actual answers these tools deliver.
That’s where Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) enters. In this blog, we quickly break down what GEO is and the best generative engine optimization tools in 2025 that can help your brand stay visible and relevant in the new AI era.
🕰️ TL;DR
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What exactly is generative engine optimization (GEO)?
In very simple terms, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the practice of designing and structuring online content so that it’s understood, trusted, and cited by AI-powered answer engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Google’s AI, and more.
So, instead of aiming to secure a higher position on search engine results pages (SERP), GEO shifts the goal toward becoming a reliable source that large language models (LLMs) reference directly in their answers.
When a user asks an AI a question, the model scans its knowledge sources to build the most accurate response. GEO ensures your content is organized and authoritative enough to be that chosen source. This requires writing with clarity, using accurate data, and presenting information in formats that AI systems can easily parse and summarize.
Consider a baking blog as an example. With SEO, your article on ‘best chocolate chip cookie recipe’ might appear on Google’s first page. With GEO, you go a step further: include precise instructions, highlight credible references, and structure your content with clear headings. Now, if someone asks ChatGPT ‘How do I make chewy chocolate chip cookies?’, the system is more likely to cite your blog and respond with, ‘According to [Your Blog Name], the key is using melted butter and brown sugar.’
In short, GEO is about becoming part of the AI-generated answer, not just another link in the search results.
Generative engine optimization (GEO) vs. traditional SEO
Traditional SEO is designed for human users browsing a search engine results page (SERP). In contrast, GEO is crafted for AI systems, like large language models (LLMs). Below ais quick table breaking down the key technical and strategic differences between the two practices:
Aspect | Traditional SEO | Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) |
Primary goal | To secure a high rank on the search engine results page (SERPs) to attract user clicks. | To have the website's information used and cited as a source within an AI's generated answer. |
Target audience | Targets human users who are actively typing queries into a search bar. | Targets the artificial intelligence models or LLMs that scan the web to gather information for their responses. |
Target platforms | Google, Bing, Yahoo, and more. | ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Google AI Overview,s and more. |
Content format | Content is often structured into a single, deep page that provides a complete answer to a user's query. | Content is broken into clear, standalone pieces of information that AI can easily understand and extract individually. |
Ranking | Ranking is based on a combination of relevance, website authority, and user experience signals like click-through rate. | Ranking comes through content that is authoritative, well-structured, and from sources deemed as highly trustworthy (for factual accuracy). |
Success Measurement | Success is measured by high organic traffic, a strong ranking position for target keywords, and a good click-through rate. | Success is measured by how often an AI uses the website's content and attributes it as a source in its generated answers. |
Technical Foundation | Focused on making a website fast, mobile-friendly, and easy for a search engine's crawler to navigate. | Focused on using clean code and structured data to help AI models parse the precise meaning of content. |
Link strategy | It involves acquiring backlinks from other powerful websites to signal authority and credibility to Google's algorithm. | It involves earning citations from reputable sources, as AI models use these as a key signal for trust and factual reliability. |
➕Did you know? AI Overviews typically pull information from around 13.3 different sources for a single response. This means brands that publish widely and earn citations across multiple pages are more likely to appear in those AI-generated answers. |
Why GEO is important in 2025?
In 2025, the general public is opening the ChatGPT typing bar instead of the Google search box, and that behavior alone signals a great shift. Some experts deem this similar to the time Google search started gaining heavy traction in the early 2000s.
Fast forward to today, and users want direct, synthesized answers rather than a list of links, so brands that appear inside AI responses win attention even when organic search traffic slows.
Here are some stats that display signs of fundamental change in user behavior and why GEO is critical:
ChatGPT processes about 2.5 billion user prompts daily, up 150% from late 2024. It has 800 million weekly active users, doubling since February 2025
A 62% share of users use an AI chatbot every day, and nearly 51% plan to increase usage.
AI chatbots captured 5.6% of desktop search traffic in the US in mid-2025, more than doubling year-over-year.
AI-generated summaries are also widely read. Around 72% of users check Google’s AI Overview answers whenever they appear, showing that people trust concise AI responses for quick information. This shift is significant enough that even Gartner predicts a 25% drop in traditional search volume by 2026, as AI-driven tools take on a bigger role in how people find answers online.
No doubt, Google still dominates the search market, handling an estimated 13.7 to 16.4 billion queries every day. No other platform comes close to that scale. But ChatGPT’s numbers show it cannot be overlooked either; users now ask around 2.5 billion questions daily!
So, while Google still remains the king of search, ChatGPT and other LLM models have already carved out a massive share of user attention in a very short time.
For businesses, the takeaway is clear: ranking on Google is still critical, but ensuring your content is visible and usable by LLM models like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Deep Seek, and more is just as important if you want to stay in front of your audience.
💡 Food for thought: While GEO is gaining traction, don’t overlook SEO. The best large language models often pull their knowledge from trusted, high-ranking sources on traditional search engines. That means if your content isn’t ranking well in SEO, your chances of being cited in AI-generated answers also drop. In other words, GEO works best when it builds on a strong SEO foundation. |
Best generative engine optimization tools to use in 2025
Semrush
via Semrush Homepage
Semrush AI SEO Toolkit is part of Semrush’s broader platform, used by marketers for SEO and AI search visibility. One of the best AI tools for generative engine optimization, this platform analyzes how your brand appears in responses from LLM-powered search engines like ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Gemini, and Perplexity.
Best features:
AI visibility Score and prompt insights: Measures how often your brand is mentioned in AI-generated responses and shows specific prompts where your brand is included or absent
Brand performance report: Breaks down sentiment (positive, neutral, negative), key topics, and share of voice versus competitors
Prompt-level tracking and competitive benchmarking: Track up to 10 prompts per campaign (more with higher-tier plans), and compare prompt rankings and visibility against rivals
AI-friendly site audit and recommendations: Identifies technical or content issues that could hurt visibility in LLMs, and automatically offers data-backed tips for improvement
Pricing:
via Semrush Pricing page
Turn data into answers. Let Fibr AI show you what drives your GEO traffic. Book a demo now! |
Surfer AI Tracker
via Surfer AI Tracker Homepage
Surfer, one of the best generative engine optimization tools of 2025, is best known for helping marketers and businesses improve their SEO visibility with data-backed insights. With the rise of AI search, Surfer introduced AI Tracker as an add-on to its platform.
The tool monitors mentions of your brand, products, and keywords across multiple LLMs and provides clear insights into how often and in what context you appear. This makes it easier for businesses to understand how AI models perceive their presence and influence.
Best features:
Brand and keyword monitoring: Track if your company or products are showing up in AI answers across different prompts and models
Prompt-level insights: See the exact questions asked, how your brand was included (as a source, citation, or direct mention), and compare with competitors.
Source transparency: Learn which websites or platforms LLMs are pulling data from, so you can target those domains strategically
Visual trend tracking: Simple, clean charts to help you spot changes in brand visibility over time
Pricing:
via Surfer AI Tracker Pricing page
Ahrefs Brand Radar
via Ahref Brand Radar
Ahrefs Brand Radar tracks how your brand shows up across AI assistants, search engines, and the wider web.
Unlike many tools that use artificial prompts, Brand Radar taps into real user questions from Ahrefs’ massive keyword database, giving you a reliable picture of how people and machines see your brand. It’s built directly into the Ahrefs dashboard, making it easy to connect brand visibility with traffic and growth.
Best features:
Search demand insights: Measure branded search volume, track awareness growth, and spot keywords linked to your brand
Web visibility monitoring: Discover brand mentions across news sites, blogs, and forums to identify gaps and strengthen citations
Pricing:
via Ahref Brand Radar Pricing page
Writesonic
via Writesonic Homepage
Writesonic helps brands understand and improve how they appear in AI-driven search engines and unlike traditional SEO tools (that focus only on Google rankings), Writesonic shows how AI platforms talk about your brand, which competitors get more visibility, and what content is actually being cited.
With this, businesses can track AI visibility, benchmark against competitors, and take precise actions to improve their share of voice. The platform combines SEO and GEO in one place, allowing you to research, create, optimize, and measure content without switching between tools.
Best features:
Competitor benchmarking: Identify competitor citations, spot content gaps, and find sites that mention others but not your brand, giving you clear targets for outreach and optimization
Sentiment and content insights: Analyze how positively or negatively AI platforms portray your brand. Get specific recommendations on what to fix, whether it’s creating new content, improving existing pages, or repairing technical issues
Pricing:
via Writesonic Pricing page
Otterly
via Otterly.AI Homepage
Otterly.AI finds a respectable mention in the list of the best tools for AI generative engine optimization.
The platform helps brands by automatically monitoring mentions, citations, and brand performance across the biggest LLM models, removing the need for guesswork or manual tracking. With Otterly, teams can see how their brand stacks up, uncover new opportunities, and strengthen their position in AI search experiences.
Best features:
Brand visibility index: See where your brand shows up, which sites get cited, and how you compare against competitors
AI Keyword and Prompt Research: Discover the prompts and conversational keywords your audience is actually using to find answers on ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google
GEO Audits: Analyze 25+ on-page factors to understand what’s limiting your visibility and how to optimize for better AI search coverage
Pricing:
via Otterly.AI Pricing page
How Fibr supports leading brands with GEO strategies?
Fibr is helping top brands and businesses understand how their websites perform as generative engine optimization tools shape discovery. Rather than digging through complex dashboards, teams can connect Fibr with their Google Analytics and simply ask questions in plain language.
The platform then returns clear answers that highlight what matters most.
With Fibr, brands can access:
GEO traffic insights: See how your site performs across campaigns without switching between multiple tools
Demographic data: Understand who is engaging with your content and where they are coming from
Query-level insights: Learn which questions and search patterns are driving traffic to your pages
Fibr focuses on delivering the data and analytics side of the equation, making it easier for marketing and growth teams to quickly see what is working in their campaigns and, in a true sense, improve their local and international marketing efforts.
Intrigued and want to know more? Start a 30-day free trial today!
FAQs
How do generative engine optimization tools work with AI search engines?
Generative engine optimization (GEO) tools help structure your content so AI platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity can easily find and use it. These tools analyze how large language models (LLMs) read, summarize, and cite web content. By guiding you on clarity, formatting, and credibility signals, GEO tools improve the chances that your site is chosen as a trusted reference in AI-generated answers.
What is the ROI of investing in generative engine optimization tools?
The return on investment (ROI) depends on visibility gains across AI platforms. With millions of users asking billions of questions every day, even a small increase in being cited by LLMs can bring meaningful traffic, brand awareness, and conversions. Businesses that start GEO early often see long-term benefits, as their content becomes part of the ‘training ground’ AI tools rely on.
Do backlinks still matter when optimizing for generative AI engines?
Yes, backlinks are still super important. AI models are trained to look for authoritative and reliable sources. A page with quality backlinks signals trust, which increases its chances of being pulled into an AI-generated response.
How can businesses choose the best GEO tools for their needs?
The choice of the best generative engine optimization tools 2025 will depend on your goals. Some GEO platforms focus on analyzing how AI chatbots reference your site, while others help optimize structure, metadata, and language for better visibility.
