We exported ChatGPT's citation list for "best AEO tools." There is no gatekeeper.
146 citations, 96 domains, 78 percent cited exactly once. Day one of a 90-day Airefs test, and a finding that changes the strategy.
We test AI visibility tools on real small business websites.
Search for "best AEO tools" and nearly every result was written by a vendor ranking itself first. We buy our own subscriptions, point the tools at real sites, and publish the dashboards. Baselines, 90-day results, and verdicts you can check against the screenshots.
Test Ledger
Updated: July 13, 2026| Experiment | Test site | Starts | Day | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airefs, 90-day visibility test | visibilitybench.com (this site) | Jul 13, 2026 | 1 / 90 | Live |
| SE Ranking AI tracking, 90-day test | TBD | Q4 2026 | 0 / 90 | Planned |
| Otterly AI, 30-day trial evaluation | TBD | Q4 2026 | 0 / 30 | Planned |
Experiment 01 is running. Baseline captured July 13, 2026. Results published monthly whether the numbers move or not.
Reports
Five AEO tools compared on published pricing, before we test them
We tried to build a pricing table for Airefs, SE Ranking, Otterly, AIclicks, and Promptwatch. The published sources contradict each other. Here is the evidence.
How to check if ChatGPT recommends your business, free, in 10 minutes
No tools, no signup. A repeatable manual check any owner can run this afternoon, plus what the free method cannot tell you.
How We Test
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We pay for our own subscriptions
No vendor accounts, no sponsored access. If a tool comps us anything, the article says so at the top.
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Real sites, real stakes
Every test runs on an operating small business website. We describe test sites generically to protect the businesses, and blur identifying details in screenshots.
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Baseline first, then 90 days
We capture the full dashboard before changing anything, then log every change we make so results can be traced to actions.
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Verdicts you can audit
Every claim links to a screenshot or a logged data point. When a tool disappoints, we say so, including tools that pay us commissions.