What you will learn:
- 1.Side-by-side comparison of the same search on 3 platforms
- 2.Where each platform gets its data
- 3.Why ranking on Google does not mean AI can find you
- 4.The optimization strategy for each platform
The Test: Same Search, Three Platforms
We ran 20 local business searches across Google, ChatGPT, and Perplexity. Searches like "best dentist in Austin," "emergency plumber in Chicago," and "HVAC repair in Phoenix." Standard queries that a real customer would type.
The results were different on every platform. Not slightly different. Completely different businesses appearing in completely different orders. Here is a typical example:
Query: "Best dentist in Austin that takes Cigna"
Google (traditional results)
Showed a map pack with 3 dentists, followed by 10 organic results. The top results were practices with strong SEO, lots of Google reviews, and Cigna mentioned somewhere on their website. Results included practices across the entire Austin metro area.
ChatGPT
Recommended 3 specific practices with explanations for why each one matched. Two of the three did not appear in Google's top 10. All three had complete Foursquare listings and Cigna mentioned in their structured data. ChatGPT cited its sources.
Perplexity
Recommended 4 practices with links to source pages. Heavily weighted Yelp data and insurance verification pages. One practice overlapped with ChatGPT, none overlapped with Google's top 3. Provided the most detailed reasoning for each recommendation.
This pattern repeated across all 20 queries. The businesses that dominated Google often did not appear on ChatGPT or Perplexity. And the businesses AI recommended were frequently buried on page 2 or 3 of Google. The platforms are pulling from different data sources, weighting different signals, and producing different results.
Where does your business show up?
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Book Your Free AI Visibility AuditWhere Each Platform Gets Its Data
The reason the results differ so dramatically comes down to data sources. Each platform has its own pipeline for local business information, and they barely overlap.
Google uses its own index: web crawling results, backlinks, Google Business Profile data, and Google Reviews. GBP accounts for roughly 32% of AI Overview ranking factors. Proximity to the searcher heavily impacts regular results but has almost no effect on AI Overviews. Read more about this in our Google AI Overviews analysis.
ChatGPT
ChatGPT pulls roughly 70% of its local data from Foursquare. The rest comes from Yelp, Apple Maps data, and structured data (schema markup) crawled from websites. It does not use Google rankings or Google reviews directly. This means a business invisible on Foursquare is invisible to ChatGPT, regardless of its Google ranking. For more detail, see our article on the Foursquare and ChatGPT connection.
Perplexity
Perplexity combines live web crawling with Yelp data and citations from authoritative sources. It provides links to every source it references, making it the most transparent of the three. It weights Yelp reviews and detailed web content more heavily than Foursquare data, making it a different optimization target than ChatGPT.
The takeaway is not that one platform matters more than the others. The takeaway is that optimizing for just Google leaves you invisible on the two fastest-growing search platforms. And the businesses that are invisible on ChatGPT and Perplexity today are losing customers they never knew existed.
The Optimization Strategy for Each Platform
The good news: many optimizations benefit all three platforms. Directory consistency, structured data, and detailed reviews help everywhere. But each platform also has specific levers.
For Google AI Overviews
- Optimize Google Business Profile (32% of ranking factors)
- Build topical authority with content that answers specific questions
- Get detailed Google reviews mentioning specific services and locations
- Add FAQ schema markup to service pages
For ChatGPT
- Claim and complete your Foursquare listing (this is the single biggest factor)
- Ensure NAP consistency across all directories
- Add LocalBusiness schema markup to your website
- List every service specifically on Foursquare and in schema
For Perplexity
- Optimize your Yelp listing with complete information and categories
- Create detailed, authoritative content on your website that Perplexity can cite
- Get detailed Yelp reviews (Perplexity weights these heavily)
- Ensure your website loads fast and is easily crawlable
The universal optimizations (directory consistency, schema markup, detailed reviews) should come first because they benefit every platform. Then layer in the platform-specific optimizations. Our complete AI search optimization guide covers the full playbook, and our services page outlines how we handle this for clients.
The Bottom Line
Your customers are not all searching in the same place anymore. Google is still the largest search platform, but ChatGPT and Perplexity are growing fast. Each platform shows different businesses based on different data sources. Ranking first on Google means nothing on ChatGPT if your Foursquare listing is missing.
The businesses that will win the next 3 to 5 years are the ones that show up everywhere their customers search, not just on the platform they have always optimized for. The shift is already happening. The question is whether you are ahead of it or behind it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Google and ChatGPT show the same local business results?
No. We tested the same local search queries across both platforms and the overlap was less than 15%. Google relies on backlinks, on-page SEO, and Google Business Profile data. ChatGPT pulls primarily from Foursquare (about 70%), Yelp, and website structured data. Different data sources produce different recommendations.
Where does ChatGPT get its local business data?
ChatGPT pulls roughly 70% of its local business data from Foursquare, with supplementary data from Yelp, Apple Maps, TripAdvisor, and structured data (schema markup) from business websites. It does not use Google rankings or Google Business Profile data directly.
Where does Perplexity get its local business data?
Perplexity uses a combination of live web crawling, Yelp data, and citations from authoritative sources. It tends to pull from a wider range of web sources than ChatGPT and provides direct links to its sources, making its recommendations more transparent and verifiable.
Should I optimize for Google or AI search?
Both. Google still handles the majority of local searches, and Google AI Overviews are becoming more common. But ChatGPT and Perplexity are growing fast. The good news is that directory consistency and structured data improve your visibility across all platforms. Start with the optimizations that benefit every channel.
What percentage of local searches happen on AI platforms?
As of early 2026, estimates suggest 15 to 25% of local intent searches now start on AI platforms rather than Google. This number is growing rapidly. Google AI Overviews now appear in about 13% of search results, adding another AI layer to traditional search.
See Where Your Business Shows Up (and Where It Does Not)
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