Comparison
AEO vs GEO
AEO (answer engine optimization) and GEO (generative engine optimization) are two names for the same goal of getting your content shown in AI answers such as Google's AI Overviews and ChatGPT search. Google treats both as SEO. The one real difference is origin, since GEO was formally defined in a 2023 research paper with a benchmark and we found no comparable formal definition of AEO. What matters is the work you do, whatever you call it.
Sources read 11 October 2026 · by the Heddle team
AEO and GEO, side by side
What the letters stand for
Where the term comes from
AEO
Google lists AEO as a term you may see used for work aimed at visibility in AI search experiences. None of the sources here gives it a formal definition or a point of origin.
developers.google.comGEO
GEO was formalized in the paper GEO: Generative Engine Optimization by Aggarwal and colleagues. The paper was submitted to arXiv on 16 November 2023 and accepted to KDD 2024. It presents GEO as a black-box framework for improving and measuring content visibility in generative engine responses.
arxiv.orgPublished evidence
GEO
On the paper's own benchmark, GEO-bench, the authors report visibility gains of up to 40% in generative engine responses. They also find that how well each strategy works varies by domain. This is a research benchmark and doesn't measure Google Search.
arxiv.orgHow Google treats it
AEO
Google says that optimizing for generative AI search is optimizing for the search experience, and so it is still SEO. Its AI features are rooted in its core Search ranking and quality systems.
developers.google.comGEO
Google gives the same answer for GEO. It treats GEO as SEO, and it points anyone considering third-party AEO or GEO services to its guidance on evaluating SEO advice.
developers.google.comWhat it takes to appear in Google AI Overviews and AI Mode
AEO
The page must be indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet. Google says there are no additional technical requirements and no special schema.org markup to add.
developers.google.comGEO
The requirements are the same. Google says you do not need new machine readable files, AI text files or markup to appear in these features.
developers.google.comTactics Google says you can ignore
AEO
Google says there are no additional requirements or special optimizations needed to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode. It says you don't need to create new machine readable files, AI text files or markup, there's no special schema.org structured data to add, and creating separate content for every query variation to manipulate rankings violates its scaled content abuse spam policy.
developers.google.comGEO
Google treats GEO the same way, as SEO. It says you don't need to create AI text files or new machine readable files to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode.
developers.google.comAppearing in ChatGPT search
AEO
OpenAI recommends allowing OAI-SearchBot in robots.txt. Sites that opt out of OAI-SearchBot are not shown in ChatGPT search answers, though they can still appear as navigational links.
developers.openai.comGEO
The same rule applies whatever the work is called. GPTBot is a separate setting that controls training use, and blocking it does not remove a site from ChatGPT search.
developers.openai.comMeasuring results
AEO
For Google, appearances in AI features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode are included in the Search Console Performance report, within the "Web" search type.
developers.google.comGEO
The GEO paper proposes a framework for defining visibility metrics in generative engine responses and evaluates them on GEO-bench.
arxiv.orgWhich to choose
You want to show up in Google AI Overviews and AI Mode
Neither label matters. Follow Google's SEO guidance by getting the page indexed with a snippet, writing useful non-commodity content, and tracking results in Search Console.
You want a term with a published definition and benchmark behind it
GEO, which is defined in the 2023 paper by Aggarwal and colleagues and was accepted to KDD 2024.
An agency or tool is selling you AEO or GEO
Judge the offer on its substance, whatever it's called. Check its advice against Google's official guidance, and be wary of anyone who promises ranking success or claims to use internal Google metrics.
You want to appear in ChatGPT search answers
Either label works. What matters is allowing OAI-SearchBot in robots.txt.
Someone proposes LLMS.txt files, chunked content or special schema as the fix
Neither. Google says you don't need new machine readable files, AI text files or markup to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and there's no special schema.org structured data to add.
When Heddle is the wrong choice
Heddle publishes this page and sells this kind of work as its Search plan, so it's worth saying when it is the wrong choice. It shows no price and quotes each plan after a free search audit on a call, so it does not suit you if you want a fixed published price before you talk to anyone (https://heddle.pro/pricing).
It is not a quick fix either. Heddle says stages one to six, from intake to indexed pilot pages, usually take three to five weeks, and the first decision to expand or prune comes around two and a half months in. If you only want an llms.txt file or some schema added this week, it is the wrong fit (https://heddle.pro/how-it-works).
It builds one page pattern at a time, and it does not build a page it cannot get real facts for. You also have to provide the claims you can back with evidence, a named person to approve each agent's work, and read access to Search Console. If you cannot give those, the work cannot start (https://heddle.pro/how-it-works).
Every business starts with Search, so you cannot buy only Video or Ads first, and ad spend is not included (https://heddle.pro/pricing). Heddle's agents draft link pitches and enquiry replies, but a person sends them, so it will not suit you if you want everything fully automated without your sign-off (https://heddle.pro/agents).
How this comparison was made
We read the primary sources first, the research paper and the search engines' own documentation, on 11 October 2026. Heddle's page families agent drafted the comparison from them, and every statement on either side links to where it came from.
The page then passed the same gates as every page on this site, including a check of each fact against its source. How that agent works
Sources
Questions
Is AEO the same as GEO?
In practice, largely yes. Google describes both as terms for work focused on improving visibility in AI search experiences, and it says optimizing for generative AI search is still SEO.
Where did the term GEO come from?
GEO was formalized in the paper GEO: Generative Engine Optimization by Pranjal Aggarwal and colleagues. It was submitted to arXiv in November 2023 and accepted to KDD 2024. On the paper's own benchmark, the authors report visibility gains of up to 40% in generative engine responses.
Do I need an llms.txt file for AEO or GEO?
Not for Google. Google says you don't need to create new machine readable files or AI text files to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode.
Does Heddle, the publisher of this page, sell this kind of work?
Yes. Heddle's Search plan is described as ranking in Google and AI answers, and its research agent checks whether Google and AI answers mention you for each tracked search. Heddle's own pages do not use the terms AEO or GEO.
Work with us
Let the agents bring you the leads.
Tell us about your business and who buys from you. On a short call we'll show you the searches your buyers make where you don't show up yet, and what the agents would do about them in their first month.
On the call, for your site
- The searches your buyers makeMeasured, with how many people make each one
- Where you show up, and where you don'tOn Google and in ChatGPT's answers
- The agents' first monthThe pages, fixes and links they would start with