AEO is the practice of optimizing your website so AI assistants like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Gemini can find, understand, and cite your content as a direct answer.
Check Your AEO Score FreeAEO stands for Answer Engine Optimization. It is the process of structuring and formatting your content so that AI-powered answer engines can extract it and use it as a response to user queries.
| Aspect | SEO | AEO | GEO |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goal | Rank in Google | Be cited by AI | Be understood by AI |
| Focus | Keywords, backlinks | FAQ, schema, structure | Entities, context, knowledge graphs |
| Measured by | Rankings, clicks | AI citations | Entity recognition |
FAQ schema tells AI engines which questions your page answers. It is the single most impactful AEO signal. Every page should have at least 3-5 FAQ items in structured data format.
Structure your content as direct answers to specific questions. Use H2/H3 headings that are actual questions. Keep answers concise — 40-60 words for the first sentence, then expand.
AI engines use entity recognition to understand what your content is about. Add Organization schema, author schema, and sameAs links to Wikipedia, LinkedIn, and Wikidata.
AI models prefer comprehensive content. Aim for 1500+ words per pillar page. Include statistics, examples, tables, and step-by-step instructions.
ChatGPT and Perplexity prefer content from authoritative sources. Add author bios, credentials, publication dates, and citations to authoritative external sources.