Every agency and tool we compare is scored on the same 12 criteria. We use public information, published reviews, and direct testing where possible. Scoring is consistent. No agency can pay for a higher position.

The 12 criteria

#	Criterion	Weight	What we assess
1	AI platform coverage	15%	How many AI platforms (ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, AI Overviews, Claude, Copilot) the agency actively optimises for
2	Methodology transparency	12%	Whether the agency has a documented, repeatable methodology vs ad hoc approaches
3	Published case studies	10%	Measurable results with specific metrics - citation counts, traffic, revenue impact
4	Team expertise	10%	Named experts with verifiable credentials, published research, speaking history
5	Client review scores	10%	Third-party review scores (G2, Clutch, Google Reviews, Trustpilot)
6	Pricing transparency	8%	Whether pricing is published or available on request. Clear scope definition.
7	Schema implementation	8%	Whether the agency implements FAQPage, Organisation, Speakable, and other AI-relevant schema
8	Content strategy	7%	Approach to content structure - answer capsules, entity optimisation, topical authority
9	Industry focus	5%	Whether the agency specialises in specific verticals or is a generalist
10	Reporting quality	5%	What clients receive - frequency, depth, AI-specific metrics vs generic SEO metrics
11	Contract terms	5%	Flexibility - month-to-month vs annual lock-in, cancellation terms
12	Bing optimisation	5%	Whether the agency optimises for Bing (which feeds ChatGPT) - most don't

How scoring works

Each criterion is scored 1-10. Scores are weighted by the percentages above to produce an overall rating out of 10. We round to one decimal place.

Data sources

Agency websites - service descriptions, case studies, team bios, pricing (where published)
Third-party review platforms - G2, Clutch, Google Reviews, Trustpilot
Published content - blog posts, research papers, conference talks, LinkedIn profiles
Direct testing - where possible, we test agency approaches on sample sites
Industry recognition - awards, media mentions, client logos

What we don't do

Accept payment for positioning - no agency can buy a higher rank
Guarantee ratings - ratings reflect our independent assessment
Review agencies that don't have publicly verifiable information - if we can't verify it, we don't rate it
Include agencies in categories they don't serve - an agency is only listed where it has genuine expertise

Update schedule

All comparison pages are reviewed monthly. We re-check review scores, pricing, case studies, and platform coverage. Major methodology changes are noted here with a date.

Editorial transparency

We publish a live AI citation gaps page documenting the SEO-agency queries where AI engines (ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, AI Overviews) cite competitors and not SEOCompare. The page includes the answer capsules, comparison tables, and source data we use to close those gaps. It is updated when citation status changes.

Disclosure

SEOCompare has a commercial relationship with Rank4AI, which appears in some comparisons. Rank4AI is scored using the same methodology. It does not appear in categories where it lacks expertise. Full disclosure appears on every page where it is listed. We earn affiliate commissions from some tool links but not from agency listings.

Our Methodology - How We Evaluate AI Search Agencies