The short answer
SEO aims to rank your pages in a list of search results. AEO and GEO aim to get your brand named or cited inside an AI generated answer, and those two labels describe nearly the same work. All three share the same foundations.
Updated Oct 18 2026
Why AEO vs GEO vs SEO matters
Treating them as separate budgets leads to duplicated work and conflicting advice. A crawlable site, clear pages and real authority help in all three.
How to measure or use it
Keep the SEO numbers (positions, clicks) and add AEO numbers (citations on a fixed question panel, AI referral visits). Report them side by side so a change is never judged against the wrong channel.
How I handle it
On my own site Google rewards my framework tutorials while Copilot cites my comparison and how to pages. Same site, different winners, which is why I report the channels separately.
Related terms
- Answer Engine OptimizationMaking your pages easy for AI assistants and search engines to read, trust and quote, so your brand is named in the answer.Read
- Generative Engine OptimizationShaping content and authority so generative AI systems include and cite your brand in the answers they write.Read
- LLM VisibilityHow often and how favorably a brand appears in responses from large language models.Read
AEO vs GEO vs SEO questions
Should I stop doing SEO?
No. Google says a page must be indexed and eligible for a snippet to be a supporting link in AI Overviews and AI Mode, and Copilot grounds its answers in Bing, so indexable pages are the way in.
Which should I do first?
The foundations that help all three: crawlable pages, clear answers and consistent facts about your brand.