New research reveals drastically different citation patterns between major AI platforms. Understand how ChatGPT, Google AI, and Perplexity source their information differently and what it means for AI visibility.
Our analysis across ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and Perplexity from August 2024 to June 2025 uncovers distinct patterns in how each platform sources information.
[Updated August 2025]
This analysis presents two different types of data with respect to citation patterns:
- Overall Citation Volume: Percentage of total citations across our entire dataset
- Top Source Share: Relative share within each platform's top 10 most-cited sources
Overall Citation Volume Analysis
This section presents the percentage of total citations each source receives across our dataset of 680 million citations. These numbers represent the overall market share of AI platform citations within our tracked dataset.
ChatGPT Overall Citation Percentages
Table: ChatGPT Overall Citation Volume (Aug 2024 – June 2025)
Google AI Overviews Overall Citation Percentages
Table: Google AI Overviews Overall Citation Volume (Aug 2024 – June 2025)
Perplexity Overall Citation Percentages
Table: Perplexity Overall Citation Volume (Aug 2024 – June 2025)
Top Source Share Analysis
The following analysis examines the relative share of citations within each platform's top 10 most-cited sources. These percentages do not represent overall citation volume, but rather how citations are distributed among the leading sources for each platform.
ChatGPT: Top Source Share Distribution
Within ChatGPT's top 10 most-cited sources, Wikipedia accounts for nearly half (47.9%) of citations among these leading sources. This distribution shows the relative concentration among top performers:
Table: ChatGPT: Top 10 Cited Sources by Share of Top 10 (Aug 2024 – June 2025)
Google AI Overviews: Top Source Share Distribution
Among Google AI Overviews' top 10 sources, there's a more balanced distribution across platforms:
Table: Google AI Overviews: Top 10 Cited Sources by Share of Top 10 (Aug 2024 – June 2025)
Perplexity: Top Source Share Distribution
Among Perplexity's top 10 sources, there's a unique concentration in community platforms:
Table: Perplexity: Top 10 Cited Sources by Share of Top 10 (Aug 2024 – June 2025)
Key Findings from Top Cited Domains
The combination of overall citation volume and top source share analysis reveals fundamental differences in how AI platforms approach information sourcing:
Critical Insights:
- Wikipedia's Authority in AI: Wikipedia serves as ChatGPT's most cited source at 7.8% of total citations, demonstrating the platform's preference for encyclopedic, factual content over social discourse.
- Reddit's Universal Appeal: Reddit emerges as the leading source for both Google AI Overviews (2.2%) and Perplexity (6.6%).
- Distinct Platform Philosophies:
- ChatGPT favors authoritative knowledge bases and established media
- Perplexity prioritizes community discussions and peer-to-peer information
- Google AI Overviews balances professional content with social platforms
- Source Concentration Patterns: Each platform demonstrates clear preferences - ChatGPT's Wikipedia dominance, Perplexity's Reddit concentration, and Google AI Overviews' more distributed approach across multiple source types.
Strategic Implications for AI Visibility
1. Platform-Specific Strategy Required
- Each AI platform requires a different approach to content optimization
- Wikipedia dominance in ChatGPT requires different tactics than Reddit-heavy platforms
2. Content Distribution Strategy
- Diversify content across platforms based on AI platform preferences
- Focus on high-quality contributions to key platforms like Reddit and Wikipedia
3. Community Engagement
- Active participation in Reddit communities is crucial for visibility
- Professional network engagement (LinkedIn) matters more for Google AI Overviews
TLD Citation Patterns
Analyzing citations by Top Level Domain (TLD) reveals interesting patterns in how AI platforms source information across different types of websites:
Table: ChatGPT Citations by Top Level Domain (TLD)
Key Insights
- Commercial (.com) domains dominate with over 80% of citations
- Non-profit (.org) sites are the second most cited at 11.29%
- Country-specific domains (.uk, .au, .br, .ca) collectively represent about 3.5% of citations
- Tech-focused TLDs (.io, .ai) show notable presence despite being newer domains
Conclusion
The comprehensive analysis of both overall citation volume and top source share patterns reveals several key insights for AI visibility optimization:
- Multi-Dimensional Strategy: Success requires understanding both the absolute citation volume each platform generates and how citations are concentrated among top sources within each platform. These two perspectives provide complementary insights for strategic planning.
- Platform-Specific Approaches: Each AI platform demonstrates unique characteristics in both overall citation patterns and top source distributions. From ChatGPT's Wikipedia concentration among top sources to varying overall volume patterns, brands must tailor approaches based on platform-specific behaviors.
- Domain Authority Across Contexts: With .com domains representing over 80% of citations and .org sites being the second most cited, authoritative domain presence remains crucial. However, newer TLDs like .ai show growing traction, suggesting emerging opportunities for tech-focused brands.
- Geographic and Source Diversity: The presence of various country-specific domains (.uk, .au, .br, .ca) in citations indicates global AI information sourcing, while platform-specific source preferences highlight the importance of diversified content strategies.
A one-size-fits-all approach to AI visibility cannot succeed given these complex, multi-layered differences in citation patterns. Success requires a nuanced strategy that considers overall market dynamics, platform-specific preferences, source concentration effects, and domain authority across different contexts.
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