# What is AEO (answer engine optimisation)?

> AEO is the work of making your pages the source that AI answer tools quote. What it means, how it differs from SEO, and five steps you can take this week.
- **Author**: Marxx
- **Published**: 2026-11-10
- **Category**: AI
- **URL**: https://marxx.ai/library-glossary/aeo-answer-engine-optimization

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AEO (answer engine optimisation) is the work of making your pages the source that an answer engine quotes. An answer engine replies to a question with one written answer, not a list of links. Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, ChatGPT and Perplexity all work this way.

## AEO, SEO and GEO

| | SEO | AEO |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | Rank a page in a list of links | Be the page the answer is built from |
| The reader sees | A list of links | One written answer, with a few sources |
| You check | Rank and clicks | Whether answers name or link you |

AEO and [GEO](/glossary/geo-generative-engine-optimization) are close cousins. People use both words for the same goal.

## What Google says

Google says there are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and no special schema.org markup is needed. A page must be indexed and eligible to show in Search with a snippet to be a supporting link ([Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/ai-features), last updated 2025-12-10, checked 2026-10-20). So AEO starts where SEO starts: a page Google can crawl and index.

## A worked example

Say you sell a INR 899 loose-leaf tea sampler. Your page "best tea for beginners" opens with 120 words of brand story. The answer sits in paragraph four.

You rewrite the first two sentences: "Assam or Darjeeling black tea is the easiest first loose-leaf tea. Both forgive a long brew." The story moves down the page.

Then you measure. You ask 10 buyer questions in 3 tools, which gives 30 answers. Say your brand appears in 3.

**Answer share = answers that name you / answers checked x 100**

3 / 30 x 100 = **10%**. Check again in six weeks. Answers change from run to run, so ask each question more than once. See [AI search visibility](/glossary/ai-search-visibility) for a fuller method.

## Five steps

1. Put the direct answer in the first two sentences.
2. Use the buyer's question as the heading.
3. Print facts with a date and a link to the source.
4. Use one name for your brand and products everywhere.
5. Keep pages open to crawlers.

For how Google's own answer features work, read about [AI Overviews](/glossary/ai-overviews) and [AI Mode](/glossary/ai-mode-google).

## FAQ

### Is AEO the same as GEO?

Most people use them for the same goal: getting named in AI answers. GEO is the name from a [2023 research paper](https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.09735), covered on the [GEO page](/glossary/geo-generative-engine-optimization).

### Do I need special markup for AEO?

Google says no special schema.org structured data is needed to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode. Clear, crawlable pages come first.

### Can anyone guarantee an answer engine will name my brand?

No. Answers change from run to run. Distrust anyone who sells a guaranteed mention.

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