Methodology
Updated September 19, 2026
Top GEO Agencies is an independent directory compiled by marketing analysts. There is no paid placement. Services affiliated with our analysts are not promoted here.
How we research and review GEO & AEO agencies
Our analysts build each profile with human judgment and AI-assisted research. The public sources they use are:
- The agency’s own description of itself
- Case studies on the agency’s website, checked against public client mentions of the agency
- Google reviews our analysts verify as authentic
- Third-party writeups
- Social mentions
- How the agency’s website has changed over the years (archived snapshots, including patterns in what was added, removed, or rewritten)
Our analysts also check private social networks they belong to, where practitioners give unvarnished feedback about which agencies they have found most valuable.
What we do not use:
- Clutch and G2
- Unsourced numbers
- Private win rates
- Unpublished retainers
- Unverified claims
Clients named only in marketing are labeled “claimed.”
The table below is the evidence we weigh when comparing agencies. Each row is a question we ask when we evaluate an agency.
| Question | What we look at | How it shows up on a profile | Draft weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| How long has the company been in business? | Founding year or years in business when public | Years in market | 0.10 |
| Has the company’s public history stayed consistent? | How the website has changed over the years (archived snapshots) | Notes on continuity and major rewrites | 0.10 |
| What kind of case studies appear on the agency’s website, and can they be verified? | Case studies on the agency’s website, plus whether those clients publicly mention the agency | Description of the case study and any public client confirmation of the relationship | 0.20 |
| What do clients say in published reviews? | Google reviews our analysts verify as authentic | Short attributed comments | 0.15 |
| What do public social posts or articles say about them? | Social mentions | Noted with the source | 0.05 |
| What do practitioners say in private professional networks? | Unvarnished feedback in private social networks our analysts belong to | Themes from that feedback, used carefully so members and threads are not exposed | 0.10 |
| Does the agency show up in AI recommendations and answers? | Documented appearances in AI recommendations and answers | Sourced examples of AI visibility | 0.10 |
| Is the agency cited or trusted by the media? | Mentions and citations in press and trade media | Sourced media references | 0.10 |
| Which buyers or industries does public evidence say they fit? | “Best for” lines in public sources | Short attributed lines | 0.05 |
| Is pricing, tooling, or industry focus published? | Other public differentiators | Published pricing, GEO-focused practice vs SEO practice that added GEO, tools, verticals | 0.05 |
| How are unverified marketing claims handled? | Claim and omission rules | Clients named only in marketing are labeled “claimed”; unsourced figures are left out of the profile | Gate (not a weight) |