ChatGPT vs Gemini vs Copilot vs Google AI Mode: how each answers when customers ask for a business
ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and Google AI Mode answered the same customer questions in noticeably different ways: in our checks Copilot wrote the longest answers, Gemini named the most businesses but attached a source link to only about 30% of its answers, ChatGPT and Copilot attached links to every answer, and Google AI Mode was the fastest. ChatGPT, AI Mode and Gemini named the checked business about equally often (5 to 7% of answers); Copilot named it least.
In short
- In our checks, all four assistants received the same 181 questions, yet they named largely different businesses: the average overlap between two assistants was about 11%.
- Every ChatGPT and Copilot answer came back with at least one link or consulted page; 97% of Google AI Mode answers and about 30% of Gemini answers had a source link.
- Google AI Mode linked YouTube and Reddit far more often than the other assistants did.
- Only Google AI Mode accepted a country setting in our setup; our setup had no country setting for ChatGPT, Gemini or Copilot.
- Google AI Mode and the Google AI Overview are different things: one is a mode in Google Search, the other is a summary shown with some search results.
On this page
- ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and AI Mode side by side
- ChatGPT: fewer names, many links
- Google AI Mode: fast, and linked to YouTube and Reddit
- Gemini: many names, few links
- Copilot: longest answers, fewest mentions of the checked business
- Google AI Mode is not the Google AI Overview
- Only Google AI Mode took a country
- Why ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot name different businesses
- What to do with these differences
Our data When we asked ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Gemini and Microsoft Copilot the same customer questions, they answered in clearly different ways. Copilot wrote the longest answers and took the longest to respond. Gemini named the most businesses per answer but attached a source link to only about 30% of its answers. Every ChatGPT and Copilot answer came back with at least one link or consulted page. Google AI Mode answered fastest and often linked YouTube and Reddit.
The differences were smaller in how often they named the business we were checking. ChatGPT, AI Mode and Gemini did so in 5 to 7% of their answers, Copilot in under 2%. This guide goes through each assistant, what we saw and what it may mean for a business like a bakery in Zürich or a dress code tool.
ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and AI Mode side by side
Our data The table puts the main measurements next to each other. "Named the checked business" means the answer mentioned the business we were checking, which is not necessarily a recommendation.
| Measured | ChatGPT | Google AI Mode | Gemini | Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Answers received (of 181 asked) | 181 | 181 | 168 | 179 |
| Answer length (median words) | 347 | 390 | 347 | 440 |
| Businesses named per answer (mean) | 4.5 | 5.9 | 6.1 | 5.6 |
| Answers with at least one source link | 100% | 97% | 30% | 100% |
| Source links per answer (mean) | 9.7 | 8.1 | 1.1 | 3.1 |
| Named the checked business | 13 of 181 (7.2%) | 10 of 181 (5.5%) | 10 of 168 (6.0%) | 3 of 179 (1.7%) |
| Response time (median seconds) | 15.0 | 9.9 | 15.7 | 26.8 |
Two of these rows need care. The naming counts are small, so some of the estimated 90% ranges overlap: about 4.6% to 11% for ChatGPT, 3.3% to 9% for AI Mode, 3.6% to 9.7% for Gemini and 0.7% to 4.1% for Copilot. And response times include our own technical overhead and may differ from what a person waits on their phone.
Our data Source links per answer, on average:
Our data Median answer length in words:
ChatGPT: fewer names, many links
Our data ChatGPT answered all 181 questions. Its answers had a median of 347 words and named 4.5 businesses on average, the fewest of the four. Every answer came back with links or consulted pages, about 9.7 per answer on average. It named the checked business in 13 answers (7.2%), the highest share in our sample, although the estimated 90% ranges overlap with those for AI Mode and Gemini.
One detail on the links: when a ChatGPT answer had no links in the text itself, we counted the list of web pages that came back with the answer. So part of ChatGPT's 100% is pages it consulted rather than links placed next to a sentence.
Our data The sites it linked most in our sample were technology and fashion media (techradar.com, vogue.com, itechguides.com), a Swiss tenants' association (mieterverband.ch), project sites such as github.com, and apple.com. These reflect the topics of the businesses we checked, so a bakery or a tax adviser might see different sites.
What it may mean for you (advice): fewer names per answer did not mean fewer mentions of the checked business in this sample. Open the sources ChatGPT linked for your questions and check whether those pages mention you at all, and whether what they say about you is current.
Google AI Mode: fast, and linked to YouTube and Reddit
Our data Google AI Mode answered all 181 questions, with a median of 390 words and 5.9 businesses per answer. It answered fastest (median 9.9 seconds). 97% of its answers carried a source link, about 8.1 on average. It named the checked business in 10 answers (5.5%).
Our data Its most frequent sources were youtube.com (in 80 answers) and reddit.com (46), followed by links to Google searches (38), apple.com, facebook.com and fits-app.com. No other assistant linked YouTube or Reddit nearly as often in our sample.
AI Mode answers can also contain place cards for businesses, similar to the entries people know from Google Maps. We count those as businesses named, not as source links. It was also the only assistant that accepted a country in our setup (more on that below).
What it may mean for you (advice): if you are a local business, check that your Google listing (name, address, opening hours, category) is complete and correct, since AI Mode showed place cards. If videos or Reddit threads about your type of business exist, it may be worth reading what they say, because AI Mode linked to them often in our checks.
Gemini: many names, few links
Our data Gemini returned a usable answer to 168 of 181 questions; for 13 we got an error reply or nothing, even after asking again. Its answers had a median of 347 words and named 6.1 businesses on average, the most of the four. It named the checked business in 10 answers (6.0%).
Our data The clearest difference is links: only about 30% of Gemini answers had a source link at all, about 1.1 per answer on average across all answers. When it did link, its most frequent sites in our sample were websites of tools and companies (for example stytrix.com, inflowinventory.com, discoverfashions.com) rather than media or forums.
What it may mean for you (advice): because most Gemini answers carried no link, a customer may read your name without a click to your site. Make sure your name is easy to search and that your homepage says plainly what you offer and where, so a follow-up search finds you.
Copilot: longest answers, fewest mentions of the checked business
Our data Microsoft Copilot answered 179 of 181 questions. Its answers were the longest (median 440 words) and the slowest (median 26.8 seconds). It named 5.6 businesses per answer and attached a source link to every answer, about 3.1 on average, fewer than ChatGPT or AI Mode.
Our data It named the checked business in only 3 answers (1.7%). With only 3 mentions, the estimated range is wide (0.7% to 4.1%), so this is a weak signal, not a verdict on Copilot. The sites it linked most were specialist and product sites, for example discoverfashions.com, miningpoolstats.net, coloranalysistech.com and github.com.
What it may mean for you (advice): Copilot is Microsoft's assistant and may draw on Bing's search index. If the other assistants name you but Copilot does not, check whether your site can be found on Bing at all; the CheckAI report shows your Bing position for a few search terms.
Google AI Mode is not the Google AI Overview
These two are easy to mix up. The Google AI Overview is an AI-generated summary that Google shows for some searches, alongside links to websites. Someone may see the summary and links to websites alongside other search results.
Google AI Mode is a separate mode in Google Search. People can ask questions, get AI-generated answers and ask follow-up questions. That is why it behaves more like ChatGPT or Gemini, and why we ask it the same customer questions as the others.
The CheckAI report covers both, in different places. AI Mode is one of the four assistants. The AI Overview appears in the Google and Bing section: for each search term it shows whether Google displayed an AI Overview and, if so, whether it named you or linked your site. For some searches Google shows no AI Overview, and the report says so.
Only Google AI Mode took a country
In our setup, Google AI Mode was the only assistant that accepted a country setting. We set it to the country of the business: Our data the United States in 21 checks, Switzerland in 6, Germany in 3 and the United Kingdom in 1.
Our setup had no country setting for ChatGPT, Gemini or Copilot, so their answers to questions without a named place could mention businesses in different places. A question like "Which bike shop near me does repairs on Saturday?" can then get American shops. For local searches, we put the place in the question: "Which bike shop in Bern does repairs on Saturday?"
Advice: when you test by hand (see how to check if ChatGPT recommends your business), put the town or region into the question for every assistant, not only for the ones that know where you are.
Why ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot name different businesses
Our data For the same question, the four assistants named largely different businesses. Comparing two assistants at a time, the overlap of their named businesses was about 11% on average (from about 8% for ChatGPT and Copilot to 13% for ChatGPT and AI Mode). Together, the four produced a median of 17 different names per question, and only 35 of the 167 questions that all four answered had at least one name that all four mentioned.
So being named by one assistant says little about the others. In our sample, 13 of 31 checks had the business named in at least one answer, and only 1 check had it named by all four. Single-industry tests show the same kind of data in detail, for example for accountants and bike shops.
What to do with these differences
- Check all four, not one. Because the assistants named different businesses for the same question, a result from ChatGPT alone does not tell you what Copilot or Gemini say.
- Read the sources per assistant. ChatGPT and AI Mode linked many pages, Gemini few. The pages they link can provide context on your topic, though a link does not tell you why a business was named.
- Put the place in the question. Without it, an assistant may suggest businesses in the wrong place.
- Repeat before concluding. Single answers vary (see why ChatGPT's answers can change). Compare shares across several questions and several days, for example with a free check in CheckAI and then the same questions again a week later.
For the full picture of our numbers, see what our data shows about AI recommendations, and for the terms used here, the AI visibility glossary. For details on how each number is counted, see how we measure.