Which Chicago therapists and counseling practices do ChatGPT and other AI assistants name?

What the answers show about therapists in Chicago

Our data On October 14 we asked ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Gemini and Microsoft Copilot six questions someone in Chicago might ask when looking for a therapist or counseling practice. All 24 answers came back, and together they named 102 different practices, individual clinicians, clinics and directories. 67 of those were named only once. Only two names came from all four assistants: Cityscape Counseling and Zocdoc.

Cityscape Counseling was named in 10 of 24 answers, 4 of them from Google AI Mode and 4 from Copilot. After that the counts drop quickly: Depth Counseling with 6 answers (4 of them from Gemini), Centered Therapy Chicago with 5, and Lincoln Park Therapy Group, Clarity Clinic and Psychotherapy Associates of Chicago with 4 each. This is one run per question, so read the counts as a snapshot, not a ranking.

All four assistants gave similarly long lists, between 42 (ChatGPT) and 46 (Gemini) names across their 6 answers. The spread did not come from one assistant listing everything; they simply named different practices.

Directories were part of the answer

The answers often pointed to places to search rather than to practices. Psychology Today was named in 6 answers, Zocdoc in 5 and Open Path Collective in 4. Gemini also named Alma and Headway, and Google AI Mode named Grow Therapy. For the question about availability this week, all four assistants named Zocdoc, and Google AI Mode put it first.

The question about alternatives to BetterHelp for local practices showed the same pattern. ChatGPT and Google AI Mode put Psychology Today first, and Gemini and Copilot named BetterHelp itself. Gemini also listed large hospital systems such as Northwestern Medicine and Rush.

Specific questions, different kinds of names

For the question about severe adult anxiety and burnout, three assistants named Calm Anxiety CBT Therapy Clinic, two of them first, and three named Cityscape Counseling. For the question about sliding scale fees, the answers turned to university training clinics, community health centers such as Howard Brown Health and Esperanza Health Centers, NAMI Chicago and public referral services, next to a few private practices. For the question about the longest track record, ChatGPT named only individual psychologists and counselors, no practices.

Google AI Mode showed practices with few reviews

Our data 5 of Google AI Mode's 6 answers came as Google Maps places, 29 in total. They averaged 4.7 stars, 86% had 4.5 stars or more, but the median number of reviews was 31, and one place had a single review.

Which websites the answers cite for therapy practices

Our data ChatGPT and Copilot attached source links to all 6 of their answers, Google AI Mode to 2 and Gemini to none. The most-cited websites were psychologytoday.com and zocdoc.com (6 of 24 answers each), followed by trustanalytica.org (3). healthgrades.com, doctor.webmd.com, therapyden.com, thriveworks.com, the UIC counseling center (counseling.uic.edu), and the websites of Lincoln Park Therapy Group, Cityscape Counseling and Ashé Counseling were cited twice each.

So the sources were mostly therapist directories and booking platforms, plus practices' own sites when the question named a specific concern. For the anxiety and burnout question, most cited websites were practices' own pages.

Where US therapy practices are usually listed (advice): Google Business Profile (it feeds Google Maps), Psychology Today, Zocdoc, TherapyDen, Open Path Collective if you offer reduced-fee sessions, and the provider directories of the insurance plans you are in-network with. Check each profile for the same practice name, address and list of clinicians.

Related snapshots of what the assistants named: physical therapy practices in Austin and dentists in Denver.

How clients ask AI assistants about therapists in Chicago

Our six questions covered general recommendations, a specific concern (anxiety and burnout), sliding scale fees, reviews and track record, availability this week, and alternatives to an online therapy platform. Clients usually add their insurance, neighborhood, the kind of therapy or who they want to see. Questions worth testing, written the way people type them:

• "Therapist in Logan Square Chicago who takes Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO"
• "Couples counseling in Lakeview Chicago with evening appointments"
• "LGBTQ-affirming therapist in Andersonville Chicago accepting new clients"
• "Spanish-speaking therapist in Pilsen Chicago"
• "EMDR therapist in the Chicago Loop, in person not online"

Use your own neighborhood, the plans you take and the kinds of therapy you offer. A question without a place in it can return practices in another city or only online platforms.

What a therapy practice can check to show up in AI answers

Advice: these checks are about how your practice is described, not about clinical work, and most can be done in an afternoon. None of them can promise a mention; they make the facts about your practice easy to find and hard to get wrong.

1. Say who you see and what you work with. Adults, couples, teens; the concerns you focus on; the approaches you use (for example CBT or EMDR); in-person, telehealth or both. Plain words help someone who is unsure what to search for.
2. Put fees and insurance in text. Session fee, which plans you are in-network with, whether you provide paperwork for out-of-network reimbursement, and whether reduced-fee or sliding scale spots exist. One of our questions asked exactly that.
3. Keep availability current. Whether you are accepting new clients, have a waitlist, or have openings this week. Update it on your site and on Psychology Today and Zocdoc at the same time, since those platforms were named for the availability question.
4. Give each clinician a page. Some answers named individual clinicians rather than practices. A short page per clinician with license type, state, focus areas and a clear link to the practice keeps the two connected.
5. Align your directory profiles. Same practice name, address, phone number and clinicians on Psychology Today, Zocdoc, TherapyDen, Healthgrades and your Google profile. Psychology Today and Zocdoc were the most-cited websites in this run.
6. Handle reviews within your ethics code. Many professional codes restrict asking clients for testimonials. Check yours before asking, and reply to any review without confirming that the reviewer is or was a client.
7. Say what you are not. If you do not offer crisis services, state it clearly on the site and point to 988 (Suicide and Crisis Lifeline) and 911. It helps people who land on your page at a bad moment.

How to check whether ChatGPT names your therapy practice

Write five or six questions your clients would ask, with Chicago or your neighborhood in them, and ask several assistants. Note who is named, whether directories or platforms come first, and which websites are cited, then repeat in a few weeks, because the answers change. CheckAI checks your own client questions across the same four assistants and shows the names and cited websites for every answer; a first check on ChatGPT and Google AI Mode is free. Our guide on how to check if ChatGPT names your business walks through the manual version.