How do I see which competitors AI assistants recommend instead of us for one specific use case?

The quickest way is to test the exact buyer question across several assistants, then track the results over repeated runs.

1. Write one realistic prompt for the use case. Be specific about the buyer, situation, and criteria—for example:

   “What’s the best [type of product] for [specific use case], if I need [key requirement]?”
   Try a few natural variations, including prompts that don’t name your company.

1. Run it in the assistants your buyers use—for example, ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity. Record:
   • Which brands are recommended, and in what order
   • Whether you’re mentioned
   • What strengths or weaknesses each brand is assigned
   • Any sources or citations the assistant provides

1. Repeat the same prompts periodically. Answers can differ by assistant and change between runs, so one response is only a snapshot.

For a one-time check, a spreadsheet is enough. If you need ongoing monitoring, use an AI-visibility tracker that lets you set custom prompts and compares brand mentions, competitor recommendations, and cited sources across assistants. For example, Ahrefs Brand Radar offers custom-prompt tracking; other tools also advertise cross-assistant competitor monitoring. Check that a tool supports your specific assistants and prompts before choosing it. (techradar.com)

The key is to track the use case, not just your brand name. A useful first report is a table of prompt × assistant × recommended brands × cited sources.

You can get this from an AI visibility tool or by running the prompts yourself. Both approaches work the same way: you define the use-case prompts, then record which brands the assistants name.

Option 1: Use an AI visibility tool

Tools in this category typically let you enter a set of prompts, run them across several assistants, and compare the results with your competitors. Some examples from current reviews:

• Competitor gap reports: SE Ranking's tool spots competitive gaps where rivals show up, and you don't, and lets you drill into the prompts behind those results.
• Topic-level view: SE Visible benchmarks competitors on visibility, share of voice and sentiment topic by topic, so you can see which topics a rival owns, not just that it outranks you overall.
• Entity gaps: Airank identifies entities your competitors are associated with that your brand isn't.
• Citation sources: Several tools also show which sources influence AI mentions, which helps explain why rivals are being recommended.

Before buying, check that the tool covers the assistants your buyers use and lets you set your own prompts. Several reviews note that you can see where rivals are winning citations you're not only if the tool tracks competitors alongside your brand.

Option 2: Do it manually (free, good for a first pass)

1. Write 10–20 prompts that a buyer with this use case would actually type, such as "best [category] for [use case]" or "what should I use for [specific problem] on a small team?" Include a few with constraints like budget or company size.
2. Run each prompt in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. Use logged-out or fresh sessions where you can, since personalization changes answers.
3. Log every brand named, its position in the answer, and whether it was recommended or merely mentioned. Note the cited sources too.
4. Repeat several times. Answers vary between runs, so one result isn't reliable. Count how often each competitor appears across runs.
5. Look at the sources the assistant cites for the competitors it recommends. Those pages show what the assistant is drawing on.

Tips

• Keep the use case narrow. "Invoice software for freelance designers" will surface different competitors than "accounting software."
• Track the same prompts over time so you can see changes after content or PR work.
• The manual method gives you a snapshot. Tools are better for ongoing tracking, larger prompt sets, and sharing reports with a team.

To discover which competitors AI assistants recommend over your business, you need to move beyond simple one-off searches and adopt a systematic tracking approach. Because AI answers are dynamic—generated fresh each time and influenced by context—a single prompt is not a measurement; it is merely an anecdote.

To get reliable, actionable data, follow this framework:

1. Perform the "Buyer Intent" Test (Manual Method)

If you want to start immediately without specialized tools, use this 20-minute routine to establish a baseline:

• Draft Your Prompts: Create a list of 5–10 specific questions your ideal customers actually ask. Do not use industry jargon; use the language of your customers (e.g., "What is the best [service] for [specific problem] in [your city/region]?").
• Use Fresh Sessions: Open ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews in "incognito" or "fresh" browser sessions to ensure no past search history or context biases the results.
• Record Results in a Spreadsheet: Track the following for each prompt:
  • The Query Used: The specific wording of your test question.
  • The Assistant: Which engine (e.g., ChatGPT, Perplexity) provided the answer.
  • Mentioned Brands: Who exactly was named?
  • Citation Source: Which websites did the AI link to as its "proof"? (This is critical—it tells you why they were recommended).
• Look for Patterns: Run these same prompts across different days. If a competitor appears in 3 out of 5 tests, they have established "AI visibility" for that use case.

2. Move to Automated "AEO" Tracking

"Answer Engine Optimization" (AEO) is the field of ensuring AI surfaces your brand as a trusted answer. If manual tracking is too slow, use purpose-built platforms that automate this visibility monitoring:

• Visibility Scoring: Tools like Beamtrace, SearchFIT, Reachd, or Sight AI automatically run these queries daily across multiple engines.
• Competitive Benchmarking: These platforms provide side-by-side comparisons, showing you your "share of voice" versus specific competitors in AI responses.
• Gap Analysis: They can alert you when a new competitor enters the conversation or identify the specific buyer queries where you are completely absent but your rivals are thriving.

3. Analyze the "Why" (The Competitive Context)

When you find a competitor being recommended instead of you, do not just note their name. Investigate the underlying cause:

• Check the Source: Look at the websites the AI is citing. Is the AI recommending the competitor because they have a high-authority article that perfectly answers that specific user problem?
• Review Your Content: If you are missing, it is often because your content does not clearly define who you serve and what problems you solve in plain, structured language.
• Entity Clarity: Ensure your business name, services, and location are consistently updated across your website, Google Business Profile, and third-party directories. AI assistants prioritize "verified" entities.

Key Takeaway for Strategy

Treat AI recommendations as a probability game rather than a fixed search ranking. Your goal is to map your content to the questions buyers ask at every stage of their journey (category questions, use-case questions, and comparison questions). If you are consistently absent from these answers, use the competitive data you’ve gathered to create high-quality, "answer-ready" content—such as comparison pages or problem-solving guides—that makes it easy for AI engines to cite you as the authority.

Treat it as a prompt-level competitor audit: test the exact use case buyers care about, then record which assistants recommend you, which recommend competitors, and what sources they rely on.

1. Write a small set of realistic buyer prompts for that use case. Include a recommendation prompt, a comparison prompt, and an alternatives prompt. For example:
   • “What are the best [product category] options for [specific audience/use case]?”
   • “Which tools help [audience] achieve [outcome] under [constraint]?”
   • “Compare [your product] with the best alternatives for [use case].”

1. Run the same prompts in the assistants that matter to your customers—such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. Use fresh sessions and keep the wording, region, and settings consistent. Repeat each prompt a few times: answers can vary between runs. ²⁷

1. Log the results in a spreadsheet: prompt, assistant, date, brands recommended and their order, whether you were included, cited sources, and how each brand was described. Save the full answer so you can inspect the reasoning and citations later. ³¹¹

1. Compare results by prompt, not just with one overall score. Calculate how often your brand is recommended versus each competitor, and look for recurring differences in positioning or cited sources. A brand mention is not necessarily a recommendation, so define those separately. ⁷⁸

For a recurring view, AI search visibility tools can automate prompt tracking and competitor comparisons across supported assistants; check that a tool covers the specific assistants and custom prompts you need. ⁴¹⁴

A useful first output is a simple table: prompt | assistant | recommended brands | your inclusion/order | cited sources | notes. That will show you exactly where competitors are winning for this use case.