How to Rank on ChatGPT (A 26,283-URL Study)

Quick Overview

The study by Ahrefs analyzing 26,000 URLs confirms that to gain visibility on ChatGPT and other LLMs like Google AI Overviews and Perplexity, content creators must publish listicles, specifically those updated recently, as 40% of citations came from "best XYZ" formats.

Key Points: Ahrefs analyzed 26,000 source URLs across ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity, and other LLMs to determine ranking factors. The number one page type cited by AI platforms are listicles, especially "best XYZ list goals," which accounted for 40% of citations. Content freshness is critical, with 80% of cited sources being updated in 2025 and 26% updated within the last two months. Brands ranking high in these cited lists are referenced more frequently, and even low Domain Rating (DR) domains get cited because LLMs do not filter like Google. The most common self-promotional citations involve brands citing their own internal landing pages within "best listicles," with over one-third of software responses doing this. The presenter launched new services, LLM boosters, offering PBN listicles for $100 for 100 listicles or LLM guest posts on DR20+ domains, noting intro pricing will increase. Key takeaways for AI visibility include publishing your own listicles, getting placed on others' listicles, keeping content updated, and building scannable pages AI can parse.

Context: The speaker analyzes findings from a large-scale study conducted by Ahrefs, which tracked over 26,000 URLs to determine how content gets cited or ranked by large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. The speaker acknowledges Glenn Alop for running the underlying article analysis across 60,000 websites and contrasts ChatGPT's high referral traffic (8 to 10 times more than Perplexity) with the study's implications for SEO strategy, immediately pivoting to promote new listicle-focused services.

Detailed Analysis

The analysis of 26K URLs by Ahrefs reveals that listicles are overwhelmingly the preferred content format for citation by ChatGPT and other major LLMs, including Google AI Overviews and Perplexity, with "best XYZ" style lists being the most dominant source. The study covered 750 prompts across various industries, confirming that brands seeking AI visibility must focus on listicle creation and inclusion. Furthermore, content recency heavily influences citation; 80% of sources were updated in 2025, and over a quarter were updated in the last two months, suggesting LLMs favor fresh content, unlike Google's typical DR filtering. Brands that self-promote effectively within these lists also see higher citation rates. Based on these findings, the speaker immediately launched promotional services called LLM boosters, offering placement on PBN listicles or guest posts on high-authority domains, stressing that these are introductory prices before they increase once the study's effectiveness is fully demonstrated.