AEO for AI code assistants: AI search visibility ranking
How AI search engines rank AI code assistants by visibility and citations. 20 brands measured quarterly across Google AI Mode: which brands the AI names in answers, which domains it cites as sources, and how the leaders compare. AI developer tools used to autocomplete code, generate functions, explain repositories, fix bugs, and accelerate software development workflows. Composite score: 70% visibility (% of AI answers naming the brand) + 30% citation rate (% citing the brand's domain). Full methodology →
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AI engines consistently point to Cursor as the leading AI code assistant, with a visibility rate of 62.5%. While Cursor stands out, other top brands such as GitHub Copilot and Qodo are also frequently mentioned. This positions Cursor as a significant presence when buyers are evaluating options.
The rankings are influenced by the sources AI engines most frequently draw from, including YouTube, daily.dev, and Medium. These platforms often host aggregator and review content, which tends to impact the prominence of brands featured in discussions and analyses. This connectivity to trusted sources enhances the perceived reliability of brands like Cursor.
For buyers considering which AI code assistant to choose, emphasis should be placed on what AI engines value: brands backed by recent reviews, third-party validation, and established topical authority. These factors suggest that listening to the consensus formed through current and verified sources can guide buyers to make informed decisions.
At a glance
What we observed in this category
Cursor leads the AI code assistants category with a visibility score of 62.5%, nearly 13 points ahead of second-placed GitHub Copilot at 50.0%. Both scores sit far above the category average of 6.9%, meaning the top two brands collectively dominate a landscape where most competitors register zero visibility. Cursor rose from rank 3 to rank 1 with a visibility delta of 37.5 percentage points, making it the fastest mover in the dataset and widening the gap from the chasing pack substantially.
A sharp divergence exists between being named and being cited. Cursor holds 62.5% visibility but a 0.0% citation rate, meaning Google AI Mode mentions it frequently without linking back to its domain. Augment Code shows the inverse pattern: 0.0% visibility but a 37.5% citation rate, making it the most-cited brand that AI almost never names in narrative responses. This split suggests AI Mode draws on Augment Code as a source while rarely foregrounding it as a recommended product, a position that confers referral value without brand recognition.
All ten ranked brands share Google AI Mode as their top engine, confirming this audit reflects a single-engine dataset rather than a cross-platform picture. The top cited sources include youtube.com, daily.dev, reddit.com, and medium.com, suggesting Google AI Mode anchors its AI code assistant responses heavily on community and video content rather than vendor documentation. Notably, augmentcode.com itself appears in the cited sources list, which aligns directly with that brand's unusually high citation rate despite zero named visibility.
Movers & shakers since last refresh
Biggest visibility risers
-
Cursor 25% → 62% · rank #3 → #1+38pp
-
GitHub Copilot 38% → 50% · rank #1 → #2+12pp
-
Qodo 0% → 12% · rank #6 → #3+12pp
Biggest visibility fallers
-
Augment Code 12% → 0% · rank #2 → #4-12pp
The AEO ranking
| # | Brand | Visibility | Citation | Top engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
cursor.com
|
62% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Cursor leads with 62.5% visibility, nine times the category average of 6.9%, but its 0.0% citation rate means Google AI Mode names it without linking to its domain. |
||||
| 2 |
github.com
|
50% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
GitHub Copilot sits at 50.0% visibility and 12.5% citation rate, the only top-two brand that earns both meaningful named mentions and direct source citations from Google AI Mode. |
||||
| 3 |
qodo.ai
|
12% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
Qodo climbed three places to rank 3 with visibility rising from 0.0% to 12.5%, though its citation rate fell 12.5 points in the same period, indicating uneven momentum. |
||||
| 4 |
augmentcode.com
|
0% | 38% | Google AI Mode |
Augment Code holds the highest citation rate in the dataset at 37.5% despite 0.0% visibility, falling two ranks after losing 12.5 points on both visibility and citation metrics. |
||||
| 5 |
windsurf.com
|
12% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Windsurf sits at 12.5% visibility and 0.0% citation rate, mirroring Cursor's citation gap but at a much smaller scale with a composite score of just 8.8. |
||||
| 6 |
qodo.ai
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
| 7 |
tabnine.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 8 |
askcodi.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 9 |
mutable.ai
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 10 |
blackbox.ai
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 11 |
codeium.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 12 |
marscode.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 13 |
replit.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 14 |
pieces.app
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 15 |
cloud.google.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 16 |
aws.amazon.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 17 |
sourcegraph.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 18 |
jetbrains.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 19 |
continue.dev
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 20 |
codegeex.cn
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Sources AI engines trust in this category
Across the 8 buyer-intent queries we ran on AI code assistants, these are the domains Google AI Mode cited most often. If you're not on this list — or if your competitors are — that's a concrete PR / linkbuilding target.
How to read this AEO ranking
Four things worth knowing before you act on the numbers above. These are the same definitions across every industry page — for category-specific observations, see the What we observed section above (where available) and the per-brand insights inline in the ranking.
Visibility = being named
A brand's visibility % is the share of AI answers that mention it by name in the response prose. This is who AI engines actively recommend to the buyer. More on visibility →
Citation rate = being trusted
Citation rate is the share of AI answers that include the brand's domain as a clickable source link. This is what the AI treats as authoritative evidence, different from being named. More on citation rate →
Top engine differs by brand
The "top engine" column shows which AI surface each brand performs best on. Big gaps between a brand's score across engines usually points to specific content or schema gaps. How AI engines pick sources →
AEO rankings move month to month
AI engines re-crawl and re-rank on shorter cycles than classical search. We re-audit every brand on this list at least every 90 days and refresh this page automatically. How AI search ranking works →
Run an AEO audit on your own AI code assistants brand
The brands above were curated from public market-leader lists. Want the same answer engine optimisation measurement against your own brand — including the queries you appear on, which competitors get named instead, and a prioritised fix list? Run a free preview.
Frequently asked about AEO for AI code assistants
Who leads AI visibility in the AI code assistants category?
Cursor leads with a visibility score of 62.5%, followed by GitHub Copilot at 50.0%. Both are far above the category average of 6.9%.
Which AI code assistant brand is most cited by Google AI Mode?
Augment Code has the highest citation rate in the dataset at 37.5%, despite a 0.0% visibility score, meaning AI Mode cites its domain without naming it prominently in responses.
What sources does Google AI Mode anchor on for AI code assistant research?
The top cited sources include youtube.com, daily.dev, medium.com, and reddit.com, suggesting Google AI Mode relies heavily on community and video content in this category.
Which brand grew its AI visibility the most in the latest period?
Cursor recorded the largest visibility delta at plus 37.5 percentage points, rising from 25.0% to 62.5% and moving from rank 3 to rank 1.
Is there a gap between being named in AI responses and being cited as a source?
Yes, the gap is significant. Cursor is named in 62.5% of responses but cited 0.0% of the time, while Augment Code is cited 37.5% of the time but named in 0.0% of responses.
How concentrated is AI visibility in this category?
Visibility is highly concentrated. Six of the ten ranked brands have 0.0% visibility, and the category average sits at just 6.9%, with the top two brands accounting for almost all named mentions.