AEO for location intelligence software: AI search visibility ranking
How AI search engines rank location intelligence software 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. Location intelligence platforms used to analyze geospatial data, map audiences, study foot traffic, and improve site, territory, or expansion decisions. Composite score: 70% visibility (% of AI answers naming the brand) + 30% citation rate (% citing the brand's domain). Full methodology →
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When buyers inquire about Location intelligence software from AI engines, Placer.ai emerges as the leader. It is frequently cited, with visibility reaching 25.0% in discussions. Other prominent names include HERE and Esri, showcasing the competitive landscape among top brands in this category.
The rankings reflect sourcing from diverse platforms, including aggregator sites like g2.com and review-focused growthfactor.ai. This suggests AI engines rely heavily on user reviews and expert analyses to determine authority in the Location intelligence software market, influencing brand perceptions and visibility.
For buyers, consider how brands rank based on recent reviews or third-party validations. AI engines prioritize topical authority, demonstrated by visibility and citation metrics, to guide you towards selecting a trusted brand with proven reliability in the specific subcategory of Location intelligence within the analytics space.
At a glance
What we observed in this category
Placer.ai leads the location intelligence software category with a composite score of 32.5, despite a visibility score of 25.0 percent, because its citation rate of 50.0 percent is the highest in the dataset. HERE sits second with a visibility score of 37.5 percent, the highest in the category, yet holds a citation rate of zero. That gap between being named and being trusted as a source is the defining tension at the top of this category, and it means Placer.ai holds more durable AI influence than its raw visibility suggests.
Unacast presents the sharpest divergence in the dataset. It records zero visibility yet a citation rate of 37.5 percent, meaning AI responses reference Unacast content without surfacing the brand by name in answers. This pattern, high citation paired with no named mentions, places it fifth by composite score despite never appearing directly in AI-generated descriptions. Esri, by contrast, shows balanced scores of 25.0 percent visibility and 25.0 percent citation, making it the only top-three brand with parity between being named and being cited.
Google AI Mode is the top engine across every brand in this dataset, with no other engine recorded as dominant for any brand. The top cited sources include g2.com, trustradius.com, growthfactor.ai, and placer.ai itself, indicating that AI responses in this category anchor heavily on review aggregators and niche analyst sites rather than vendor documentation. Mapbox fell from rank 3 to rank 10 with a visibility delta of negative 25.0 percent and zero citation delta, the steepest decline recorded, while Placer.ai rose four ranks with a citation delta gain of 50.0 percentage points.
Movers & shakers since last refresh
Biggest visibility risers
-
Placer.ai 12% → 25% · rank #5 → #1+12pp
Biggest visibility fallers
-
Mapbox 25% → 0% · rank #3 → #10-25pp
-
Geoblink 12% → 0% · rank #6 → #11-12pp
The AEO ranking
| # | Brand | Visibility | Citation | Top engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
placer.ai
|
25% | 50% | Google AI Mode |
Placer.ai leads with a 32.5 composite score, driven by a 50.0 percent citation rate that is 43.8 points above the category average of 6.2 percent. |
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| 2 |
here.com
|
38% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
HERE has the highest visibility at 37.5 percent but a citation rate of zero, making it the most prominent example of a named brand that AI does not treat as a trusted source. |
||||
| 3 |
esri.com
|
25% | 25% | Google AI Mode |
Esri is the only top-three brand with equal visibility and citation scores, both at 25.0 percent, sitting 20 points above the 5.0 percent category visibility average. |
||||
| 4 |
carto.com
|
12% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
CARTO holds matching visibility and citation scores of 12.5 percent, placing it above the category averages but well below the top three on both composite score and citation rate. |
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| 5 |
unacast.com
|
0% | 38% | Google AI Mode |
Unacast records zero visibility yet a 37.5 percent citation rate, six times the category average, indicating AI uses its content as a source without naming it directly in responses. |
||||
| 6 |
precisely.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 7 |
near.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 8 |
safegraph.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 9 |
foursquare.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 10 |
mapbox.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 11 |
geoblink.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 12 |
gapmaps.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 13 |
nextbillion.ai
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 14 |
buxtonco.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 15 |
targomo.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 16 |
loqate.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 17 |
orbitalinsight.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 18 |
galigeo.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 19 |
deweydata.io
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 20 |
spatial.ai
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Sources AI engines trust in this category
Across the 8 buyer-intent queries we ran on location intelligence software, 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 location intelligence software 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 location intelligence software
Who leads AI visibility in location intelligence software?
Placer.ai leads with a composite score of 32.5, having risen four ranks in the most recent period with a citation rate of 50.0 percent. HERE has higher raw visibility at 37.5 percent but ranks second due to a citation rate of zero.
What sources does Google AI Mode cite most for location intelligence software research?
The top cited sources in this category are g2.com, trustradius.com, growthfactor.ai, guideflow.com, and placer.ai, indicating AI responses rely heavily on review aggregators and niche analyst platforms.
Which brand has the biggest gap between being named and being cited in AI responses?
HERE shows the largest divergence, with a 37.5 percent visibility score paired with a citation rate of zero. Unacast shows the reverse, with zero visibility and a 37.5 percent citation rate.
How competitive is AI visibility in this category overall?
The category average visibility is 5.0 percent and average citation is 6.2 percent across 20 brands, with only four brands scoring above zero on either metric, indicating highly concentrated AI presence.
Which brand experienced the sharpest decline in AI visibility?
Mapbox fell from rank 3 to rank 10, losing 25.0 percentage points of visibility and dropping to zero, while its citation rate also remained at zero throughout.
Which engine dominates AI visibility for location intelligence software brands?
Google AI Mode is the top engine for every brand recorded in this dataset, with no other engine appearing as a primary driver for any of the top ten brands.