The most visible SEO agencies, October 2026

October 2026 · 15 questions asked in English, worldwide · ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode · 60 answers read

Leader

OuterBox

32Heralded Score, range 15–41

Most cited source

google.com

33citations

From Gemini and ChatGPT

Where engines disagree most

SmartSites

1/4engines put it in their top three

Top three on ChatGPT, not on Google AI Mode, Gemini and Google AI Overviews

Brands

Search is not measured for this board yet, so it ranks on AI answers.

Rank Brand Rank change Heralded Score All AI Score trend Mentioned Recommended By engine Mentioned by Change
– Skale US Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
1% 0% None First reading
– Straight North US Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
2% 0% First reading
– STS Digital Solutions Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
2% 0% None First reading
– Supple Digital AU Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
2% 0% None First reading
– Third Marble Marketing US Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
2% 0% None First reading
– tiptop SEARCH + MARKETING Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
2% 2% None First reading
– TripleDart IN Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
0% 0% First reading
– Uncommon Logic US Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
2% 0% None First reading
– Uproer US Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
1% 0% None First reading
– VIA Marketing s.r.o. CZ Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
0% 0% None First reading

“=” marks brands whose score ranges overlap, so the test cannot separate them. Every brand named in at least three answers is ranked. AI gives each brand’s score and rank from the engines’ answers; Search is not measured for this board yet. By engine has one dot per engine (ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode), darker the more often it names the brand.

Most cited sources

Rank Source Type Cited in Engines Pages cited Brands its pages mention
11 ahrefs.com Vendor site 5.0% 3 of 4 1 1
12 forbes.com Media 5.0% 2 of 4 2 Not read
13 quora.com Community 5.0% 1 of 4 3 Not read
14 semrush.com Vendor site 3.3% 1 of 4 3 Not read
15 upwork.com Vendor site 1.7% 1 of 4 3 Not read
16 6smarketers.com Consultancy 3.3% 2 of 4 2 Not read
17 agencydashboard.io Vendor site 3.3% 2 of 4 2 Not read
18 brentonway.com Consultancy 3.3% 2 of 4 1 Not read
19 draft.dev Consultancy 3.3% 2 of 4 1 3
20 indeedseo.com Consultancy 3.3% 1 of 4 1 Not read

Questions asked

QuestionLanguageMost recommended
What are the best SEO agencies for small businesses? English Boostability, Funnel Boost Media, Outpace SEO, Searchbloom, SmartSites, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency and WebFX, tied
SEO services for an online store English Coalition Technologies, OuterBox, SeoProfy and SmartSites, tied
How can a company get more traffic from search engines with outside help? English No brand recommended
How do I choose an SEO agency I can trust? English No brand recommended
In-house SEO vs. SEO agency for a growing company English No brand recommended
SEO freelancer vs. SEO agency for a small business English No brand recommended
Alternatives to hiring a full-time SEO specialist English No brand recommended
Alternatives to doing SEO yourself as a small business owner English No brand recommended
I run an online store with falling search traffic. Which SEO agency should I hire? English Coalition Technologies, Ivingo Creative, Seer Interactive, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency and Victorious, tied
best seo agencies for small businesses English 1x1 Impression SEO, Boostability, Drastic Impact, Impression, OuterBox, Outpace SEO, Searchbloom, SEO After Coffee, SeoProfy, SmartSites, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, tiptop SEARCH + MARKETING and Victorious, tied

Each engine's top three

Google AI Mode

No brand named in at least three answers.

Method

Each leaderboard ranks brands on two sides. AI is how ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode answer the board's buyer questions. Search is Google's top 10 results for the keywords behind those questions. All combines the two, where Search is measured.

For the AI side, each month Heralded asks every engine the same buyer questions, twice each, and reads every answer. An answer counts 0 for a brand it leaves out, 50 for a brand it names and 100 for a brand it recommends, and the Heralded Score is built from those. A brand named in at least three answers gets a score and a place.

How the leaderboards are measured