Leader
27Heralded Score, range 3–50
The most visible software development companies, October 2026
Most cited source
19citations
From Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT
Where engines disagree most
1/4engines put it in their top three
Top three on Gemini, not on Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT
Brands
| Rank | Brand | Rank change | Heralded Score All | AI | Search | Score trend | Mentioned | Recommended | By engine | Mentioned by | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | New entry | 27 , range 3–50 | 14#2 | 50#1 | 27
| 10% | 6% | None | First reading | |
| 2 | | New entry | 24 , range 5–49 | 30#1 | 14#4 | 24
| 10% | 9% | | First reading | |
| 3 | | New entry | 8 , range 2–38 | 8#5 | 7#8 | 8
| 7% | 2% | None | First reading | |
| 4 | | New entry | 8 , range 1–44 | 7#7 | 10#6 | 8
| 5% | 3% | | First reading | |
| 5 | | New entry | 7 , range 2–36 | 10#3 | 3= #13 | 7
| 5% | 4% | | First reading | |
| 6 | | New entry | 6 , range 2–34 | 9#4 | 1= #17 | 6
| 5% | 4% | | First reading | |
| 7 | | New entry | 5 , range 1–34 | 6#8 | 3= #13 | 5
| 5% | 1% | | First reading | |
| 8 | | New entry | 5 , range 2–31 | 7#6 | 0= #29 | 5
| 4% | 3% | None | First reading | |
| 9 | | New entry | 4 , range 1–33 | 6#9 | 1= #20 | 4
| 5% | 1% | | First reading | |
| 10 | | New entry | 4 , range 1–32 | 5#10 | 1= #20 | 4
| 3% | 2% | | 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 and Search give each brand’s score and rank on that side alone. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Directory | 21.7% | 3 of 4 | 8 | 9 |
| 2 | | Social | 15.0% | 2 of 4 | 16 | Not read |
| 3 | | Community | 11.7% | 2 of 4 | 6 | 4 |
| 4 | | Social | 10.0% | 2 of 4 | 6 | Not read |
| 5 | | Vendor site | 3.3% | 2 of 4 | 3 | Not read |
| 6 | | Consultancy | 5.0% | 3 of 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | | Consultancy | 5.0% | 2 of 4 | 2 | Not read |
| 8 | | Community | 5.0% | 1 of 4 | 3 | Not read |
| 9 | | Consultancy | 5.0% | 2 of 4 | 3 | Not read |
| 10 | | Vendor site | 1.7% | 1 of 4 | 3 | Not read |
Questions asked
| Question | Language | Most recommended |
|---|---|---|
| What are the best software development companies for building a custom product? | English | |
| Custom software development outsourcing for startups | English | |
| How can a company build custom software without an in-house team? | English | No brand recommended |
| How do I find a reliable software development partner? | English | |
| In-house developers vs. a software development company for a startup | English | No brand recommended |
| Nearshore vs. offshore software development for a mid-sized company | English | No brand recommended |
| Alternatives to hiring an in-house development team | English | |
| Alternatives to freelance developers for building an app | English | No brand recommended |
| I'm a non-technical founder and need to build a web app. Which software development company should I hire? | English | |
| I lead IT at a mid-sized company and need a partner to modernize our legacy systems. | English | |
Each engine's top three
Related leaderboards
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.