What they are
An LLM citation is a source an AI assistant credits when it answers, either as a link or a named reference. When Perplexity lists the pages behind its answer, or a Google AI Overview names the sites it drew from, those are citations.
Why they are the strongest signal
Being cited does two things at once. It tells the reader the assistant trusts your page enough to stand behind it, and it hands them a link to click. That is why a citation is the top rung of the Citation Ladder, worth more than a recommendation or a plain mention. It is the AI answer actually sending you a customer.
Which engines cite
Perplexity and Google AI Overviews show their sources openly. ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini cite in some modes, especially when they browse the web for a current answer rather than replying from memory. Either way, the page an engine can quote cleanly is the page it cites.
How to earn them
Citations go to the clearest, most trustworthy source for the exact question. That means a direct answer on a page AI crawlers can reach, backed by structured data for AI and consistent listings. Our guide on how agencies use AEO for clients shows how to build that source page by page.
See whether AI cites you
A free AI Visibility Snapshot shows how AI names you plus three competitors, across ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini.
