How to rank in AI Overviews: what Google has said

2 min read · Updated

The short answer

There's no special way to rank in AI Overviews. Google has said pages need to be indexed and eligible to show with a snippet, and that the same practices behind good search results apply: helpful pages that answer the question clearly. There's no markup to add and no way to opt in.

What Google has said

  • No special optimization or markup is needed for AI Overviews.
  • A page must be indexed and eligible to appear with a snippet.
  • Pages that answer the question directly and clearly are the kind that get used.

What you can control

  • Pages that answer customers' real questions, with the answer near the top.
  • Accurate details that match your Google profile.
  • Nothing blocked from indexing that you want seen.

What we check, and what we don't

Lehvel Observatory asks ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity about your business. We don't monitor Google's AI Overviews, and we'd rather say so than imply otherwise.

Questions

Can I stop my site appearing in AI Overviews?

The nosnippet controls limit how your content is shown, but they also limit your normal search snippets.

Do AI Overviews reduce clicks?

For quick-answer searches, often. Searches to hire someone still lead to calls and visits.

Is optimizing for AI Overviews different from SEO?

Google says no. The same work applies.

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