Understanding your AI Visibility Score in isolation is useful. Understanding it relative to your industry is essential. A score of 45 means something very different for a law firm (where the category average is 32) than for a restaurant (where the category average is 58).
This report presents AI visibility benchmark data across 20 business categories, based on Scope's analysis of AI recommendation patterns across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity in Q1 2026.
Methodology
Scope analyzed a sample of businesses across 20 categories, running standardized prompt sets for each category on all four major AI platforms. We calculated AI Visibility Scores using our standard methodology (see: How Scope Calculates Your AI Visibility Score) and aggregated by industry.
Important caveats:
- This data represents businesses monitored by Scope users and may skew toward businesses that are actively optimizing for AI visibility
- Results vary significantly by market size (businesses in major metros tend to score higher)
- Scores represent Q1 2026 and will shift as AI platforms evolve
Industry Benchmark Data
Local Service Businesses
| Category | Category Average Score | Top Quartile (75th%) | Bottom Quartile (25th%) | |---|---|---|---| | Dentists | 41 | 68 | 22 | | Plumbers | 38 | 62 | 18 | | HVAC Services | 35 | 60 | 16 | | Electricians | 34 | 58 | 15 | | Landscapers | 29 | 52 | 13 | | House Cleaners | 31 | 54 | 14 | | Roofers | 28 | 50 | 12 |
Key finding: Local service businesses show the widest variance between top and bottom quartile performers. Businesses that have completed GBP optimization and built 20+ Google reviews score dramatically higher than those that haven't.
Category insight (Dentists): Dentistry is the local service category with the highest average AI visibility score, driven by three factors: (1) most patients actively ask AI for dentist recommendations, (2) dentists have strong professional directory presence (Healthgrades, ZocDoc), and (3) the category has high review volume. The 41-point category average is achievable for any dentist who completes their professional directories and maintains 4.0+ ratings.
Food & Beverage
| Category | Category Average Score | Top Quartile (75th%) | Bottom Quartile (25th%) | |---|---|---|---| | Restaurants | 58 | 78 | 36 | | Coffee Shops | 52 | 74 | 30 | | Bakeries | 44 | 68 | 24 | | Bars & Nightlife | 40 | 65 | 20 | | Catering Services | 32 | 55 | 16 |
Key finding: Restaurants have the highest average AI visibility across all local business categories. This is driven by the very high volume of "restaurant near me" type queries in AI — restaurants are the most-recommended business category across all four AI platforms.
Category insight (Restaurants): Top-quartile restaurants have in common: (1) 100+ Google reviews with 4.2+ average, (2) Yelp presence with verified hours and menu, (3) TripAdvisor listing, (4) complete Google Business Profile including menu items, cuisine type, and price range.
Professional Services
| Category | Category Average Score | Top Quartile (75th%) | Bottom Quartile (25th%) | |---|---|---|---| | Law Firms | 34 | 58 | 16 | | Accounting / CPA | 30 | 52 | 14 | | Financial Advisors | 28 | 50 | 13 | | Therapists / Counselors | 36 | 60 | 18 | | Insurance Agents | 25 | 45 | 11 |
Key finding: Professional services businesses tend to score lower than consumer service businesses. AI platforms are more conservative with YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) categories — they apply higher confidence thresholds before recommending professional services.
Category insight (Law Firms): Law firms with specialized practice areas (family law, personal injury, immigration) score significantly higher than general practice firms. AI responds well to clear specialty positioning. The biggest opportunity for law firms is building presence on legal-specific directories (Avvo, Martindale-Hubbell, Justia) that AI platforms trust for legal recommendations.
Healthcare
| Category | Category Average Score | Top Quartile (75th%) | Bottom Quartile (25th%) | |---|---|---|---| | Primary Care Physicians | 44 | 70 | 22 | | Chiropractors | 39 | 64 | 20 | | Physical Therapists | 37 | 62 | 19 | | Optometrists | 40 | 65 | 22 | | Dermatologists | 42 | 67 | 23 | | Urgent Care Centers | 48 | 72 | 28 |
Key finding: Healthcare businesses that are affiliated with larger health systems score significantly higher than independent practices (roughly 15-20 points higher), reflecting the entity authority that system affiliation provides.
Category insight: Urgent care centers have the highest healthcare category average, driven by the high-frequency, high-urgency nature of urgent care queries. When someone asks AI for an urgent care center, they're ready to go — making AI recommendations particularly valuable and AI platforms particularly eager to recommend trustworthy options.
SaaS & Technology
| Category | Category Average Score | Top Quartile (75th%) | Bottom Quartile (25th%) | |---|---|---|---| | CRM Software | 42 | 68 | 24 | | Project Management | 38 | 65 | 20 | | Marketing Automation | 35 | 62 | 18 | | Customer Support Tools | 33 | 58 | 16 | | Accounting Software | 44 | 70 | 25 | | HR / Payroll Software | 40 | 66 | 22 | | AI Tools / Platforms | 48 | 74 | 28 |
Key finding: AI tools and platforms have the highest average AI visibility in the SaaS category — partly because AI models have been trained extensively on content about AI tools, and partly because AI-enthusiast users are heavy AI search users who ask about these tools frequently.
Category insight (CRM): The CRM category is highly competitive with established platforms (Salesforce, HubSpot) scoring in the 80-90 range on many platforms. Challenger CRMs that score well typically have (1) strong G2 presence with 100+ reviews, (2) clear niche positioning ("CRM for real estate agents"), and (3) Capterra and TrustRadius listings.
Home Services
| Category | Category Average Score | Top Quartile (75th%) | Bottom Quartile (25th%) | |---|---|---|---| | Real Estate Agents | 35 | 60 | 17 | | Home Inspectors | 32 | 55 | 15 | | Interior Designers | 28 | 50 | 12 | | Contractors (General) | 33 | 57 | 16 | | Moving Companies | 38 | 63 | 20 |
Key finding: Moving companies have the highest average in the home services category, reflecting high query volume — people moving frequently ask AI for moving company recommendations. Businesses with strong Yelp presence and a clear service area specification consistently outperform competitors.
Key Insights Across All Categories
Insight 1: Review Volume Is the Strongest Cross-Category Predictor
Across all 20 categories, the single strongest predictor of above-average AI visibility is review volume. Businesses with 50+ Google reviews are in the top quartile of AI visibility for their category in 78% of cases.
Implication: Regardless of your category, building review velocity is the highest-ROI AI visibility investment.
Insight 2: Category-Specific Directories Are Underused
Only 34% of businesses in our dataset had complete profiles on their category's most authoritative specialized directory (Healthgrades, Avvo, G2, Tripadvisor, etc.). This represents a significant opportunity — these directories are heavily cited by AI for category-specific recommendations.
Insight 3: Schema Markup Adoption Correlates with AI Visibility
Businesses with comprehensive JSON-LD schema markup (Organization/LocalBusiness + FAQPage) score on average 18 points higher than businesses with no schema markup, controlling for review volume.
Insight 4: The Gap Between Leaders and Followers Is Growing
In Q1 2026, the average gap between top-quartile and bottom-quartile businesses within a category was 42 points. This gap is growing as leading businesses actively optimize for AI visibility while others haven't yet started. Early movers are building AI visibility advantages that will compound.
How to Use These Benchmarks
- Find your category in the tables above
- Locate your current Scope AI Visibility Score
- Identify your percentile — are you above or below average for your category?
- Set a target — a reasonable 6-month target is moving from your current quartile to the next quartile
If your score is below the category average: Focus on fundamentals — GBP completion, review velocity, schema markup.
If your score is at or above the average: Focus on differentiation — content depth, specialist directory presence, PR-earned citations.
If your score is in the top quartile: Defend your position, watch for competitive movements, and invest in thought leadership content.
Q: How often will Scope update these benchmarks? A: We plan to publish updated industry benchmark data quarterly. AI visibility patterns shift as platforms evolve and as more businesses actively optimize for AI search.
Q: My score is below the category average — how quickly can I catch up? A: Businesses that implement the fundamentals (complete GBP, Schema Pack, review velocity program) typically move from below-average to average within 60-90 days. Moving from average to top quartile takes 4-6 months of consistent optimization.