Guide
How ChatGPT decides which local businesses to recommend
When someone asks ChatGPT for a local business, it searches the web, pulls in business listing data (Yelp ratings and reviews now power its local results in many categories) and reads websites it’s allowed to crawl, then writes an answer from what it found. OpenAI doesn’t publish how it ranks businesses, but the sources it draws on are knowable, and you can improve how you look in each.
What’s officially documented
It searches the web
ChatGPT search draws on third-party search providers and content from partners.[1] For its business and education workspaces, OpenAI names Bing as the only third-party search provider.[2] It can also use a person’s approximate location to show nearby business listings from “trusted third-party providers”.[3]
It reads websites it’s allowed to crawl
OpenAI’s OAI-SearchBot crawler finds pages to show in ChatGPT search. Sites that block it aren’t shown in search answers.[4] When someone asks about a specific page, a separate agent, ChatGPT-User, fetches it on their behalf.[4]
Yelp powers its local results
In its August 2026 shareholder letter, Yelp said its ratings and reviews “recently began powering ChatGPT’s local experience in relevant categories”, with a Yelp quote-request feature inside ChatGPT “coming soon”.[5]
What studies show
- Yelp dominates, Foursquare doesn’t. Foursquare announced a partnership with OpenAI in 2024, but a study of 4,607 ChatGPT runs across 12 US cities in August 2026 found Yelp in the business data of about 96% of local answers, and Foursquare in almost none.[6]
- Listings and your website are most of what it cites. Yext analyzed 6.8 million AI citations in 2025: 86% came from sources businesses control, with ChatGPT leaning most on listings (48.7%) and Gemini on websites. Yext sells listings software, so read this with that in mind.[7]
- Your website still matters. In a small BrightLocal test, business websites were a source in 58% of ChatGPT’s local searches.[8]
- Few get picked. SOCi’s 2026 study of 350,000+ chain locations found ChatGPT recommended only 1.2% of them, compared with 35.9% appearing in Google’s local map results.[9]
- Answers vary. Asked the same question repeatedly, AI assistants almost never return the same list twice.[10]
What nobody outside OpenAI knows
OpenAI hasn’t published how much reviews, star ratings, listing consistency or recency count, or exactly which providers supply its maps. Treat anyone claiming a precise formula with suspicion, including claims that ChatGPT uses Bing Places directly or that a single directory supplies most of its results.
What this means for your business
- Let it in. Make sure
OAI-SearchBotisn’t blocked. Check your site free. - Own your Yelp page. Claim it, complete it, and keep reviews coming.
- Be findable in search. A clear website that says what you do and where, plus a Bing Places listing.
- Be consistent. The same name, address, phone and hours everywhere.
- Measure, don’t guess. See what ChatGPT says about you now, then re-check over time.
More detail: why a business goes missing from ChatGPT and how ChatGPT differs from Perplexity and Gemini.
Sources
- OpenAI, “Introducing ChatGPT search,” Oct 31, 2024. openai.com
- OpenAI Help Center, ChatGPT search for Enterprise and Edu. help.openai.com
- OpenAI Help Center, ChatGPT search. help.openai.com
- OpenAI, “Overview of OpenAI crawlers.” developers.openai.com/api/docs/bots
- Yelp Q2 2026 shareholder letter, Aug 6, 2026 (SEC filing). sec.gov
- Steady Demand, 4,607 ChatGPT runs, August 2026. steadydemand.com
- Yext, AI citations study (6.8M citations), Oct 9, 2025. yext.com
- BrightLocal, AI search sources test (20 searches), Jul 22, 2025. brightlocal.com
- SOCi, Local Visibility Index 2026, Jan 28, 2026. prnewswire.com
- SparkToro, AI recommendation consistency (2,961 runs), Jan 28, 2026. sparktoro.com