--- title: "ChatGPT vs Google Maps: 88.4% of Picks Miss the Map Pack" url: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/chatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack description: "ChatGPT vs Google Maps: 88.4% of the local businesses ChatGPT recommends are not in Google's top-three map pack, and 17.5% miss the top 100. See the data." lang: en --- Share Share on X: https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fchatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack&text=88.4%25%20of%20the%20Local%20Businesses%20ChatGPT%20Recommends%20Aren%27t%20in%20Google%27s%20Map%20Pack Share on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fchatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack Share on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fchatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack Share on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.suffdigital.com%2Fresources%2Fdata-studies%2Fchatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack&title=88.4%25%20of%20the%20Local%20Businesses%20ChatGPT%20Recommends%20Aren%27t%20in%20Google%27s%20Map%20Pack **88.4%** of the local businesses ChatGPT recommends are not among the top three Google Maps results for the same service and city, the three businesses Google shows in its map pack. 17.5% are not in Google Maps' top 100 at all. Analysis of 17,464 ChatGPT local business recommendations in 79 US cities · ChatGPT answers and Google Maps results, September 2026 ## Key Findings 1. 1. **88.4%** of the local businesses ChatGPT recommends are not in the top three Google Maps results for the same service and city. Copy stat 2. 2. **17.5%** of the local businesses ChatGPT recommends do not appear anywhere in Google Maps' top 100 for the same search, about one in six. Copy stat 3. 3. ChatGPT names Google Maps' number-one business in **45.9%** of city and service searches, then fills the rest of its list from further down. Copy stat 4. 4. **47.7%** of the restaurants ChatGPT recommends are not in Google Maps' top 100, and 3% are in the map pack. Copy stat 5. 5. In the 29 smaller cities, **20.1%** of ChatGPT's local recommendations are in Google's map pack, against 7.6% in the 50 large cities. Copy stat ## Summary A dentist has spent two years climbing into Google's map pack, the box of three businesses Google shows on a map above the regular results. A patient new to town asks ChatGPT for the best dentist nearby. The answer names five practices; the dentist is not one of them, and neither are the other two in the map pack. That matters because the map pack has been the main target of local SEO for years. If ChatGPT builds its own shortlist, a top-three Maps ranking no longer guarantees being seen by customers who ask an AI assistant. It also works the other way: a business outside the map pack can still be named. **88.4%** of the businesses ChatGPT recommends are outside Google's map pack, and 17.5% are not in Google Maps' top 100 at all. For Gemini, the figure is 84.4%. ChatGPT does often include the business Google ranks first, in 45.9% of searches, but most of its picks come from further down. ## What we measured On September 23, 2026 we asked ChatGPT for the best businesses in 20 local services, from restaurants and dentists to locksmiths and house cleaners, in 79 US cities. ChatGPT answered with lists of businesses, 17,464 recommendations in all. For the same service and city we compared them with the top 100 Google Maps results, collected through a licensed data provider. We found each recommended business in the Google Maps results and recorded its position. Positions 1 to 3 count as the map pack, the three businesses Google shows in the map box on its search results page. A business not found in the top 100 counts as outside the top 100. ## Nine in ten ChatGPT picks are outside the map pack 88.4% of the local businesses ChatGPT recommends aren't in Google's map pack. 11.6% of ChatGPT's picks rank in the Google Maps top three. Most sit much further down: 18.3% rank 4th to 10th, 16% rank 11th to 20th and 21.7% rank 21st to 50th. 17.5% are not in Google Maps' top 100 at all. Share of ChatGPT picks by google Maps position of ChatGPT's pick 1 4.4% 2 to 3 7.2% 4 to 10 18.3% 11 to 20 16% 21 to 50 21.7% 51 to 100 15% Not in top 100 17.5% Source: Suff Digital analysis of 17,464 ChatGPT local business recommendations in 79 US cities · ChatGPT answers and Google Maps results, September 2026 ChatGPT does not ignore Google's top result: it names the Maps number-one business in 45.9% of city and service searches. It simply adds many more businesses from further down, drawing on reviews, directories and websites rather than Google's ranking. Gemini behaves the same way, with 84.4% of its recommendations outside the map pack. ## Restaurants and real estate overlap least The overlap depends on the service. 3% of the restaurants ChatGPT recommends are in the map pack, and 47.7% are not in Google Maps' top 100 at all. Real estate agents (4.8% in the map pack) and dentists (7.4%) also overlap little. ChatGPT picks in Google's map pack by service House cleaning service 19% Locksmith 16.5% Emergency plumber 16.4% Pest control 15.2% Dentist 7.4% Real estate agent 4.8% Restaurant 3% Restaurants and real estate agents are covered heavily by food guides, local media and agent directories, so ChatGPT has many sources beyond Google Maps to draw on. House cleaning services overlap most, with 19% of picks in the map pack, followed by locksmiths at 16.5% and emergency plumbers at 16.4%: trades with fewer outside sources, where Google's own listings carry more weight. ## Smaller cities overlap more In the 29 smaller cities, 20.1% of ChatGPT's recommendations are in the map pack and 12.3% are outside the top 100. In the 50 large cities, 7.6% are in the map pack and 20% are outside the top 100. A ChatGPT pick in a smaller city is more than twice as likely to be one of Google's top three. In Google's map pack by city group 50 large cities 7.6% 29 smaller cities 20.1% | City group | In Google's map pack | Not in Google Maps top 100 | | --- | --- | --- | | 50 large cities | 7.6% | 20% | | 29 smaller cities | 20.1% | 12.3% | With fewer businesses in each service, ChatGPT and Google Maps land on the same ones more often. In a large city with hundreds of dentists, the two have far more room to disagree. ## What this means for local businesses Do not assume your Google Maps ranking carries into ChatGPT. Ask ChatGPT for the best businesses in your service and city and see where you land. A business in position 15 on Maps can be named while the map pack is skipped. Work on the signals ChatGPT reads beyond Google Maps: reviews on Google and other sites, a clear website that names your services and city, and listings on the directories it cites, such as Expertise.com, Birdeye and Angi. If you already hold a map pack spot, protect it, but do not treat it as your AI visibility. Suff Digital's local seo packages (https://www.suffdigital.com/seo/local-seo-services) cover both your Google Maps ranking and the listings and reviews AI assistants read. ## Embed this research Paste this on your site to embed the charts. It links back to the source automatically.

Source: 88.4% of the Local Businesses ChatGPT Recommends Aren't in Google's Map Pack - Suff Digital

## Cite this study APA Suff Digital. (2026). 88.4% of the Local Businesses ChatGPT Recommends Aren't in Google's Map Pack. https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/chatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack Plain link 88.4% of the Local Businesses ChatGPT Recommends Aren't in Google's Map Pack - Suff Digital - https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/chatgpt-picks-vs-google-map-pack ## Frequently asked questions ### Does ChatGPT recommend the businesses in Google's map pack? ### Does ChatGPT recommend businesses that don't rank on Google Maps? ### How often does ChatGPT include the #1 Google Maps business? ### Does Gemini recommend the businesses in Google's map pack? ### Which service overlaps least between ChatGPT and Google Maps? ## Related studies - AI SEO ChatGPT Picks 1.9% of Local Businesses With Under 10 Google Reviews vs 26.9% With 500 to 999: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/ai-review-threshold-local-businesses - AI SEO ChatGPT Names the Highest-Rated Business in Town Only 46.2% of the Time: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/top-rated-business-ai-picks - AI SEO Local Businesses With a Website Are 3.9x More Likely to Be Recommended by ChatGPT: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/website-ai-local-recommendations - AI SEO Google Pushes Every Website Listing Off the First Screen on 40.2% of Phone Searches: https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/first-organic-result-below-fold-mobile ## Structured data ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#organization", "name": "Suff Digital", "alternateName": "Suff Digital Marketing", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#logo", "url": "https://www.suffdigital.com/logo.png", "contentUrl": "https://www.suffdigital.com/logo.png", "caption": "Suff Digital" }, "image": { "@id": "https://www.suffdigital.com/#logo" }, "description": "Suff 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Maps' top 100." } } ] } ] } ] ```