ChatGPT writes 99.1% of its answers to Spanish-language local questions in Spanish, yet not one of the 3,118 website citations behind those answers points to a detectable Spanish-language site. The research is done in English: Expertise.com, an English-language directory, is cited in 34% of the Spanish answers.
Analysis of 1,000 Spanish-language ChatGPT answers for 20 local services in 25 US cities · ChatGPT with web search, September 2026
Key Findings
- 1.0 of the 3,118 website citations in ChatGPT's Spanish-language answers about US local businesses point to a detectable Spanish-language website: one on a Spanish-speaking country's domain, a Spanish (es.) subdomain or a known US Spanish-language outlet.
- 2.ChatGPT writes 99.1% of its answers to Spanish-language local questions in Spanish, and 99.4% of them cite sources.
- 3.Expertise.com, an English-language directory, is cited in 34% of ChatGPT's Spanish-language answers about local businesses, more than any other website.
- 4.Expertise.com appears in 88% of ChatGPT's Spanish-language answers about locksmiths, and in none about dentists, restaurants or gyms.
- 5.ChatGPT's ten most-cited websites take 44.8% of citations in Spanish local answers and 45.3% in English ones, from nearly the same list of directories.
Summary
A Spanish speaker in El Paso asks ChatGPT, in Spanish, for the best electrician in town. The answer comes back in fluent Spanish, with a list of local electricians and links to its sources. Every one of those sources is in English: a US directory, a review aggregator, a consumer ratings site.
Spanish-language media and directories exist to reach Spanish-speaking customers, and local businesses use them to do the same. If ChatGPT does not cite them, they have no say in the recommendations those customers get from it, and the English-language directories decide instead.
That is what happens. ChatGPT answers 99.1% of Spanish questions in Spanish, but none of the 3,118 website citations behind those answers points to a detectable Spanish-language site. The most-cited sources, Expertise.com, Birdeye's review pages, Yably and ConsumerAffairs, are the same English directories that lead ChatGPT's English answers.
What we measured
On September 23, 2026 we asked ChatGPT, with web search switched on, "¿Cuáles son los mejores [servicio] en [ciudad]?" ("What are the best [service] in [city]?") for 20 local services in 25 large US cities, including Houston, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Antonio, El Paso and New York. Each question was asked twice, giving 1,000 Spanish answers, and we asked the same questions in English for comparison.
We recorded every website each answer cites; a website cited in an answer counts once for that answer, giving 3,118 citations. A website counts as Spanish-language if its address ends in the code of a Spanish-speaking country (such as .mx or .es), sits on a Spanish subdomain (es.), or belongs to a known US Spanish-language outlet such as Univision or Telemundo. Shares are the percentage of answers that cite a given website.
Spanish answers, English research
The answers are fully localized in language: 99.1% are written in Spanish and 99.4% cite sources. The research behind them is not. Expertise.com alone is cited in 340 of the 1,000 Spanish answers, Birdeye's review pages in 211, Yably in 164 and ConsumerAffairs in 138. All are English-language websites.
Source: Suff Digital analysis of 1,000 Spanish-language ChatGPT answers for 20 local services in 25 US cities · ChatGPT with web search, September 2026
ChatGPT translates the result, not the search. It gathers its evidence for "best electrician in El Paso" from English directories and review sites, then writes the answer in the language it was asked in.
Which services lean on directories
How heavily ChatGPT leans on one directory depends on the service. Expertise.com appears in 88% of Spanish answers about locksmiths, 86% about electricians and 82% about accountants. For dentists, restaurants, gyms, hair salons, veterinarians, chiropractors and auto repair shops it does not appear at all.
Source: Suff Digital analysis of 1,000 Spanish-language ChatGPT answers for 20 local services in 25 US cities · ChatGPT with web search, September 2026
For home trades, one directory shapes most Spanish answers: a locksmith or electrician not listed on Expertise.com is missing from the evidence ChatGPT reads in close to nine answers out of ten. Restaurants, dentists and the other zero-share services draw on other sources.
Same sources in both languages
Side by side, the Spanish and English source lists are nearly the same. Expertise.com leads both, cited in 34% of Spanish answers and 38.9% of English ones, and the same directories fill the next places in a similar order. ChatGPT draws on 428 different websites for the Spanish answers and 447 for the English ones, and the ten most-cited take 44.8% and 45.3% of citations.
Source: Suff Digital analysis of 1,000 Spanish-language ChatGPT answers for 20 local services in 25 US cities · ChatGPT with web search, September 2026
| Website | English answers | Spanish answers |
|---|---|---|
| expertise.com | 38.9% | 34% |
| reviews.birdeye.com | 19.5% | 21.1% |
| yably.com | 18.7% | 16.4% |
| consumeraffairs.com | 14.9% | 13.8% |
| angi.com | 14.4% | 11.6% |
| bestprosintown.com | 13.4% | 12.1% |
The Spanish answers name slightly fewer businesses than the English ones. The language of the question changes the wording of the answer, not where the information comes from.
What this means for Hispanic media and local businesses
For local businesses, the English directories are the lever for Spanish-speaking customers too. Keep your listings complete and accurate on Expertise.com, Birdeye, Angi and similar sites, and state there that you offer service in Spanish, so the evidence ChatGPT reads says so.
For Spanish-language publishers and directories, this is an open field. No detectable Spanish-language site is being cited for local recommendations today, so the first ones with clear city and service pages, specific "best of" lists and pages that AI engines can read easily are competing for an empty slot. Our local seo packages include the directory listings that feed ChatGPT's answers in both languages.
Need help with this? See our AI SEO services.
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<p style="font:14px/1.5 system-ui,sans-serif">Source: <a href="https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/spanish-answers-english-sources">ChatGPT Cited No Detectable Spanish-Language Websites in 1,000 Spanish Local Answers - Suff Digital</a></p>
Cite this study
Suff Digital. (2026). ChatGPT Cited No Detectable Spanish-Language Websites in 1,000 Spanish Local Answers. https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/spanish-answers-english-sources
ChatGPT Cited No Detectable Spanish-Language Websites in 1,000 Spanish Local Answers - Suff Digital - https://www.suffdigital.com/resources/data-studies/spanish-answers-english-sources
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