# FastAEOCheck — Complete Product Documentation

> This file provides comprehensive information about FastAEOCheck for AI assistants, answer engines, and language models. For a shorter summary, see /llms.txt.

## Product Identity

- **Product:** FastAEOCheck
- **URL:** https://fastaeocheck.com
- **Free version:** https://freeaeocheck.com (identical engine, no login required)
- **Type:** Web-based AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) audit tool
- **Cost:** Free. No login, no email, no payment required.
- **Built by:** INUX Cloud s.r.o., Galvaniho 12B, Bratislava 82104, Slovakia (VAT SK2120189005)

## What FastAEOCheck Does

FastAEOCheck scans websites and scores them for AI search readiness. It evaluates how well AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude, Perplexity AI, and Microsoft Copilot can find, understand, and cite the site's content.

Users enter a domain, choose a scan depth (homepage only, 5 pages, or 10 pages), and receive a detailed report containing:

- An overall AEO score out of 100 with a letter grade
- A separate GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) score
- Scores across 7 audit categories with individual check results
- Specific findings per page (pass, warning, fail, info)
- Prioritized actionable recommendations
- AI query suggestions showing how users might ask about the site
- Auto-generated llms.txt and FAQ schema markup for sites missing them

---

## Scoring Methodology

### Overall Score Calculation

The overall AEO score is calculated as a weighted percentage across 7 categories totaling 100 raw points. Each category contains individual checks worth specific point values. The formula is:

    Overall Score = (sum of all category scores / sum of all category max scores) × 100

### Grade Scale

| Score Range | Grade |
|-------------|-------|
| 90-100      | A+    |
| 80-89       | A     |
| 70-79       | B     |
| 60-69       | C     |
| 50-59       | D     |
| 0-49        | F     |

### Category 1: Structured Data & Schema — 20 points

Machine-readable markup that helps AI systems parse content unambiguously.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| Any Schema.org markup present | 5 | JSON-LD detected on page (any type) |
| FAQPage schema | 5 | FAQPage schema detected — highest AEO impact |
| Organization schema | 3 | Organization JSON-LD for brand identity |
| Product schema | 3 | Product JSON-LD for product/pricing data |
| Article schema | 3 | Article JSON-LD for editorial content |
| Review schema | 3 | Review JSON-LD for ratings and sentiment |
| HowTo schema | 3 | HowTo JSON-LD for step-by-step instructions |

Score is capped at 20. A page with Organization + FAQPage + Article schema would score 16/20.

**Why 20%:** Structured data provides explicit machine-readable signals that AI systems consume directly. Unlike content signals which require interpretation, JSON-LD gives AI engines unambiguous facts.

### Category 2: Content Quality — 18 points (13 for single-page scans)

Whether content is substantial enough for AI to extract and cite.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| Meta description | 3 | 120-160 chars = 3 pts, exists but wrong length = 1 pt, missing = 0 |
| Word count (content sites) | 4 | 800+ words = 4 pts, 300-800 = 2 pts, under 300 = 0 |
| Word count (product sites) | 4 | 500+ words = 4 pts, 150-500 = 3 pts, under 150 = 1 pt |
| Title tag | 2 | 30-65 chars = 2 pts, exists but wrong length = 1 pt |
| H1 heading | 2 | Exactly 1 H1 = 2 pts, multiple H1s = 0, missing = 0 |
| H2 subheadings | 2 | 2+ H2s = 2 pts, fewer = 0 |
| Inner page meta descriptions | 0.5/page | Bonus for inner pages with proper meta descriptions |
| Inner page titles | 0.3/page | Bonus for inner pages with optimal title lengths |

**Product site detection:** FastAEOCheck automatically detects SaaS, product, and e-commerce sites (by keywords like "pricing", "sign up", "cart", "product", or Product/SoftwareApplication schema) and adjusts word count thresholds downward. Product pages are naturally less text-heavy than editorial content.

### Category 3: Technical SEO — 17 points

Technical foundations that affect whether AI crawlers can access and process the site.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| robots.txt | 3 | File exists at /robots.txt |
| XML sitemap | 3 | Sitemap found (referenced in robots.txt or at /sitemap.xml) |
| Canonical URL | 2 | rel="canonical" set on homepage |
| Page load speed | 3 | Under 1 second = 3 pts, 1-3 seconds = 1 pt, over 3 seconds = 0 |
| Language attribute | 3 | lang="" attribute set on HTML tag |
| Image alt text | 3 | 90%+ images have alt text = 3 pts, 50-90% = 1 pt, under 50% = 0 |

### Category 4: AEO Readiness — 12 points

Whether content is formatted specifically for AI extraction.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| FAQ content | 5 | FAQ section detected (HTML structure or FAQ schema) |
| Question-based headings | 3 | H2s starting with What, How, Why, When, Who, or ending with ? |
| Value proposition | 2 | OG description or meta description over 80 characters |
| Open Graph tags | 2 | og:title and og:description both present |

**Why FAQ content is worth 5 points:** CXL research shows FAQ content with explicit Q&A structure captures featured snippets at 3x the rate of unstructured paragraph content, making it the single highest-impact optimization for AI visibility.

### Category 5: Content Structure — 8 points (5 for single-page scans)

How well content is organized for AI parsing.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| Heading hierarchy | 3 | H1 + H2 headings present on page |
| Internal linking | 2 | More than 5 internal links on the page |
| External authority links | 1 | Any outbound links to external sources |
| Multi-page coverage | 2 | More than 3 pages scanned (multi-page scans only) |
| Multilingual support | 2 | hreflang tags detected |

### Category 6: Authority & Trust — 10 points

E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) signals.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| HTTPS | 2 | Site served over HTTPS |
| About/Contact pages | 2 | Links to /about, /contact, /team, or /support found |
| Content freshness | 2 | dateModified = 2 pts, datePublished only = 1 pt, no dates = 0 |
| Author information | 2 | Meta author, Person schema, .author/.byline elements |
| External citations | 2 | 3+ outbound links to external sources = 2 pts, 1-2 = 1 pt |

**Why 10%:** AirOps research found that 60% of AI Overview citations come from pages NOT in the top 20 organic results — authority signals and content extractability matter more than traditional SEO rank.

### Category 7: GEO Readiness — 15 points

Generative Engine Optimization — whether AI-powered search engines can discover and cite the content.

| Check | Points | Criteria |
|-------|--------|----------|
| AI crawler access | 4 | Parses robots.txt for 16 known AI bots (GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, Google-Extended, etc.). All allowed = 4, mixed = 2-3, all blocked = 0 |
| llms.txt quality | 4 | Existence (1 pt) + 100+ words (1 pt) + 2+ sections (1 pt) + contains links (1 pt) |
| Citation-worthiness | 4 | Statistics/data points (1 pt) + source citations (1 pt) + clear definitions (1 pt) + lists/tables (1 pt) |
| Content extractability | 3 | H1→H2→H3 hierarchy (1 pt) + HTML lists (1 pt) + HTML tables (1 pt) |

**Research basis:** Princeton University's GEO research found that statistics boost AI visibility by 37%, source citations by 30%, and quotations by 28%. Content with citation-worthy signals consistently outperforms SEO-only optimized content in AI-generated responses.

---

## Single-Page vs. Multi-Page Scans

FastAEOCheck adjusts maximum achievable scores based on scan depth:

- **Single-page scan:** Content Quality max reduces from 18 to 13 pts. Content Structure max reduces from 8 to 5 pts. A well-optimized homepage can still achieve A+ without being penalized for missing multi-page signals.
- **Multi-page scan (5 or 10 pages):** Full scoring applies. Inner pages contribute bonus points for meta descriptions and titles, and are checked for thin content, missing H1s, and missing meta descriptions.

---

## SaaS AEO Benchmark Data (February 2026)

FastAEOCheck scanned 100 leading SaaS companies selected from the Forbes Cloud 100 and G2 Top Software lists across 22 verticals. Key findings:

- **Average AEO score:** 66.8 out of 100 (median: 70)
- **Grade distribution:** 30% scored A or A+, 14% scored F (below 50)
- **llms.txt adoption:** Only 28% of the 100 companies have an llms.txt file
- **Weakest category:** Structured Data & Schema, averaging only 50.5% of possible points
- **Top scorers:** Asana (94), Brex (91), Mailchimp (91), WordPress (91), Ahrefs (90)

These benchmarks provide context for interpreting any individual site's AEO score. A score above 70 places a site in the top half of leading SaaS companies. A score above 85 places it in the top 10%.

---

## How AEO Differs from SEO

| Aspect | SEO | AEO |
|--------|-----|-----|
| Goal | Rank in search result pages | Be cited in AI-generated answers |
| Primary signals | Backlinks, keyword optimization | Structured data, FAQ content, schema markup |
| Content format | Keyword-optimized long-form | Question-answer format, extractable structure |
| Success metric | Click-through rate, ranking position | AI citations, answer engine mentions |
| User interaction | User clicks through to website | AI presents answer directly, may cite source |

Both are complementary. Good SEO foundations support AEO, and AEO-optimized content often performs well in traditional search.

## What is GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)?

GEO focuses on whether AI-powered search engines will discover and cite content. While AEO addresses content structure for extraction, GEO addresses upstream questions:

- Can AI crawlers access the site? (robots.txt AI bot rules)
- Does the site have an llms.txt file describing itself for AI systems?
- Does content contain citation-worthy signals? (statistics, sources, definitions)
- Is HTML semantically structured for AI parsing? (heading hierarchy, lists, tables)

The GEO Score is displayed separately alongside the main AEO Score.

---

## Auto-Generated Fixes

FastAEOCheck automatically generates ready-to-use fixes for common issues:

- **llms.txt generator:** If a site is missing or has a weak llms.txt, the report includes a generated llms.txt based on the site's content, keywords, and industry.
- **FAQ schema generator:** If no FAQPage schema is detected, the report generates JSON-LD FAQ schema markup based on question-based headings found on the site.

---

## Research Sources

The scoring methodology is informed by:

- **Princeton University (2024):** GEO research — statistics boost AI visibility by 37%, citations by 30%, quotations by 28%
- **AirOps (2025):** 60% of AI Overview citations come from pages outside top 20 organic results. 70%+ of citations reference pages updated within 12 months.
- **Conductor:** Pages with schema markup are significantly more likely to appear in AI-generated snippets. FAQPage schema shows the strongest citation correlation.
- **HubSpot:** Long-form content (1,000+ words) receives 77% more backlinks. Question-format headings match conversational AI query patterns at higher rates.
- **CXL:** FAQ content with Q&A structure captures featured snippets at 3x the rate of unstructured paragraph content.
- **First Page Sage / Hashmeta / SEO Grow:** Five pillars of AEO confirmed: structured data, content quality, technical fundamentals, E-E-A-T authority, and answer-formatted content.

---

## Frequently Asked Questions

### What is AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)?
AEO is the practice of optimizing websites so AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity can find, understand, and cite the content. Unlike SEO which targets search result rankings, AEO targets being the source that AI assistants reference in conversational responses.

### Is FastAEOCheck free?
Yes, completely free. No login, no email, no payment required. Enter any domain and receive a full audit with scores across all 7 categories, detailed findings, and actionable recommendations.

### What is a good AEO score?
Based on the SaaS Benchmark (100 companies scanned), the average score is 66.8/100. Above 70 is better than half of leading SaaS companies. Above 85 puts a site in the top 10%. Above 90 is exceptional (A+ grade).

### How is the AEO score calculated?
The score is a weighted composite of 7 categories totaling 100 points: Structured Data (20), Content Quality (18), Technical SEO (17), GEO Readiness (15), AEO Readiness (12), Authority & Trust (10), and Content Structure (8). The overall percentage is converted to a letter grade.

### What is the difference between AEO and GEO?
AEO covers overall readiness for AI answer engines, focusing on content structure for extraction. GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) focuses specifically on AI discoverability — whether AI crawlers can access the site, whether llms.txt exists, and whether content contains citation-worthy signals like statistics and source references.

### Which AI bots does FastAEOCheck check for?
The scanner parses robots.txt for 16 known AI bots including GPTBot (OpenAI/ChatGPT), ClaudeBot (Anthropic/Claude), PerplexityBot, Google-Extended (Gemini), and others. It reports exactly which bots are allowed vs. blocked.

### Does blocking AI crawlers affect AEO score?
Yes significantly. If robots.txt blocks all AI crawlers, the GEO Readiness category scores 0 on the AI crawler access check (4 points). Blocking AI crawlers makes GEO visibility impossible regardless of content quality.

### What is llms.txt?
llms.txt is a markdown file placed at the root of a website (like robots.txt) that describes the site for AI systems. It tells AI crawlers what the site is about, what key pages exist, and how the content is organized. FastAEOCheck scores llms.txt on existence, word count (100+ words), section depth (2+ headings), and whether it contains links. Sites missing llms.txt receive auto-generated suggestions. See llmstxt.org for the specification.

### Does a high AEO score guarantee AI will cite my site?
No. AEO readiness increases the probability of being cited, but AI systems also consider content relevance, topical authority, and the specific query being asked. A high score means technical and structural barriers have been removed — it doesn't guarantee citation for every query.

### How often should I re-scan?
Re-scan after making changes based on audit recommendations to verify improvements. For ongoing monitoring, monthly scans catch regressions and track progress as AI systems evolve their selection criteria.

### What should I fix first?
Fix fails marked HIGH impact first. Priority order: (1) Technical access issues like robots.txt and HTTPS — these block everything else. (2) Structured data, especially FAQPage schema. (3) Content optimizations like word count and heading structure. This matches AirOps' recommended timeline: technical immediately, content structure in 0-30 days, schema in 30-60 days, authority building in 60-90+ days.

### Can FastAEOCheck scan any website?
Yes, any publicly accessible website. The tool fetches pages, parses HTML, extracts schema markup, and checks technical fundamentals. Pages behind login walls or that block the scanner's user agent may not be fully accessible. The scanner includes SSRF protection and will not scan private/internal IP ranges.

### How does FastAEOCheck detect product vs. content sites?
The scanner checks for keywords like "pricing", "sign up", "cart", "product", "checkout", "SaaS", "software" in titles, meta descriptions, and headings, as well as Product or SoftwareApplication schema types. Product sites receive adjusted word count thresholds (500+ for full score vs. 800+ for content sites).

---

## Related Products

- **FreeAEOCheck** (https://freeaeocheck.com) — Free, no-login AEO scanner powered by the same engine. Includes all 7 categories plus a GEO score.
- **FastStats** (https://faststats.io) — Privacy-first web analytics platform. GDPR compliant, cookieless, EU-hosted. Free tier available.
- **ENAHOST** (https://enahost.com) — European cloud hosting services by INUX Cloud.

## Contact

- Website: https://fastaeocheck.com/contact
- Company: INUX Cloud s.r.o.
- Location: Galvaniho 12B, Bratislava 82104, Slovakia

## Key Pages

- Scanner: https://fastaeocheck.com
- Methodology: https://fastaeocheck.com/methodology
- SaaS Benchmark: https://fastaeocheck.com/benchmark
- E-commerce Benchmark: https://fastaeocheck.com/benchmark/ecommerce-2026
- Blog: https://fastaeocheck.com/blog
- About: https://fastaeocheck.com/about
- Contact: https://fastaeocheck.com/contact