Do AI Assistants Recommend the Same Local Businesses as Google Maps?

Abstract

On Nov. 2, 2026, Make It Loud ran a side-by-side field test asking ChatGPT and Google's AI Mode for the best HVAC companies, plumbers, roofers, dentists, auto repair shops and pest control companies in Lawrenceville, Cumming, Gainesville and Canton, then compared their answers with Google's local map results. Across 24 searches, we recorded the top three businesses in Google's map pack, Google AI Mode's recommendations and ChatGPT's recommendations, and in total the three sources named 191 different businesses. Google AI Mode stayed close to Google's own map results, recommending 62 of the 72 map-pack top-three businesses (86%) and including the No. 1 map result in 21 of 24 answers. ChatGPT went its own way, naming 40 of the 72 map-pack businesses (56%), including the No. 1 map result in only 12 of 24 answers, and recommending none of Google's top three in 3 searches. Nearly two-thirds of ChatGPT's picks were businesses that did not appear in Google's top three. Ranking in the map pack still carries real weight in Google's AI, but it does not guarantee a mention in ChatGPT. This is a one-day snapshot of six services in four cities, and AI answers vary from one request to the next.

Methodology

This brief was prepared by Make It Loud Digital Marketing as an original field test. On Nov. 2, 2026, we ran 24 searches in the form best [service] in [city], GA for six services (HVAC company, plumber, roofing company, dentist, auto repair shop and pest control company) in four cities: Lawrenceville (Gwinnett County), Cumming (Forsyth), Gainesville (Hall) and Canton (Cherokee). For each search we recorded three lists. The Google map pack was the first three non-sponsored businesses in the local Businesses results on a standard Google search, with sponsored listings recorded separately. Google AI Mode was the businesses recommended in the body of the AI Mode answer, using Google's option to answer without personalization and excluding the separate sponsored section and the place cards below the answer. ChatGPT was the businesses in its numbered list of recommendations, using a temporary chat set to unpersonalized on the default Instant setting, so saved memory and past conversations could not influence results. Business names were standardized before comparison by removing punctuation, city names and suffixes such as LLC and Inc., and every merged name was checked by hand. Business names are shown as each source displayed them, and inclusion is not an endorsement. This is a one-day field test, not a survey or peer-reviewed study, and it is not legal, financial or purchasing advice.

Findings

Across 24 searches the three sources named 191 different businesses, an average of 8 per search. Google AI Mode recommended 62 of the 72 map-pack top-three businesses (86%), included the No. 1 map result in 21 of 24 answers, led with a map-pack business in 21 of 24 answers, and named all three map-pack businesses in 15 searches, averaging 5.5 businesses per answer. ChatGPT recommended 40 of the 72 map-pack businesses (56%), included the No. 1 map result in only 12 of 24 answers, led with a map-pack business in 14 of 24, and in 3 searches named none of the map pack; 73 of its 113 picks (65%) were not in Google's top three, and only 61 of its 113 picks (54%) were also named by AI Mode. Agreement varied by industry: ChatGPT matched 83% of the auto repair map pack but only 17% of the dental map pack, while AI Mode ranged from 58% (dentists) to 100% (plumbing). Only 37 of the 72 map-pack spots (51%) went to businesses all three sources recommended. Google AI Mode added a labeled sponsored local business block in 2 of 24 answers; ChatGPT showed no advertising.

Overview

A Make It Loud field test comparing ChatGPT, Google’s AI Mode and Google’s map pack for six local services across four North Georgia cities.

When someone asks an AI assistant to recommend a local plumber or dentist, which businesses does it name, and are they the same businesses Google shows in its map results, the three listings that have long been the most valuable real estate in local search? To find out, Make It Loud ran a side-by-side field test on Nov. 2, 2026. We searched for six common local services in four North Georgia cities, one in each of the counties we serve, using the same wording everywhere, and recorded the top three businesses in Google’s map pack, the businesses Google’s AI Mode recommended and the businesses ChatGPT recommended, then compared the lists.

Google’s AI Mode stayed close to Google’s own map results, while ChatGPT built a noticeably different list. In total the three sources named 191 different businesses. Ranking in the map pack still carries real weight in Google’s AI, but it does not guarantee a mention in ChatGPT, and this is a one-day snapshot that will shift over time.

Download the full brief

You can download the full research brief as a PDF. It is an original field test prepared by Make It Loud Digital Marketing, dated November 2026, and reproduces the tables, methodology, limitations and sources below, including the full results by search.

Finding 1: Google’s AI Mode largely follows the map pack

Google AI Mode’s recommendations closely matched Google’s own local results. Of the 72 businesses holding the top three map-pack spots across our 24 searches, AI Mode recommended 62. It included the No. 1 map result in 21 of 24 answers, and in 21 of 24 its first-named recommendation was a map-pack business. In 15 searches, all three map-pack businesses appeared in the AI answer.

Source: Make It Loud field test, Nov. 2, 2026. 72 map-pack positions (top three non-sponsored businesses in each of 24 searches).

AI Mode usually went beyond the top three, naming 5.5 businesses per answer on average, and it typically organized them by situation, such as best for emergencies or best family-owned option. But its core list looked much like the map pack, so the work that earns a top map ranking, a complete Google Business Profile, steady reviews and a relevant website, appears to carry over directly into Google’s AI answers.

Finding 2: ChatGPT builds a different list

ChatGPT’s answers overlapped much less with Google’s map results. It recommended 40 of the 72 map-pack businesses (56%), and its first-named pick was a map-pack business in 14 of 24 searches. Of the 113 businesses ChatGPT recommended, 73 (65%) were not among Google’s top three. In 3 searches (plumbers and dentists in Lawrenceville, and dentists in Gainesville), ChatGPT named none of the map-pack businesses at all.

Source: Make It Loud field test, Nov. 2, 2026. No. 1 map result is the first non-sponsored business in Google’s local results.

ChatGPT’s answers showed star ratings, review counts and a map, so it was drawing on business listing data, but it selected differently. Even the two AIs disagreed: only 61 of ChatGPT’s 113 picks (54%) were also named by Google AI Mode for the same search. A business that ranks well on Google can still be invisible in ChatGPT, and a business outside Google’s top three can still be ChatGPT’s first recommendation.

Finding 3: Dentists show the biggest gap

Agreement varied a lot by industry. For auto repair shops, ChatGPT recommended 10 of the 12 map-pack businesses across the four cities and AI Mode 11. For dentists, ChatGPT recommended only 2 of 12, and AI Mode 7, the lowest for both. HVAC was the second-largest gap for ChatGPT, at 5 of 12.

Source: Make It Loud field test, Nov. 2, 2026. Map-pack businesses are the top three non-sponsored businesses in Google’s local results, across four cities (12 per service).

Categories with many similar, well-reviewed providers, such as dental practices and HVAC contractors in fast-growing suburbs, appear to give AI assistants more room to pick differently. In those industries, being in the map pack is less of a guarantee of being named by AI.

Finding 4: AI answers widen the field beyond the top three

Google’s map pack shows three businesses, but the AI answers named more, an average of 5.5 per answer for AI Mode and 4.7 for ChatGPT. Across all three sources, 191 different businesses were recommended, an average of 8 per search. Agreement across all three was limited: in 20 of 24 searches at least one business was named by the map pack, AI Mode and ChatGPT, but only 37 of the 72 map-pack spots (51%) went to businesses that all three recommended.

Source: Make It Loud field test, Nov. 2, 2026. 18 map-pack positions per city (six services, top three each).

That is both a risk and an opportunity. Businesses outside the top three can now be recommended, often for a specific need such as emergency service, older vehicles or anxious dental patients, so businesses that have relied on a top map ranking may share the spotlight with competitors they used to outrank.

Finding 5: Ads are showing up inside AI answers

Google’s regular results showed a sponsored listing at the top of the map pack in 6 of 24 searches. Google AI Mode added a labeled sponsored block of local businesses below its answer in 2 of 24 searches, both in Lawrenceville (HVAC and plumbing), where local service providers advertise heavily. We did not see advertising in ChatGPT’s answers. AI search is becoming another place where local businesses can pay for visibility, though for now it is still uncommon in these searches.

What this means for local businesses and marketers

Your Google Business Profile matters more, not less. Google’s AI Mode recommended 86% of the businesses in the map pack, so the reviews, categories, photos, hours and completeness that feed the map results also feed Google’s AI answers. Do not assume those Google rankings carry over to ChatGPT, though: ChatGPT recommended only 56% of the map-pack businesses and often named companies Google ranked lower. Being visible to ChatGPT takes a strong presence across the web, reviews on more than one platform, accurate directory listings, local press and a clear website, which is the heart of AI search optimization.

Tell AI what you are best at, because both AIs grouped recommendations by need, such as emergency service, family-owned, budget-friendly or specialties like septic, European cars or dental anxiety. Businesses that state their specialties clearly on their website and profile give AI a reason to recommend them for those situations. Finally, check your own visibility: ask ChatGPT and Google’s AI Mode the questions your customers ask, in the cities you serve, and note who gets named, then repeat the check over time. Our companion study, How Much Website Traffic Do AI Assistants Send to Local Businesses?, shows how much of that visibility turns into clicks.

Key figures and sources

Source: Make It Loud field test, Nov. 2, 2026. The three sources named 191 different businesses in total, versus 72 map-pack spots.

Limitations

This is a one-day snapshot. AI answers vary from one request to the next and change over time, and map results depend partly on where the searcher is located. All searches came from one desktop browser, and the city named in the search, not the searcher’s location, defined the market. Results apply to these six services and four cities. In three AI Mode answers, one recommended business could not be captured cleanly from the page (two roofing searches and one Lawrenceville dental search that listed only two businesses), which may slightly understate AI Mode’s overlap. Other AI assistants, such as Gemini, Perplexity and Copilot, were not tested. Business names are shown as each source displayed them, and inclusion is not an endorsement. This brief offers general information only. It is not legal, financial or purchasing advice.

Sources

Google Search local Businesses results (map pack) and Google AI Mode, google.com, accessed Nov. 2, 2026.

ChatGPT (OpenAI), chatgpt.com, temporary chat, unpersonalized, accessed Nov. 2, 2026.

Make It Loud Digital Marketing, companion study: How Much Website Traffic Do AI Assistants Send to Local Businesses?, Nov. 2, 2026.