If you’re wondering how to rank on AIO, you’re really asking how to be cited and linked inside Google’s AI Overviews. These AI-generated snapshots sit above the classic blue links and summarise an answer while pointing to a handful of sources. Winning a citation there can mean visibility even when zero-click behaviour rises. 

Below is a no-fluff, field-ready guide to get your pages chosen as sources in AI Overviews.

First, understand how AIO chooses sources

Google says the same SEO fundamentals still apply. There’s no special “AIO markup” or secret tag. If your pages are technically sound, useful, and authoritative, they’re eligible to be cited. In other words, keep doing good SEO and make it easier for systems to understand and trust your content. 

AI Overviews appear when Google believes a generative answer will help the searcher, and those answers include links to the web so users can dig deeper. 

What that means in practice

  • There’s no opt-in; eligibility flows from overall search quality.
  • Structured data helps machines interpret your page, but it must match what’s visible to users. 
  • Rollout began May 14, 2024, expanding widely; Google continues to iterate fast. Treat AIO as part of core Search, not a side experiment. 

Proof point: AIO often cites pages that already rank

Independent studies show a strong overlap between AIO citations and top organic results. For example, Ahrefs found 76% of AI Overview citations come from pages in the top 10 for that query. Other large-scale analyses from seoClarity and Semrush report similar correlations and prevalence trends. Translation: classic ranking signals still matter a lot. 

Also note that AIO is most common on informational queries, so target topics where clear, instructional answers are needed. 

The short answer: how to rank on AIO

  1. Pick AIO-prone topics (informational, how-to, comparisons) and cover them deeply. 
  2. Answer first, elaborate second: open with a crisp, factually correct summary the AI can lift, then provide details, steps, and evidence. 
  3. Use correct, matching structured data (HowTo, FAQPage, Article, Product) and validate it. 
  4. Demonstrate E-E-A-T: expertise, experience, author bios, sources, and transparent citations—especially for YMYL topics. 
  5. Keep “normal SEO” tight: crawlability, internal links, page speed, mobile UX, canonicalisation, and a strong backlink graph. 

Choose the right queries and intents

AIO shows up disproportionately on informational and multi-step tasks. Map your keywords by intent:

  • Explainer queries: “what is…”, “why…”, “benefits of…”
  • Procedural queries: “how to…”, “steps to…”, “checklist…”
  • Comparisons: “X vs Y”, “best tools for…”, “alternatives to…”

Prioritise clusters where you can become the canonical explainer for the topic and provide an answer-first structure that a model can reliably summarise. 

Structure pages the way AIO “likes” to read

Think extractability. Your content should be trivial for a model to quote and cite:

  • Lead with the TL;DR: one to three sentences that directly satisfy the query.
  • Follow with scannable steps using numbered lists and sub-headers that mirror the user’s task.
  • Add a concise table for comparisons, criteria, or pros/cons—tables often make it into summaries because they’re unambiguous.
  • Include definitions and entities (people, products, standards) with precise wording so the system resolves them correctly.
  • Link to high-authority references where appropriate to reinforce trust and give users paths to verify.

Google’s own guidance is clear: your visible page should reflect any structured data claims you make. Don’t mark up content that isn’t actually on the page. 

Implement structured data that matches the page

There’s no AIO-specific schema, but well-formed, accurate markup increases machine understanding and eligibility for rich features:

  • HowTo for step-based tasks
  • FAQPage for common questions
  • Article/NewsArticle for editorial content
  • Product/Review for commerce content

Always ensure your JSON-LD mirrors the visible copy and validate with Google’s tools. Misaligned markup can hurt trust and eligibility. 

Build obvious credibility (E-E-A-T)

Across Google’s documentation, the refrain is consistent: helpful, people-first content wins. Show first-hand experience, name qualified authors, show bylines and dates, cite primary sources, and clarify methodology for any data. This isn’t just for organic rankings—it helps AIO choose reliable sources to point users to. 

If you use AI to help draft content, follow Google’s generative AI content guidance to avoid scaled, low-value pages. 

Technical hygiene still matters

AIO draws heavily from pages that already rank well, so the same technical standards you’d use for top-10 rankings apply here too:

  • Fast, mobile-first pages that are easy to crawl
  • Clean internal linking to concentrate topical authority
  • Canonical tags and indexability set correctly
  • Stable URLs, descriptive titles, and helpful meta descriptions

Again, Google’s stance is that best-practice SEO remains the path. 

Measurement: how to see AIO’s impact

Google has started rolling AI Mode traffic into Search Console Performance reports. You’ll see impressions and clicks reflected in your totals, but you can’t fully break out AI Mode or AI Overviews as separate segments yet. Watch for shifts in branded vs. non-branded queries and monitor pages that you suspect are being cited. 

Practical tips:

  • Track target queries that frequently trigger AIO manually and log whether your URL appears among the cited sources.
  • Monitor impression spikes on informational pages that coincide with AIO prevalence trends reported by industry studies. 

Should you try to avoid AIO?

It’s possible to suppress your snippets, and thereby remove AIO citations, using nosnippet, but it’s a heavy hammer that also removes regular snippets and can depress CTR. Use it only if you’ve made a strategic choice to avoid inclusion. 

AIO optimisation checklist

  • Target informational queries with strong search demand
  • Draft an answer-first intro that precisely satisfies the query
  • Expand with steps, tables, and Q&A sections
  • Add author bios, sources, dates, and unique evidence
  • Implement matching structured data and validate it
  • Strengthen internal links within the topic cluster
  • Maintain technical SEO standards across the site
  • Track performance in Search Console and manual AIO spot checks   

Example: “How-to” page scaffolding you can reuse

H2: What you’ll learn

One-sentence promise plus prerequisites.

H2: Quick answer

Two-to-three sentences that directly answer the query.

H2: Step-by-step

  1. Step with measurable outcome
  2. Step with tool or setting names
  3. Step with verification

H2: Why this works

Evidence, benchmarks, or citations to credible third-party research.

H2: FAQs

Three to five short Q&As that cover common follow-ups.

Mark it up with How To and FAQ Page only if the visible content matches. 

Final word

How to rank on AIO boils down to the same principles that rank you in classic Search—plus an answer-first page architecture that’s easy for machines to cite. Target the right intents, make extraction effortless, validate your markup, and keep your technical and credibility signals tight. The sites most often cited in AI Overviews are the same ones users already trust and Google already ranks.