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Research · September 28, 2026

Where ChatGPT finds HVAC companies: 390 answers in 26 US cities

We asked ChatGPT the questions homeowners ask when their AC or furnace breaks, in 26 US cities, and logged every website it cited. angi.com appeared in 25% of answers, expertise.com in 19% and consumeraffairs.com in 19%.

Answers analyzed
390
Cited a directory or review site
52%
Companies named per answer
4.8
Named in 1 of 3 answers or more, per city
3

The sites ChatGPT cited most

Share of all 390 answers that cited each site at least once. Directories and review sites dominate, but individual company websites show up too, usually the companies ChatGPT then recommends.

  1. angi.com25%
  2. expertise.com19%
  3. consumeraffairs.com19%
  4. homeadvisor.com12%
  5. bestprosintown.com10%
  6. bbb.org9%
  7. reddit.com7%
  8. reviews.birdeye.com7%
  9. goettl.com5%
  10. homeguide.com5%
  11. aireserv.com5%
  12. serviceexperts.com5%
  13. onehourheatandair.com5%
  14. thumbtack.com4%
  15. houzz.com4%
  16. Directory, review site or forum Company website or other

What the data says

  1. The real shortlist is about 3 companies. Across 15 answers, the median city saw 34 different companies named, but only 3 were named in at least one answer in three. The most-named company appeared in 47% of answers. Every other HVAC company in the metro never came up.
  2. One mention is luck, not visibility. 55% of the companies ChatGPT named in a city appeared in a single answer. Asking once and seeing your name proves little, which is why we ask every question several times.
  3. ChatGPT reads directories before it answers. 52% of answers cited at least one directory or review site. Being listed, with recent reviews, on the ones it cites in your city is the most direct lever a company has.
  4. Your own website counts. Company websites that spell out services and service areas are cited alongside directories, and the companies behind them tend to be the ones named.
  5. It varies by city. The mix of cited sites differs from one city to the next, which is why each city ranking lists its own sources.

How we collected it

Between September 27, 2026 and September 28, 2026 we asked ChatGPT (OpenAI's API with web search on, located in each city) five questions homeowners ask about heating and cooling, three times each, in 26 cities. We recorded every cited URL and every company named. Full details are on the methodology page. You may quote these numbers with a link to this page.

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