Perplexity uses Bing to crawl real-time web pages and synthesizes answers with inline citations. Unlike ChatGPT which prefers institutional authority, Perplexity heavily favors user-generated content — Reddit threads, YouTube videos, LinkedIn posts, and community discussions. Our AEO vs GEO vs AIO: Understanding the AI Search Terms guide covers this in detail.
Perplexity’s Citation Preferences
Analysis of millions of Perplexity responses reveals a clear pattern: real people talking about real experiences rank higher than corporate marketing.
| Top cited sources | Type |
|---|---|
| reddit.com | Community discussions |
| youtube.com | Video content, tutorials |
| linkedin.com | Professional insights |
| yelp.com | Local business reviews |
| Medium, Substack | Independent writers |
| Stack Overflow | Technical Q&A |
How Perplexity Finds Content
Perplexity’s answer pipeline:
- User asks a question — Natural language query
- Bing search — Perplexity queries Bing for real-time results
- Page crawling — Fetches and reads top results
- Synthesis — Combines information from multiple sources
- Citation — Links back to sources used in the answer
This means Perplexity only cites content that Bing can find and index. If Bing can’t see your page, Perplexity can’t cite it.
What Makes Perplexity Cite You
Authenticity Over Authority
Perplexity values genuine experiences. A detailed Reddit review of your product carries more weight than your own marketing page. As we discuss in Content for Position Zero: Win Snippets & AI, this is a critical factor.
Conversational Tone
Content written in natural, conversational language matches how users ask Perplexity questions. Avoid corporate jargon. If you want to go deeper, On-Page SEO Checklist 2026: 25 Essential Optimizations breaks this down step by step.
Specific and Detailed
Vague overviews get skipped. Specific details — pricing, comparisons, personal results — get cited.
Recency
Perplexity pulls from Bing’s real-time index. Fresh content published in the last 30 days has an advantage over older pages. (We explore this further in GEO for Personal Brands: Get AI to Recommend You.)
How to Get Cited by Perplexity
1. Be Active on Reddit
Participate genuinely in subreddits relevant to your industry. Helpful, detailed answers that mention your product naturally will get picked up.
2. Publish on LinkedIn
Write detailed LinkedIn posts about your expertise. Perplexity frequently cites LinkedIn for professional and business topics. This relates closely to what we cover in Landing Pages for AI-Referred Visitors.
3. Create YouTube Content
Video descriptions and transcripts are indexed by Bing. Tutorial and review videos are heavily cited by Perplexity.
4. Ensure Bing Indexing
Submit your sitemap to Bing Webmaster Tools. Perplexity relies on Bing’s index — if Bing doesn’t know about your page, Perplexity won’t cite it. For more on this, see our guide to Perplexity Market Share & Growth (2026).
5. Write Q&A Content
Structure blog posts as questions and answers. Perplexity’s query-response format naturally matches Q&A content structures.
6. Get Reviewed
Genuine reviews on Yelp, G2, Capterra, and TrustPilot feed into Perplexity’s answers for recommendation queries.
Perplexity vs ChatGPT: Key Differences
| Factor | Perplexity | ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|
| Primary source | Bing real-time | Training data + browsing |
| Preferred content | User-generated, authentic | Institutional, authoritative |
| Citation style | Always cites with links | Only cites when browsing |
| Update speed | Real-time | Training cutoff + browsing |
| Best strategy | Community presence | Authority building |
Common Mistakes
- Only optimizing for Google — Perplexity uses Bing, not Google. Submit your sitemap to both
- Corporate-only content — Perplexity prefers authentic voices over marketing speak
- Ignoring Reddit — Reddit is Perplexity’s top cited domain. If your industry has active subreddits, be there
- No Bing Webmaster Tools — Easy to forget, critical for Perplexity visibility
FAQ
Is Perplexity important enough to optimize for?
Yes. Perplexity is growing 40% month-over-month and is becoming a primary search tool for research-heavy queries. Early optimization gives you a significant advantage. Our Each AI Engine Has Different Taste guide covers this in detail.
Can I get Perplexity to cite my website directly?
Yes. Ensure your site is indexed by Bing, publish detailed content with specific data, and build presence on community platforms that Perplexity trusts. As we discuss in ChatGPT vs Perplexity vs Google AI Compared, this is a critical factor.
Does Perplexity use Google results?
Perplexity primarily uses Bing for web search. Some queries may use additional sources, but Bing is the primary index.