Who AI search surfaces for web hosting
Web hosting AI retrieval pool is editorially anchored: TechRadar surfaces in 3 of 5 queries, with a Jaccard stability score of 1.0
| # | Domain | Type | Queries | Mean pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | techradar.com | Editorial | 3/5 | 4.33 |
| 2 | hostingstep.com | Aggregator | 2/5 | 1 |
| 3 | cybernews.com | Editorial | 2/5 | 3.5 |
| 4 | hostingadvice.com | Aggregator | 2/5 | 4.5 |
| 5 | northflank.com | Brand | 1/5 | 3.5 |
| 6 | webhostmost.com | Brand | 1/5 | 1 |
| 7 | whereverwriter.com | Editorial | 1/5 | 1 |
| 8 | namecheap.com | Brand | 1/5 | 2 |
| 9 | siteground.com | Brand | 1/5 | 2 |
| 10 | experte.com | Aggregator | 1/5 | 2 |
| 11 | websiteplanet.com | Aggregator | 1/5 | 3 |
| 12 | wp101.com | Aggregator | 1/5 | 3 |
“Queries” = how many of the 5 sampled queries surfaced this domain in the top 10 (across 3 samples). Position is the mean rank when present.
By unique domains, brands are the plurality at 40.0% (12 of 30 domains), followed by aggregators at 36.7% (11 domains) and editorial at 23.3% (7 domains). By pooled appearances, brands and aggregators tie exactly at 36.1% each (39 appearances apiece), with editorial at 27.8% (30 appearances). In practical terms, the retrieval pool is a three-way contest between hosting brands, specialist comparison aggregators, and editorial tech outlets, with no single type locking out the others.
TechRadar (editorial) is the most broadly surfaced domain, appearing in 3 of 5 queries across 9 appearances at a mean position of 4.33. Two aggregators, hostingstep.com and hostingadvice.com, each surface in 2 of 5 queries; hostingstep.com holds a mean position of 1.0 across its 6 appearances, while hostingadvice.com averages 4.5 across 6 appearances. Cybernews.com (editorial) also surfaces in 2 of 5 queries at a mean position of 3.5 across 6 appearances. Only 4 domains appear across more than one query, meaning the pool is largely query-specific beyond this small cluster of cross-query sources.
The leaderboard stability score (meanJaccardTop10 = 1.0, the maximum possible value) means the same small set of sources appears with near-identical consistency across hosting queries in this sample, making the pool highly predictable within this vertical: placement inside TechRadar, hostingstep.com, cybernews.com, and hostingadvice.com covers the cross-query retrieval pool for the 4 domains that surface in more than one query. Brand-owned pages do appear directly in the pool (namecheap.com, siteground.com, bluehost.com, northflank.com, atlantic.net, webhostmost.com) but each surfaces in only 1 of 5 queries, which is the floor in this dataset. The highest-leverage GEO move is not polishing your own domain, it is securing accurate and detailed coverage in those four cross-query third-party sources. For a challenger brand, the comparison-page format that surfaced for the Bluehost vs. SiteGround query is instructive: whereverwriter.com (editorial) reached a mean position of 1.0, while siteground.com's own comparison page achieved a mean position of 2.0 in that query. A transparent, data-rich competitor comparison on your own domain is one of the few brand-page formats that competes for AI retrieval in this vertical.
Methodology & limits: This analysis covers 5 queries in a single vertical, a snapshot not a census. The data reflects the organic web-search retrieval landscape, meaning the candidate pool AI search engines draw from, not a direct log of which pages any specific AI cited. Numbers should be treated as directional signals, not definitive market shares.
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Which sources appear most often in the AI search retrieval pool for web hosting queries?
Across 5 web hosting queries sampled, TechRadar (editorial) surfaced in 3 queries with 9 appearances, while hostingstep.com (aggregator), cybernews.com (editorial), and hostingadvice.com (aggregator) each surfaced in 2 queries with 6 appearances each. Only 4 domains appeared in more than one query, making these sources the consistent core of the retrieval pool for this vertical.
Can a hosting brand's own domain appear in AI search results for competitive queries?
Yes, but rarely across multiple query types. In this 5-query sample, brand-owned domains including namecheap.com, siteground.com, bluehost.com, northflank.com, atlantic.net, and webhostmost.com each appeared in only 1 of 5 queries. Brand pages make up 40.0% of unique domains in the pool but are individually query-specific, whereas the top aggregator and editorial sources appear across multiple queries. Comparison pages (for example, whereverwriter.com's Bluehost vs. SiteGround review at mean position 1.0, and siteground.com's own comparison page at mean position 2.0) appear to be the brand-format most likely to surface directly.
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