AI Visibility · Web Design · Brand
The 8 Best AEO Agencies for Startups Building a New Brand and Website
Your buyers ask ChatGPT and Perplexity who to hire, and the answer names someone else. For a startup that's also rebuilding its brand and website after a raise, AI search can't be bolted on later. The site has to be built so answer engines can read it, trust it and quote it from the day it goes live.
This ranking is for founders, CEOs and heads of marketing at funded B2B SaaS and AI startups, and the teams who support them, who need a new brand and website and want to show up in AI answers too. It helps you understand the options available, what each AEO agency actually does and what it costs, so you can make a quality decision for your company's needs.
We scored eight of the best AEO agencies on seven published criteria worth 100 points. The heaviest is whether the agency builds websites that are ready for AI search at launch (25 points), followed by published AEO results (20), brand and identity work (15) and speed (15). Every criterion score sits beside the total, so you can reweight the table for your own priorities.
Sunny Side Up ranked #1 with 74 out of 100. They're the only agency with a perfect score for brand and identity work (15 of 15) and for one team across web, SEO and AEO (10 of 10), and they tie Digital Elevator for the highest build stack score (5 of 5).
The best AEO agencies for startups at a glance
| Rank | Agency | Best for | Builds sites | Starting price | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunny Side Up | Brand, website and AEO from one team | Yes, in code | Quoted after a call | 74 |
| 2 | Digital Elevator | AI-ready sites plus managed AEO | Yes, on Astro | $3,500 sprint, $6,000 site | 73 |
| 3 | Blend | HubSpot companies that want brand, site and AEO | Yes, on HubSpot | £6K a month | 61 |
| 4 | Discovered Labs | Series A+ SaaS that wants fast, measured results | No | €6,995 a month | 59 |
| 5 | Optimist | B2B tech teams that want senior AEO advice | No | $3,000 a month | 50 |
| 6 | NoGood | Growth teams running many channels at once | No | About $20,000 a month | 47 |
| 7 | Omniscient Digital | B2B software with a content program | No | $120,000 a year | 42 |
| 8 | First Page Sage | Thought-leadership content and GEO | No | Not published | 29 |
What is an AEO agency?
An AEO agency, short for answer engine optimization agency, helps your company get named and cited when people ask AI tools a question. The work covers how your site is built and marked up, what your pages say and where else on the web your company gets mentioned. A good AEO agency also tracks which AI answers name you and reports what changed.
Most AEO agencies grew out of SEO and content shops, so they improve a site someone else built. For a startup that's about to rebuild its brand and website anyway, the bigger win is an AEO agency that builds the new site ready for AI search from the start. Our guide to AEO vs SEO vs GEO explains how the terms fit together.
What's the difference between an answer engine optimization agency and a generative engine optimization agency?
Not much. An answer engine optimization agency and a generative engine optimization agency do the same job under different names: getting your company into the answers AI tools write. Some agencies say AEO, some say GEO and some call themselves an AI SEO agency or an LLM SEO agency. First Page Sage calls itself a generative engine optimization agency, and Discovered Labs calls itself an answer engine optimization agency. Judge them on what they build and what results they publish, not on the label.
Why are startup founders hiring an AI SEO agency in 2026?
A growing share of B2B buyers start their research in an AI tool instead of a page of links. If the tool doesn't name you, you never make the shortlist, and you won't see it happen in your analytics. That's why founders who used to hire an SEO firm are now looking for an AI SEO agency, or asking an AI tool to list the best AEO agencies.
Startups feel it most right after a raise. The new brand and website are coming anyway, and fixing AI search after launch means paying twice. An AI SEO agency that's involved from the first page design avoids that. If you're not sure where you stand today, a free AI visibility score shows how the main engines describe you now.
How should a startup choose an AI search optimization agency?
Start with whether you need a new brand and website. If you do, an AI search optimization agency that also builds the site will save you months and a second round of fixes. If your site is already strong, a specialist that only does AEO and content can be a better fit. Then check these five things.
Do they build the website?
Ask what an AI search optimization agency ships on day one: structured data on every page, clear answers to the questions buyers ask, pages AI crawlers can read without running scripts and an llms.txt file. Our post on whether schema helps AI search covers why structure matters.
Is an LLM SEO agency different?
An LLM SEO agency is the same thing under another name. The useful question for any LLM SEO agency is whether they can show named clients with numbers, such as more AI-referred visits or more leads from AI tools, measured over a stated period.
What about the best GEO agencies?
Lists of the best GEO agencies mostly cover content and digital PR firms. A typical generative engine optimization agency is strong at earning mentions on other sites, which AI tools also read. Most of the best GEO agencies don't build websites or brands, so you'd still need a second firm for that work.
Webflow, WordPress or code?
AI tools read the HTML a page sends. Sites on Webflow or WordPress can be made readable, but a site built in code, kept in a Git repository you own and served from fast edge hosting gives you full control over every tag and file AI crawlers see.
Questions to ask on the first call
- Which clients can you name, and what changed for them in AI search?
- Do you build the website, and what does it ship with for AI search at launch?
- How will you report which AI answers name us?
- Is the contract month-to-month or a fixed term?
- Who on your team does the work?
How we ranked the best AEO agencies
To find the best AEO agencies for startups that also need a brand and website, we started with 34 agencies named on published lists of the best AEO agencies and the best GEO agencies. We narrowed them to eight finalists, each an AI search optimization agency that works with B2B companies, and checked each one's own website, pricing, services and published case studies in November 2026.
Each agency was scored on seven criteria. AI-search-ready website builds carry the most weight (25 points), because the site is where AI tools read you first. Published AEO results with named clients (20), brand and identity work (15) and speed (15) come next. One team across web, SEO and AEO (10), startup fit with published pricing (10) and a modern build stack the client owns (5) round out the 100. Ties go to the higher score on the heaviest criterion.
| Agency | AI-ready site (25) | Results (20) | Brand (15) | Speed (15) | One team (10) | Fit and price (10) | Build stack (5) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny Side Up | 22 | 6 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 74 |
| Digital Elevator | 24 | 13 | 4 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 73 |
| Blend | 15 | 13 | 13 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 61 |
| Discovered Labs | 11 | 19 | 0 | 14 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 59 |
| Optimist | 9 | 16 | 0 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 50 |
| NoGood | 8 | 14 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 47 |
| Omniscient Digital | 8 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 42 |
| First Page Sage | 4 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 29 |
The 8 best AEO agencies for startups, ranked
Here are the best AEO agencies in order, each with a homepage, contact details, pros, cons and reviews.
1 Sunny Side Up 74 / 100
- Website: ssustudio.com
- Location: Boston, MA
- Founded: 2024
- Contact: [email protected]
- Focus: Seed to Series B startups
- Website timeline: Two to three months, in weekly sprints
Sunny Side Up is a Boston AEO agency that also does brand strategy and identity and website design and development, all with one senior team. Their AI visibility work starts with a scored read of how the main AI engines describe you, then covers answer-first content, entity setup and monthly reporting. Sites are built in code, kept in a Git repository the client owns and hosted on Cloudflare Pages, with structured data on every page and AI crawlers allowed. RoleOS, an AI-native consultancy, was built this way from day one.
Pros
- Brand, website, SEO and AEO from one team
- AI-ready structure built into every page at launch
- Code-based sites you own, with no template or plugin lock-in
Cons
- No published client AEO results yet
- No llms.txt file on their own site
- No published starting price
Reviews: 5.0 out of 5 from 22 Google reviews.
Why they rank #1: perfect scores on brand and identity (15 of 15), one team across web, SEO and AEO (10 of 10) and build stack (5 of 5), plus the second-highest AI-ready site score (22 of 25). They score lowest of all eight on published results (6 of 20), which keeps their lead over Digital Elevator to one point.
2 Digital Elevator 73 / 100
- Website: thedigitalelevator.com
- Location: Not stated
- Key stat: Sites live in weeks on Astro and Cloudflare
- Contact: Contact form
- Focus: Mid-market B2B, healthcare and life sciences
- Price: $3,500 sprint, $5,000 a month managed AEO, $6,000 site
Digital Elevator is an AI SEO agency that builds AI-ready websites on Astro hosted on Cloudflare, with a JSON-LD entity graph, llms.txt and open access for AI crawlers. Their AEO work runs in two fixed 90-day sprints that don't renew automatically. Published results include a 1,182% rise in AI-referred visits for biotech client Halo Labs.
Pros
- The highest AI-ready site score here
- Published prices for every service
- Fixed sprints with no automatic renewal
Cons
- Branding appears in only one case study
- Results reported differently across their own pages for one client
- Client list leans toward healthcare and life sciences
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #2: the highest AI-ready site score (24 of 25), a perfect build stack (5 of 5) and solid results (13 of 20). Brand and identity work (4 of 15) is the gap that puts them one point behind.
3 Blend 61 / 100
- Website: blendb2b.com
- Location: Reading, UK and Atlanta, GA
- Key stat: Builds sites on HubSpot
- Contact: [email protected]
- Focus: PE-backed mid-market B2B
- Price: From £6K a month for AEO
Blend does branding, brand voice, HubSpot websites, SEO and AEO for mid-market B2B companies. Their AEO work adds structured data across key pages and answer-ready page structure. Published results include 38% more pipeline in 12 months for property management software company RMS.
Pros
- Brand, website and AEO in one firm
- Strong fit for HubSpot users
Cons
- Sites tied to the HubSpot platform
- Built for mid-market companies more than startups
- No published timelines
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #3: the second-best brand score (13 of 15) and a strong one-team score (9 of 10). Speed (5 of 15) and startup fit (4 of 10) hold them back.
4 Discovered Labs 59 / 100
- Website: discoveredlabs.com
- Location: Not stated
- Key stat: Works only with B2B SaaS
- Contact: Speak with team form
- Focus: Series A+ SaaS
- Price: €6,995 a month on a six-month term, month-to-month available
Discovered Labs is an answer engine optimization agency built for B2B SaaS. They publish daily content from day 10, audit llms.txt, structured data and crawler access and track results in their own AI visibility tracker. Named results include seven times more sales-accepted leads in four months for Gladia.
Pros
- The strongest named results here
- Month-to-month terms with 30 days' notice
- Published pricing
Cons
- No website builds or brand work
- Focused on Series A and later
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #4: the top results score (19 of 20) and perfect fit and price (10 of 10). With no brand or website work, they score zero on brand and 11 of 25 on AI-ready sites.
5 Optimist 50 / 100
- Website: yesoptimist.com
- Location: Not stated
- Key stat: Clients from Series A to public companies
- Contact: Work with us form
- Focus: B2B tech and SaaS
- Price: From $3,000 a month, month-to-month
Optimist is an SEO and AI search consultancy for B2B tech. They advise on technical structure, content and digital PR and report through custom AEO dashboards. Their published AEO results, such as 26 times more AI-referred visits for a B2B tech client, don't name the clients.
Pros
- Low starting price and month-to-month terms
- Senior strategy for B2B tech
Cons
- Advice and roadmaps, not website builds
- No brand work
- AEO results don't name clients
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #5: strong results (16 of 20) and fit and price (9 of 10). They advise rather than build, so they score 9 of 25 on AI-ready sites and zero on brand.
6 NoGood 47 / 100
- Website: nogood.io
- Location: New York, Miami and Dubai
- Key stat: Clients from startups to Fortune 100 brands
- Contact: Contact form
- Focus: SaaS, B2B, fintech, health and AI
- Price: Average retainer above $20,000 a month
NoGood is a growth marketing agency that runs AEO alongside SEO, content, paid media and digital PR. Their AEO work includes schema, site structure audits and AI visibility tracking. For gaming brand SteelSeries, they report 23 times more AI search traffic year over year.
Pros
- Many channels under one roof
- A strong named AEO result
Cons
- No website builds found
- High average retainer for a startup
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #6: good results (14 of 20) and some brand work (6 of 15). A high retainer (4 of 10) and no website builds (8 of 25) put them sixth.
7 Omniscient Digital 42 / 100
- Website: beomniscient.com
- Location: Austin, plus New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Boston
- Key stat: AI citations up 140% in 60 days for Convert
- Contact: Book a strategy call
- Focus: B2B software
- Price: Full-service from $120,000 a year
Omniscient Digital works as an AI SEO agency for B2B software and does content, technical SEO, AEO and digital PR. Their AEO work covers site structure, internal linking and semantic markup. Named results include an 88% rise in AI visibility for board software company OnBoard.
Pros
- Named, recent AEO results
- Deep content and digital PR team
Cons
- No website builds or brand work
- A $120,000 a year minimum
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #7: strong results (16 of 20). Like many of the best GEO agencies, they're strongest at content. No brand or website work and a high minimum for startups (5 of 10) put them seventh.
8 First Page Sage 29 / 100
- Website: firstpagesage.com
- Location: Not stated
- Key stat: No long-term contracts
- Contact: Get in touch form
- Focus: Lead generation across industries
- Price: Not published
First Page Sage is an SEO and generative engine optimization agency known for thought-leadership content. Their GEO work focuses on getting clients onto lists, into databases and into reviews that AI tools read. Their case studies report large revenue gains, but most don't name the client.
Pros
- Long experience with thought-leadership content
- No long-term contracts
Cons
- No website builds or brand work
- Not focused on startups
- No published pricing
Reviews: no review profile linked from their site.
Why they rank #8: a fair results score (13 of 20) but low scores on AI-ready sites (4 of 25), brand (0 of 15) and startup fit (3 of 10).
What startups should do next
If you need a new brand and website and want AI search built in from the start, Sunny Side Up scored highest because one team does all of it and the site is yours in code. If your brand is set and you want an AI-ready site with published prices, Digital Elevator is a close second. If your site is already strong and you want the most proven AEO agency for SaaS, look at Discovered Labs. For a lower-cost AI search optimization agency with month-to-month terms, Optimist is the pick.
Whichever of the best AEO agencies you shortlist, ask for named results and get the contract terms in writing. If you'd like a second opinion on where you stand in AI search, we're here to help. Email [email protected] or book a 30-minute call with the senior team.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does an AEO agency do?
An AEO agency makes your company easier for AI tools to find, understand and recommend. That means structured data and clear answers on your site, content that covers the questions buyers ask, mentions on other trusted sites and reports on which AI answers name you.
What's the difference between AEO, GEO and SEO?
SEO helps you rank in a list of search results. AEO and GEO help you get named inside the answer an AI tool writes. Whether you hire an answer engine optimization agency or a generative engine optimization agency, the work overlaps a lot, and an LLM SEO agency does the same job under another name. Most of the firms on lists of the best GEO agencies are content and PR specialists.
How much does an AEO agency cost?
Published prices in this ranking start at $3,000 a month for advice and run to about $20,000 a month for full-service retainers. One-off sprints start at $3,500, and a new AI-ready website starts around $6,000 at the low end.
How long until AEO shows results?
Agencies in this ranking report early signs within a few weeks to two months, with bigger gains over three to twelve months. A new site built for AI search can be read correctly from its launch day.
Can an agency get my startup recommended by ChatGPT and Perplexity?
No agency can guarantee it. A good one makes your site easy for AI tools to read, publishes clear answers to buyer questions and earns mentions on sites those tools trust, which raises the odds you get named.
Does my website platform affect AI visibility?
Yes. AI tools read the HTML your pages send. A site built in code gives you full control over structured data, crawler access and page speed. Webflow and WordPress sites can work well too, with the right setup. Ask any AI search optimization agency how they'd handle yours.
Should I hire an AEO agency or use a self-serve tool?
A self-serve tool shows you where you stand. An AEO agency fixes what the tool finds, from site structure to content. Many startups start with a tool or a free score, then hire an AEO or LLM SEO agency once they see the gaps.