ChatGPT vs Google for B2B Buyer Research: What the Surveys Show
B2B buyers use both, and the split depends on who you ask. In G2's March 2026 survey of software buyers, 51% said they start research with an AI chatbot more often than Google, yet 80% still use Google somewhere in the journey 2. Gartner's lower figure, 45%, counts use in one recent purchase 5. Plan for both, then ask your own buyers.
- G2 (March 2026): 51% of software buyers start with an AI chatbot more than Google, and 80% still use Google somewhere.
- Surveys count AI use differently: 94% use it at some point (Forrester), 45% in one recent purchase (Gartner).
- Buyers shortlist with AI but validate elsewhere: 69% prefer to check AI insights with sales reps (Gartner).
- Most figures come from software buyers and vendors with a commercial interest, so test them against your own customers.
Do B2B buyers use ChatGPT or Google for vendor research?
They use both, at different moments. AI chatbots are growing fast as a starting point and as a way to compare vendors. Google stays in the mix for checking details, finding sites and verifying claims.
The numbers depend on the question asked. G2 found 51% of software buyers now start research with an AI chatbot more often than with Google, and 80% still use Google somewhere in their buying journey 2. Both can be true for the same person.
So the choice for a marketer is not ChatGPT or Google. It is how to be present in both, in the order your own buyers use them. The rest of this page explains the data and shows how to check your own.
Why do the surveys disagree?
They ask different questions of different people. One asks whether you ever used AI. Another asks whether you used it in your last purchase. A third asks where you start. The table lines them up.
Treat the table as a range, not a single truth. Most samples are software buyers, and several publishers sell products in this space, such as review sites and intent-data tools.
| Survey | Sample and date | Finding | What it measures |
|---|---|---|---|
| G2, 2025 Buyer Behavior 1 | 1,169 B2B decision-makers, April 2025 | 29% start in tools like ChatGPT more often than Google; nearly 8 in 10 say AI search changed how they research | Where research starts; self-reported habit |
| G2, 2026 AI Search Insight 2 | 1,076 B2B decision-makers, March 2026 | 51% start with an AI chatbot more than Google; 71% rely on chatbots; 80% still use Google | Starting point and reliance; software buyers |
| G2, 2026 Buyer Behavior 3 | 1,038 B2B decision-makers, June 2026 | More than 80% got software recommendations from a chatbot in the last two years | Any use over two years |
| Forrester blog, January 2026 4 | Sample size not stated | 94% of business buyers use AI in buying, up from 89% | Any use in the process |
| 6sense, 2025 Buyer Experience Report 6 | Just under 4,000 respondents | 94% use LLMs in buying; the top use is comparing vendor offerings | Any use; vendor-run report |
| Gartner, B2B buyer survey 5 | 645 B2B buyers, August to September 2025 | 45% used GenAI in a recent purchase | Use in one specific purchase |
Is AI search overtaking Google for B2B buyers?
Not yet in the sense of replacing it, but the starting habit is shifting. G2's own surveys put the share who start with tools like ChatGPT at 29% in April 2025 1 and 51% in March 2026 2. The samples and wording differ, so read it as a direction, not a precise trend line.
Google remains in the journey. G2's 2026 insight report says 80% of buyers still use Google somewhere in their buying journey 2. Gartner's data shows why: buyers used an average of seven information sources in a recent purchase 5. No single channel does the whole job.
One more warning: G2's surveys disagree on which source most influences shortlists. The March 2026 report put chatbots first at 54% against 43% for review sites 2. The June 2026 report put review sites at 38% and chatbots at 37% 3. The question wording differs, so do not claim either as the winner.
What do buyers use AI for in the journey?
Mostly to narrow the field and compare. 6sense says the most common LLM use in B2B buying is comparing vendor offerings, followed by tasks like drafting RFPs 6. G2 found that half of buyers who took recommendations from a chatbot said AI had the greatest influence during shortlisting and evaluation 3.
G2 also broke down the first prompt buyers type. 33% were category-based, 31% competitor-based, 22% about requirements or process, 9% about the vendor ecosystem and 6% about budget 2. G2 does not define the groups, so use them as a rough guide to the kinds of questions to prepare for.
In plain terms, the early prompts look like "best tools for X" and "alternatives to Y". If your company has no page that answers those, you are absent from the part of the journey AI handles.
Where does each channel win in B2B research?
Match the channel to the job the buyer is doing. The first three rows rest on the surveys above. The rest are our reading of the evidence, not measured results.
| Question | ChatGPT and other AI assistants | Google search |
|---|---|---|
| Where buyers start | Rising: 51% of G2's software buyers start here more than Google 2 | Still used by 80% somewhere in the journey 2 |
| Main job | Comparing vendors and building a shortlist 6 | Finding sites, checking details and verifying claims |
| Trust | Buyers check it: 69% prefer to validate AI insights with sales reps 5 | Familiar; results link to sources buyers can open |
| What you control | Whether your pages, reviews and mentions are cited | Your rankings, your snippets and your ads |
| Reporting | Hard: visits are small and answers vary between runs | Easier: Search Console, though AI Overview traffic sits inside the Web total 8 |
| Best content | Comparison, category and requirement pages; third-party mentions | Product, pricing and documentation pages with clear titles |
| Main risk | Being left out of the answer, or described wrongly | Paying for visibility while the AI answer already shaped the shortlist |
Why does the early shortlist matter so much?
Because most deals go to a vendor that is already on it. 6sense reports buyers chose from their Day One shortlist 95% of the time, up from 85% the year before 6. 6sense sells intent-data software, so read the figure as indicative.
G2's March 2026 survey adds the AI angle. 69% of software buyers said an AI chatbot led them to pick a different vendor than they first planned, and 85% think more highly of a vendor an AI cites 2. These are self-reported answers from G2's panel, not observed behaviour.
Taken together, the data suggests the cost of being missing from AI answers is paid early, before your sales team knows the deal exists. It does not prove that any one change in your content will win a deal.
Do buyers trust what AI tells them?
They use it, then check it. Gartner found 69% of B2B buyers prefer to validate AI-generated insights with sales reps, and 51% said they were more likely to meet misleading information from GenAI against 49% for a rep 5. 6sense says LLM use has not changed buyers' reliance on vendor content or third-party experts 6.
That makes your own site the verification step. An AI answer gets a buyer to your name. Your pricing page, case studies and documentation decide whether they stay. Ahrefs also found that ChatGPT sent 63.4% of citations to official websites for factual questions such as pricing, but only 46.4% for comparison questions 7. For comparisons, other sites carry the answer, so reviews and third-party mentions matter too.
Ahrefs measured 20,000 US prompts in its test of this split 7. It also found that only 14.4% of 66.6 million free ChatGPT responses it tracked in August and September 2026 contained fan-out searches 7, so most answers were given without searching. That suggests being well known across the web helps there too, which is our inference.
What should a B2B marketer do about it?
Cover the early prompts, keep Google strong and measure honestly. A sensible order, based on the data above and our own reasoning:
- List 20 prompts in G2's three biggest groups: category, competitor and requirements. Use the Query Fan-Out Explorer to see what searches an AI runs for each.
- Publish pages that answer them: comparisons, alternatives and requirement checklists. See how to write comparison pages that get cited.
- Build your presence on review sites if your category has them. See how to get cited from review sites.
- Keep your Google basics healthy. AI features in Google need pages that are indexed and eligible for snippets, with no special extra markup 8.
- Track a fixed prompt list monthly. See how to build a prompt list for tracking.
How do you find out what your own buyers do?
Ask them. Add an open "How did you hear about us?" field to your demo form, and ask your last 10 customers which tools they used before contacting you. Free-text answers such as "ChatGPT told me" will not show up in analytics, so this is often the only way to see it. The method is in how to set up self-reported attribution.
A rough rule of thumb of ours, not drawn from any study: if three or more of your last 10 customers mention an AI assistant, treat AI visibility as a priority project. If none do after 20 or more, keep investing mainly in Google and reviews, and re-check each quarter.
Frequently asked questions
What share of B2B buyers use ChatGPT?
Are B2B buyers replacing Google with ChatGPT?
Not fully. G2's March 2026 survey found 51% of software buyers start research with an AI chatbot more often than Google, but 80% still use Google somewhere in their journey 2. Most buyers use both.
Do these surveys apply to my industry?
Maybe not. G2's panels are software buyers, and 6sense and Gartner samples are mixed B2B. We found no comparable data for most other industries, such as manufacturing or professional services. Test with your own customers before you copy these figures.
Should I stop investing in Google SEO?
How do I know if AI sends me leads?
Ask. Add a free-text source field to forms and check it weekly. Also set up AI referral channels in analytics. Many AI-influenced leads arrive via direct or branded search, so analytics alone will undercount them.
Sources
- New G2 Research: How AI is Redefining the Buyer Journey in 2025 and How Sellers Can Adapt · G2Opened October 20, 2026. Supports: Online survey of 1,169 B2B decision-makers, April 2025: nearly 8 in 10 say AI search changed research; 29% start in tools like ChatGPT more often than Google.
- The Answer Economy: How AI Search is Rewiring B2B Software Buying (2026 AI Search Insight Report) · G2Opened October 20, 2026. Supports: 1,076 B2B decision-makers, March 2026: 51% start with a chatbot more than Google; 71% rely on chatbots; 80% still use Google; chatbots 54% vs review sites 43% for shortlist influence; 69% chose a different vendor; 85% think more highly of cited vendors; first-prompt types.
- 2026 Buyer Behavior Report · G2Opened October 20, 2026. Supports: 1,038 B2B decision-makers, June 2026: more than 80% sourced software recommendations from a chatbot in two years; review sites 38% vs chatbots 37% for shortlist influence; half say AI had most influence in shortlisting and evaluation.
- B2B Buyers Make Zero-Click Number One · Forrester (John Buten)Opened October 20, 2026. Supports: 94% of business buyers use AI in their buying process, up from 89%, per Forrester; blog dated 22 January 2026.
- Gartner Survey Finds 69% of B2B Buyers Turn to Sales Reps to Validate AI-Generated Insights · GartnerOpened October 20, 2026. Supports: 645 B2B buyers, August to September 2025: 45% used GenAI in a recent purchase; 69% prefer to validate with reps; 51% vs 49% misleading information; average seven sources. Released 20 May 2026.
- 2025 B2B Buyer Experience Report · 6senseOpened October 20, 2026. Supports: Just under 4,000 respondents: 94% use LLMs in buying; top use is comparing vendor offerings; LLM use has not changed reliance on vendor content or third-party experts; 95% choose from the Day One shortlist, up from 85%. 6sense sells intent-data software.
- How ChatGPT Does Query Fan-Out (15 Million Queries Studied) · AhrefsOpened October 20, 2026. Supports: 20,000 US prompts: official websites got 63.4% of citations for factual questions and 46.4% for comparison questions; 14.4% of 66.6 million free ChatGPT responses (August to September 2026) contained fan-out searches.
- AI features and your website · Google Search CentralOpened October 20, 2026. Supports: A page must be indexed and snippet-eligible to appear as a supporting link; no extra technical requirements; AI feature traffic is included in Search Console totals under the Web search type.