Should I compare GEO prices per prompt or per valid answer?
Compare prices only after a prompt, scheduled run, valid answer and completed deliverable have separate definitions. Dentrix's 22 September 2026 record planned 150 answers and retained 149 after one exclusion, with 120 naming observations. The denominator changes from 150 to 149 without the buyer receiving an extra answer.
What we measured
Measured. The September Absence Index, published on 23 September 2026, asked ten fixed buyer questions in dental practice management, three times on ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode. Dentrix's 22 September record retained 149 valid answers. Its 120 naming observations give 80.5 percent, with a Wilson 95 percent interval of 73.4 to 86.1 percent. The collection planned 150 answers and excluded one. Counts describe the dated question set; they do not establish future presence, a buyer's purchase or a product-quality ranking.
What this means for you
Reasoned. A quote per prompt can mean a saved question, one attempt on one engine, or a package of repeated observations. Ask the supplier to write the unit in plain terms. Then ask what happens to an attempted run that returns no usable answer and whether another attempt is included in the price.
The Dentrix example gives you a small arithmetic check. Dividing 120 by 149 yields about 80.5 percent; dividing it by the planned 150 yields 80.0 percent. That is a denominator decision, not a measured improvement. Likewise, dividing a quoted fee by scheduled runs or valid answers produces different commercial unit costs. Neither calculation supplies an industry market rate.
Keep quality review and implementation visible in the same comparison. A cheap raw observation and a checked answer with its source are different deliverables. A page edit is another task again. Ask which evidence arrives with the work, which exclusions remain in the file and what acceptance check completes the engagement. Do not pay for a percentage merely because it is easy to display.
- If you buy a report: ask for planned, attempted, valid and excluded counts beside the fee basis.
- If you compare suppliers: calculate unit costs only for equivalent scope and review work.
- If you report for a client: preserve excluded records and their reasons instead of turning them into absences.
Also asked as
Should I compare GEO prices per prompt or per valid answer?
Related
- Dentrix's valid-answer record
- Valid measurement rules
- How to compare metric definitions
- Compare agency terms
Next step
Use the Free 10-question check (one engine). No email is needed; runs are limited per network and per day, and by the site's daily allowance. Use the check as a bounded sample rather than a market price benchmark.
For a quoted task that ends in one published change, Fix one answer, $490.
Every figure comes from the published method, v1.1.
Claiming or correcting a vendor record is free and never depends on a purchase.
Prepared by the Broadcastwell team.
Page owner: Priya Nair, Management Consultant. Corrections: hello@broadcastwell.com