What is AEO Certification?

AEO Certification is a free audit-based credential from AeroAEO. Businesses that score 80 or higher out of 100 on AeroAEO's 10-point AEO framework earn a verified 'AEO Certified' badge to display on their site.

How much does AEO Certification cost?

AEO Certification is free for the first 10 businesses that apply and complete an audit with AeroAEO.

What are the AEO Certification criteria?

Ten criteria worth 10 points each: schema markup, FAQ schema, an entity/About page with consistent NAP, a 2,000+ word cornerstone article, structured H1-H3 headings, sitemap submission, an AI-crawler-friendly robots.txt, a glossary page, a case study or original data, and active backlinks or citations. A score of 80+ qualifies for certification.

Get AEO Certified — Free for the First 10 Businesses

Free for the first 10 businesses only

AeroAEO built its own AEO Score Calculator to grade sites on a 10-point framework. Now we're opening it up as a certification: pass the audit, and you get a verified "AEO Certified" badge to embed on your own site — a credential and a backlink in one.

The 10 Certification Criteria

Each item is worth 10 points. A score of 80 or higher qualifies for certification. This is the same framework used in our free AEO Score Calculator — try it yourself before applying.

1
Schema Markup
Organization and WebSite schema implemented and valid.
10 pts
2
FAQ Schema
FAQPage schema on at least one key page, matching visible Q&A content.
10 pts
3
Entity / About Page & Consistent NAP
A clear About/entity page, with name, description, and contact details matching everywhere else you appear online.
10 pts
4
2,000+ Word Cornerstone Article
One comprehensive, authoritative piece AI engines can cite as a primary source.
10 pts
5
Structured Headings
Clear H1–H3 hierarchy, phrased as the real questions your users ask.
10 pts
6
Sitemap Submission
A valid sitemap.xml, submitted to Google Search Console and/or Bing Webmaster Tools.
10 pts
7
AI-Crawler-Friendly robots.txt
robots.txt explicitly allows GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, and other AI crawlers.
10 pts
8
Glossary Page
A definitional glossary of terms relevant to your industry — the kind of content AI engines cite constantly.
10 pts
9
Case Study / Original Data
At least one case study or piece of original data/research that other sites could cite.
10 pts
10
Active Backlinks & Citations
Evidence of third-party mentions, directory listings, or backlinks pointing to your site.
10 pts

How Certification Works

Apply below with your site URL. First 10 applicants only.
We run your audit using the AEO Score Calculator plus a manual review of all 10 criteria.
You get results either way — a certified badge and embed code if you score 80+, or a specific punch list of what to fix if you don't (and you're welcome to reapply once you do).

Apply for Free Certification

Limited to the first 10 businesses. We'll email your results within a few business days.

Already certified? Embed your badge.

Once certified, add this snippet to your site's footer — it links back to your certification listing.

<a href="https://aeroaeo.marketing/certification.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">
  <img src="https://aeroaeo.marketing/assets/aeo-certified-badge-small.svg"
       alt="AEO Certified by AeroAEO" width="220" height="64">
</a>

Get AEO Certified

The 10 Certification Criteria

Schema Markup

FAQ Schema

Entity / About Page & Consistent NAP

2,000+ Word Cornerstone Article

Structured Headings

Sitemap Submission

AI-Crawler-Friendly robots.txt

Glossary Page

Case Study / Original Data

Active Backlinks & Citations

How Certification Works

Apply for Free Certification

Already certified? Embed your badge.