Zene vs AEO Engine
AEO Engine is an answer-engine optimization agency, not a self-serve tracker. It sells done-for-you plans at $1,597, $2,997 and $10k+ a month, backed by a "30% more traffic in 90 days or we work free" guarantee. Around that service it has built about 28 free tools and a monthly public leaderboard, the Answer Index.
In one line: AEO Engine does the work for you, Zene gives you the tool to do it yourself. If you have budget and want a team accountable for results, an agency fits. If you want to track five engines and get the fixes drafted for $19 a month, Zene fits. Some brands will use both.
Choose Zene if…
- You want software, not a retainer: Zene starts free and Pro is $19/mo
- You want results without a sales call - no work email or verification code to get started
- You want scheduled tracking of your own questions across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity and Grok
- You're an agency yourself and want white-label reports and an API on a flat plan
Choose AEO Engine if…
- You want a team to plan and execute the work, with a 90-day traffic guarantee
- You're a law firm - AEO Engine's monthly Answer Index ranks law firms by AI share of voice
- You want free checks for Copilot and Google AI Overviews, which Zene doesn't track
- You're an agency that wants to resell or refer an AEO service for a revenue share
The comparison, in one table.
| Zene | AEO Engine | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Self-serve AI visibility software | Done-for-you AEO agency with free tools |
| Engines tracked | ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, Grok | Not published for the service; Answer Index covers ~300 questions on 4 engines; free checkers include Claude, Copilot, Gemini and AI Overviews |
| Free plan / trial | Free forever: 1 brand, 10 questions, ChatGPT + Gemini, scans on demand, no card | ~28 free tools; the main AEO report needs a website, work email and emailed verification code |
| Entry price | $0; Pro $19/mo (2 brands, 15 questions, all 5 engines) | $1,597/mo; then $2,997 and $10k+ per month |
| Refresh | Daily on paid plans (Gemini and Grok answers refresh daily, ChatGPT's every 3 days, Claude and Perplexity weekly); Free scans on demand | Service cadence not published; Answer Index updates monthly |
| Fixes | Pro: prioritized action plan, content drafts (brief, FAQ, schema, llms.txt), outreach list - you ship them | Agency executes the work; free report lists the top 5 quick wins |
| Guarantee | None | "30% more traffic in 90 days or we work free" |
| Agency program | Agency $99/mo: unlimited brands, white-label reports, share links, REST API and Zapier | Referral: 20% of cash in months 1-12, 10% in 13-24. White-label: 15% off list plus a $1,500 activation fee |
| Best for | Founders, small teams and agencies that want to do the work themselves | Brands with budget that want a team accountable for results |
Facts as of October 4, 2026, from AEO Engine's public pages (sources below). Both products ship fast - verify current details at aeoengine.ai/ and on our pricing page.
Where AEO Engine is stronger
Execution and accountability. An agency plans and does the work, and AEO Engine puts a guarantee on it: 30% more traffic in 90 days or it works free. Its free toolset is large - roughly 10 analysis tools (including Claude, Copilot and Gemini visibility checkers, an AI Overview checker and a citation source radar), 6 generators and 8 validators, plus guides. Its free AEO report scores you 0-100 per engine, shows competitor share of voice, estimates a monthly revenue opportunity and lists the top 5 quick wins. For law firms, the monthly Answer Index ranks firms by share of voice, publishes a CSV each edition and states that "rankings are never for sale".
Where Zene is different
Zene is software you run yourself, at a software price. You start free with no card and no call, see real ChatGPT answers in minutes, and track your own questions daily on paid plans. On Pro, every scan ends in a prioritized action plan with drafts (content brief, FAQ copy, schema JSON-LD, llms.txt) and a list of cited sources where competitors appear - the kind of work an agency would otherwise bill for. Zene's free tools need no signup at all.
Pricing
Zene: Free, Pro $19/month, Growth $49/month, Agency $99/month ($190/$490/$990 yearly), in USD. AEO Engine lists agency plans at $1,597, $2,997 and $10k+ a month. Its agency partner program pays referrers 20% of cash in months 1-12 and 10% in months 13-24 (36 months if the partner joins quarterly reviews).
How to choose
Ask who will do the work. If nobody on your team has time and the budget is there, an agency like AEO Engine makes sense. If you or your team will ship the fixes, Zene gives you the tracking and the drafts for a fraction of a retainer - and an agency can use Zene too.
Sources · facts as of October 4, 2026
Every AEO Engine fact on this page comes from these public pages, checked on October 4, 2026. Zene's side comes from our pricing page and methodology. Spot something outdated? Tell us and we'll fix it.
Common questions.
An agency. AEO Engine sells done-for-you answer-engine optimization at $1,597, $2,997 and $10k+ per month, and offers about 28 free tools and a monthly Answer Index as lead magnets.
Yes, but they are different products. Zene is self-serve software: free plan, Pro $19/mo, Growth $49/mo, Agency $99/mo. AEO Engine is an agency service starting at $1,597/mo (checked 2026-10-04) that does the work for you, with a traffic guarantee.
Yes. The main AEO report asks for your website and a work email, then sends a verification code. Zene's free ChatGPT AI visibility checker shows 3 real ChatGPT answers with no signup.
A monthly leaderboard of law firms ranked by AI share of voice, based on about 300 questions across 4 engines. Each edition is published in the first days of the month with a public CSV, and AEO Engine states that rankings are never for sale.
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Run a free Zene audit on ChatGPT and Gemini (all five engines on Pro) - then make the call with your real data.
