Why Isn't My Business Showing in Perplexity?

Perplexity's advantage for diagnosis is that it shows its sources. Ask a real customer question, then open every numbered source. For each one, note: does it mention you? Does it mention the competitors Perplexity named? Is it your own site? This takes ten minutes and usually reveals the cause.

If robots.txt disallows PerplexityBot — directly or through a catch-all rule — or your firewall blocks it, your pages can't be retrieved. Check with the robots.txt AI checker and look for PerplexityBot in your server logs.

Perplexity retrieves pages that fit the question. If people ask "best rooftop bar in Barcelona for groups" and your site has a homepage and a menu PDF, there's nothing to retrieve. A page that describes your venue for that use — groups, rooftop, location, booking — gives it something to find.

For "best X" questions, Perplexity often relies on list articles, review platforms and directories. If the sources it cites list your competitors and not you, Perplexity has no evidence to name you. Getting accurately included there is often the most direct fix — see digital PR for AI search.

Perplexity users often ask about current prices, availability and options. Pages without dates, prices or specifics give it little to quote; pages with outdated facts can get you described wrongly — or passed over for a source that's current.

If your city, area and service radius aren't stated plainly on your pages and listings, Perplexity can't connect you to a local question. Name the places you serve in text, not just on a map embed.

Sometimes the answer is right not to name you: the question asks for something you don't offer, or a different business model. Read the answer's reasoning — if it's describing a need you do meet, make that need explicit on your site.

1. Open the cited sources on an answer that names competitors.
2. Confirm PerplexityBot is allowed and receiving 200 responses.
3. Create or sharpen the page that answers the question.
4. Add current specifics: prices, dates, locations, options.
5. Work on inclusion in the list and review sources that keep appearing.
6. Re-check the same questions after each change.

The Perplexity rank tracker keeps the cited sources for every answer, so you can see when your pages start appearing. The free check includes Perplexity for 3 questions from your site; other tools that track Perplexity are compared in the best Perplexity rank trackers.