ChatGPT Search Shifted to site: Queries, Cutting Reddit Citations 86%
lilyraynyc · x · 2026-08-20
@digitalquokka observes that on Aug 8 ChatGPT Search started using site: operators at scale: Promptwatch saw domain-scoped queries jump from 0.4% to 17% of background queries in a day, and "official" appeared more often in queries. The pattern reads as: one search already naming brands, then a site: lookup on each brand's own site for pricing and specs. Reddit's share of citations inside ChatGPT Search fell from 3.83% to 0.52% between Aug 14–17, with the first slip on Aug 8 — the day of the change. Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode did not do this. The takeaway: Reddit still works for readers and Google, but ChatGPT Search now asks official sites first, and Reddit isn't one. Directly relevant for brand visibility strategy in AI search.
Related event: ChatGPT's Reddit Citations Plummet as Search Mechanism Shifts(13 posts)→
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