What we found
On Oct 12, 2026 we ran 6 common Kansas City electrician searches on Google (signed out) and asked ChatGPT 3 homeowner questions three times each. 22 of the 50 companies in our residential ranking appeared at least once in Google’s map pack, the Maps list, the AI Overview or a ChatGPT answer.
The companies that appeared have a median of 464 Google reviews. The companies that did not appear have a median of 34. 13 of 16 companies with 300 or more reviews appeared; 2 of 24 with fewer than 100 did.
Licensing did not separate them: 13 of 22 companies that appeared, and 16 of 28 that did not, are licensed on both sides of the state line. ChatGPT did cite city and county license pages in at least 4 of 9 answers.
ChatGPT leaned on companies’ own websites: the most-cited single source was one company’s site, cited in 6 of 9 answers.
- Residential rankingRanked by review-volume-adjusted rating
- For contractorsFree visibility snapshot
The published measure behind this
13 of 16 ranked Kansas City electricians with 300 or more Google reviews appeared in Google’s map pack, its AI Overview or a ChatGPT answer; 2 of 24 with fewer than 100 reviews did.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Ranked electricians that appeared anywhere | 22 of 50 |
| Median Google reviews, those that appeared | 464 |
| Median Google reviews, those that did not | 34 |
| 300+ reviews: appeared | 13 of 16 |
| Under 100 reviews: appeared | 2 of 24 |
| Licensed on both sides: among those that appeared | 13 of 22 |
| Licensed on both sides: among those that did not | 16 of 28 |
| Google searches checked | 6 |
| ChatGPT answers checked | 9 |
n = 50 ranked residential electricians (October 4 cohort) · measured Oct 12, 2026 · source: Google search and ChatGPT answers recorded by hand, October 12, 2026 · all published measures
Why it matters
A homeowner who asks Google or ChatGPT for an electrician sees a short list. Whether a good company makes that list appeared in our check to track its review volume far more than its credentials, so a strong small firm can be invisible.
This is also why our residential ranking now pulls ratings toward a fixed reference with a larger weight (October 12, 2026): a perfect score on a few dozen reviews should not outrank a near-perfect record across hundreds.
What this number can’t tell you
- One day and one Kansas City-area location; Google results vary by searcher location and AI answers vary between runs.
- Appearing in a search is not a measure of workmanship. Review counts include all of a company’s work, not only electrical jobs.
- The sample is the 50 ranked residential companies; companies outside our list also appeared.
What to do with it
- Do not treat “not in the map pack” as “not good”: compare ranked records directly.
- Contractors: see what we measure and how to get a free visibility snapshot on the for-contractors page.