The AI ReceiptsHow much does AEO Engine make? $165k a month from just 55 clients
By Cydel Giraudel · Data checked Oct 22, 2026 · How we verify
AEO Engine makes about $164,836 a month from just 55 clients, about $2,997 each, verified from Stripe by TrustMRR on Oct 22, 2026. Its monthly revenue is up 163% in ten months, selling one thing: getting businesses named in ChatGPT answers. Verified
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What is AEO Engine's revenue?
| Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) | $164,836 |
| Revenue, last 30 days | $197,078 |
| Revenue, last 3 months | $443,813 |
| Revenue, last 12 months | $1,120,843 |
| All-time revenue | $2,617,961 |
| Active subscriptions (clients) | 55 |
| Revenue per client (our calc.) | ~$2,997/mo |
| Price | $1,597 to $10,000 a month |
| Founded | Jun 2018 (US, per listing) |
| Verified by | Stripe via TrustMRR |
We re-read the TrustMRR listing on Oct 22, 2026. Revenue is pulled from Stripe with an API key and was last synced Oct 21, 2026 at 9:04 PM CT, so this is a fresh sync, not one of the 5 stale listings in our data. By MRR, AEO Engine is #3 of the 37 verified businesses we rank (only payment data synced in the last 30 days is ranked), and the largest AI agency (leaderboard). The median business in our data makes $28,502 a month.
How much does each AEO Engine client pay?
About $2,997 a month on average, which is exactly its Scale plan. The listed retainers:
| Plan | Price per month |
|---|---|
| Growth | $1,597 |
| Scale | $2,997 |
| Dominate Tier 1 | $5,000 |
| Dominate Tier 2 | $8,000 |
| Dominate Tier 3 | $10,000 |
Plans from AEO Engine's TrustMRR listing (founder-provided text), checked Oct 22, 2026. The average is our calculation from verified MRR and subscriptions; the listing does not say how many clients are on each plan.
For comparison, the median AI SaaS product we track earns $36 per subscription across 18 products (AI app pricing study). AEO Engine earns roughly 83x that per customer, which is why 55 clients are enough. Only 2 of the 44 verified businesses have fewer paying subscriptions.
Is AEO Engine growing?
Yes, fast. Verified revenue by month:
| Month | Verified revenue |
|---|---|
| Nov 2025 | $62,405 |
| Dec 2025 | $62,797 |
| Jan 2026 | $65,126 |
| Feb 2026 | $67,223 |
| Mar 2026 | $98,264 |
| Apr 2026 | $76,847 |
| May 2026 | $75,188 |
| Jun 2026 | $76,832 |
| Jul 2026 | $108,658 |
| Aug 2026 | $80,169 |
| Sep 2026 | $164,301 |
| Oct 2026 (to Oct 21, partial) | $157,264 |
Source: TrustMRR's public profile for AEO Engine (Stripe data), monthly totals in UTC, read Oct 22, 2026. October is a partial month.
Nov 2025 was $62,405. Sep 2026 was $164,301, up 163% (our calc.). October had already reached $157,264 by Oct 21. TrustMRR also shows MRR +42.9% and revenue +30.7% over the last 30 days. Between our own two snapshots, Oct 14 and Oct 22, 2026, MRR went from $157,959 to $164,836 (+4.4%) with the same 55 clients, and $48,169 more was paid in 8 days.
Why does AEO Engine's revenue jump around?
Because a few large payments make up each month. In the last 30 days there were 6 days with $0 in payments and one day with $26,194 (TrustMRR daily totals, UTC). That is why the "last 30 days" figure moves a lot week to week: it was $232,349 when we checked on Oct 14 and $197,078 on Oct 22, while MRR went up. With high-ticket clients, read MRR and the monthly trend, not one 30-day window.
What does AEO Engine sell?
A service, not software. Its listing describes it as "the AI SEO agency that makes you the answer in AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Google", for SaaS, legal, services and e-commerce businesses. AEO means answer engine optimization: getting a business named when people ask an AI tool for a recommendation. The listing estimates about 50 customers, which is in line with the 55 verified subscriptions.
Our read: this is the same shift we see in our own visitor log. This week ChatGPT was our top source of real visitors, and the AEO Engine case study was the page it sent them to most. People now ask AI tools what to buy, so businesses pay to be in the answer.
Where do AEO Engine's clients come from?
Not from a big social following. The founder has about 1,218 followers on X (per the listing), compared with about 116.6k for SEObot's founder. The listing describes the company as founder-led and says Vijay C. Jacob has been ranked the #1 AEO and GEO consultant in New York City; that is founder-provided, not verified. aeoengine.ai has an Ahrefs domain rating of 47 (via TrustMRR, Oct 16, 2026). The company does not publish a channel breakdown, so we can't say more.
Can you start an agency like AEO Engine?
Our verdict on the case study is "Yes": Service businesses need no product build. The playbook is a clear niche promise plus high-ticket retainers, which is achievable for any skilled SEO operator. Two cautions from the data: AEO Engine has been running since 2018, so it started with an agency and clients before AI search took off; and at ~$2,997 a client, each lost client is a big hit. If you want to sell AI-search visibility, start with one niche and one outcome. The full playbook with every verified agency: how to start an AI agency. More: AI services in the main guide, AI business ideas, build a business with AI, automate your business with AI and AI business revenue statistics. Full sources: AEO Engine case study.
AEO Engine alternatives with verified revenue
| Business | Revenue | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Reddit Agency Gets brands recommended by ChatGPT and Google via Reddit, or you don't pay. | $34,750 MRR TrustMRR, Oct 22 2026 | Verified |
| Rank Prompt Track and improve how your site shows up in AI search engines. | $43,561 MRR TrustMRR, Oct 22 2026 | Verified |
| RankAI Autonomous SEO and AI-search content for agencies and e-commerce brands. | $56,533 MRR last TrustMRR sync Jul 30 2026 (stale) | Stale sync |
| SEObot An AI agent that runs blog SEO end to end for busy founders. | $34,906 MRR TrustMRR, Oct 21 2026 | Verified |
Other AI agencies in our data: Reddit Agency ($34,750 a month, 7 clients), Adelante ($17,837 a month, 70 clients), DM Champ ($13,918 a month, 50 clients). Other verified revenue breakdowns: how much Cometly makes (another few-customers, high-price business), how much SEObot makes, how much Postiz makes and how much Chatbase makes.
Compare every AI company we cover: how much do AI companies make? (verified and reported revenue, side by side).
FAQ
How much does AEO Engine make?
AEO Engine makes about $164,836 a month in recurring revenue (MRR) from 55 active subscriptions, verified from Stripe by TrustMRR (last sync Oct 21, 2026, read Oct 22, 2026). It took in $197,078 in the last 30 days, $1,120,843 in the last 12 months and $2,617,961 all-time.
How much does each AEO Engine client pay?
About $2,997 a month on average (MRR ÷ active subscriptions, our calc.). That matches its $2,997 Scale plan. Listed retainers run from $1,597 a month (Growth) to $10,000 a month (Dominate Tier 3), per its TrustMRR listing, checked Oct 22, 2026.
Is AEO Engine growing?
Yes. Verified monthly revenue went from $62,405 in Nov 2025 to $164,301 in Sep 2026, up 163% (our calc.). TrustMRR shows MRR +42.9% and revenue +30.7% over the last 30 days. Between our snapshots (Oct 14 and Oct 22, 2026) MRR rose from $157,959 to $164,836.
What does AEO Engine sell?
A done-for-you service, not software: it works to get client businesses named as the answer in ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews and Google search. Its TrustMRR listing names SaaS, legal, services and e-commerce companies as its target clients.
Who owns AEO Engine?
Vijay C. Jacob, per its TrustMRR listing, which says the company was founded in June 2018 in the United States. So it is an existing agency that repositioned around AI search, not a 2026 start-up.
What are AEO Engine alternatives with verified revenue?
Other AI-search and SEO businesses in our data with processor-verified revenue: Reddit Agency, Rank Prompt, RankAI, SEObot. Their figures are as of each case's check date; some syncs are stale and flagged on the case page.
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