Original research · 2026-07 edition

AI SEO Statistics: Podiatry (2026-07 edition)

40 questions · 120 AI responses · 3 models · measured 2026-07-06

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The question bank

The questions we tested — sampled from real buyer journeys in podiatry.

Each model answered every question once, same wording, same day. These are the prompts behind every percentage on this page.

Why does the bottom of my heel hurt so much when I first wake up and take my first steps?
Is it worth seeing a podiatrist for an ingrown toenail or can I safely fix it at home?
How much do custom orthotics usually cost out of pocket if my insurance doesn't cover them?
What is the difference between seeing a podiatrist and an orthopedic surgeon for chronic foot pain?
My big toe joint is becoming stiff and bulging, do I need surgery for a bunion right away?
How do I know if my toenail fungus needs a prescription or if drugstore cream is enough?
What are the red flags to look for when choosing a foot doctor for a young child?
I have a sharp pain like a pebble is in my shoe but nothing is there, what could that be?
Show all 40 questions
Can a podiatrist actually help with lower back pain caused by the way I walk?
How long is the typical recovery time after getting laser treatment for fungal nails?
Do I usually need a referral from my primary care doctor to see a podiatrist for a checkup?
Are high-end running shoes a better investment than getting custom inserts from a doctor?
What specific questions should I ask a podiatrist during a consultation for plantar fasciitis?
My diabetic father has a small cut on his foot that won't heal, should I go to the ER or a podiatrist?
Is it normal for my feet to be completely flat or should I be worried about my arches collapsing?
How do podiatrists treat thick, yellow toenails that are too hard for me to cut myself?
Can I get a cortisone shot for my foot pain during my very first appointment?
What are the pros and cons of minimally invasive bunion surgery versus traditional methods?
How many office visits does it usually take to permanently clear up a stubborn plantar wart?
Why are my toes tingling and going numb every time I go for a long walk?
Is it better to see a podiatrist or a dermatologist for a painful growth on the bottom of my foot?
What is the average price for a comprehensive foot exam for someone without health insurance?
Are there podiatrists who specialize specifically in sports injuries and analyzing running gait?
How can I tell if a podiatry clinic is a high-quality medical practice or just a nail mill?
My toddler walks on their tiptoes all the time, is this something a podiatrist needs to evaluate?
What is the success rate for shockwave therapy when treating Achilles tendonitis?
Will a podiatrist trim my nails for me if I have mobility issues and can't reach my feet?
Do I really need custom orthotics or are the $50 heat-moldable ones at the pharmacy good enough?
What kind of specialist doctor treats a suspected stress fracture in the metatarsal bones?
Is it okay to wear flip-flops to my appointment if I am seeing a podiatrist for arch pain?
How do I find a podiatrist in my area who accepts Medicare and has high patient ratings?
What are the signs that my foot pain is a nerve issue like Morton's neuroma instead of a strain?
Can a podiatrist help with excessively sweaty feet and odor that won't go away with powder?
Should I see a podiatrist for a baseline exam before I start training for my first marathon?
What is the difference in training between a DPM and a regular medical doctor?
How long do custom-molded shoe inserts typically last before they lose their support and need replacing?
Are there any effective natural ways to fix a hammertoe before I consider seeing a surgeon?
What does it mean if my ankles swell up significantly every afternoon but go down overnight?
Can a podiatrist perform minor foot surgery in their office or does it have to be at a hospital?
Why does the side of my foot ache only when I wear certain types of narrow dress shoes?

Model by model

14-point average divergence: which AI you ask changes the answer.

The divergence index is the average gap between the most and least likely model per behavior. Higher = the models disagree more about podiatry buyers.

Behavior rates across 40 podiatry buyer questions, 2026-07 edition. Last column: average across models.
ChatGPTClaudeGeminiConsensus
Recommends hiring a professional83%78%50%65%
Suggests DIY first43%33%23%65%
Names specific providers0%8%5%90%
Gives price or cost info8%10%10%93%
Tells to check reviews5%5%0%93%
Tells to verify credentials13%8%0%85%
Mentions case studies / portfolio3%0%0%98%
Mentions local proximity15%8%5%88%
Gives selection criteria28%28%25%80%
Warns about red flags5%8%5%93%
Asks a clarifying question73%40%0%18%
Recommends multiple quotes5%5%3%90%

By model

How each assistant handled Podiatry questions.

Reading the 120 answers model by model shows how differently the three assistants treat the same podiatry questions. On the most consequential behavior — whether to send the buyer to a professional at all — the rate ranged from 82.5% (ChatGPT) down to 50% (Gemini), a 33-point gap on an identical question set.

Across the 40 podiatry answers it produced, ChatGPT recommended hiring a professional in 82.5% of them and suggested a DIY approach first 42.5% of the time. It named a specific provider in 0% of answers (about 0 distinct providers per answer) and included price or cost information 7.5% of the time. ChatGPT asked a clarifying question before answering in 72.5% of cases, warned about red flags or scams in 5%, and told the buyer to verify credentials in 12.5%, averaging 395 words per answer. On the remaining cues it told the buyer to check reviews in 5%, pointed to case studies or a portfolio in 2.5%, and framed the choice around local proximity in 15%; a selection-criteria checklist appeared in 27.5% of its answers and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 5%.

Across the 40 podiatry answers it produced, Claude recommended hiring a professional in 77.5% of them and suggested a DIY approach first 32.5% of the time. It named a specific provider in 7.5% of answers (about 0.1 distinct providers per answer) and included price or cost information 10% of the time. Claude asked a clarifying question before answering in 40% of cases, warned about red flags or scams in 7.5%, and told the buyer to verify credentials in 7.5%, averaging 274 words per answer. On the remaining cues it told the buyer to check reviews in 5%, pointed to case studies or a portfolio in 0%, and framed the choice around local proximity in 7.5%; a selection-criteria checklist appeared in 27.5% of its answers and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 5%.

Across the 40 podiatry answers it produced, Gemini recommended hiring a professional in 50% of them and suggested a DIY approach first 22.5% of the time. It named a specific provider in 5% of answers (about 0.1 distinct providers per answer) and included price or cost information 10% of the time. Gemini asked a clarifying question before answering in 0% of cases, warned about red flags or scams in 5%, and told the buyer to verify credentials in 0%, averaging 299 words per answer. On the remaining cues it told the buyer to check reviews in 0%, pointed to case studies or a portfolio in 0%, and framed the choice around local proximity in 5%; a selection-criteria checklist appeared in 25% of its answers and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 2.5%.

Taken together, ChatGPT is the assistant most likely to route a podiatry buyer to a professional (82.5%) and Gemini the least (50%). ChatGPT produced the longest answers, at 395 words on average. Specific providers were named most often by Claude (7.5%) — even there, roughly one answer in 13 carried a name.

Where they disagree

The behaviors where the choice of model changes the answer.

The divergence index for this study is 13.6 points — the average distance between the most and least likely model across the coded behaviors. The gaps below are where which assistant a podiatry buyer happens to ask matters most:

  • Asks a clarifying question: from 0% (Gemini) to 72.5% (ChatGPT) — a 73-point spread.
  • Recommends hiring a professional: from 50% (Gemini) to 82.5% (ChatGPT) — a 33-point spread.
  • Suggests a DIY approach first: from 22.5% (Gemini) to 42.5% (ChatGPT) — a 20-point spread.
  • Tells the buyer to verify credentials: from 0% (Gemini) to 12.5% (ChatGPT) — a 13-point spread.
  • Mentions local proximity: from 5% (Gemini) to 15% (ChatGPT) — a 10-point spread.

The widest single gap — asks a clarifying question, 73 points — means a podiatry buyer can receive materially different guidance on the same question depending only on which assistant they happen to open, so any visibility strategy built on a single model's behavior describes only part of the podiatry market.

Where they agree

The points of near-consensus in Podiatry.

On other behaviors the three models move almost in lockstep — the points of near-consensus for podiatry, where all three landed within a few points of each other:

  • Gives price or cost information: 7.5%–10% across all three (a 3-point spread).
  • Mentions case studies or portfolio: 0%–2.5% across all three (a 3-point spread).
  • Gives selection criteria: 25%–27.5% across all three (a 3-point spread).
  • Warns about red flags or scams: 5%–7.5% across all three (a 3-point spread).

Measured question by question, the three assistants coded a response the same way most consistently on "mentions case studies or portfolio" (identical coding in 97.5% of questions) and least consistently on "asks a clarifying question" (17.5%).

Every behavior, measured

All twelve coded behaviors for Podiatry, averaged across the three models.

The behaviors AI models reproduce most often for podiatry are recommends hiring a professional (70% on average), asks a clarifying question (37.5%) and suggests a DIY approach first (32.5%); the rarest are mentions case studies or portfolio (0.8%), tells the buyer to check reviews (3.3%) and recommends multiple quotes (4.2%). Each figure below is the share of a model's 40 answers in which the behavior appeared at least once, averaged across the 3 models with the full per-model range in parentheses:

  • Recommends hiring a professional: 70% on average (ChatGPT 82.5%, Claude 77.5%, Gemini 50%) — a 33-point spread.
  • Asks a clarifying question: 37.5% on average (ChatGPT 72.5%, Claude 40%, Gemini 0%) — a 73-point spread.
  • Suggests a DIY approach first: 32.5% on average (ChatGPT 42.5%, Claude 32.5%, Gemini 22.5%) — a 20-point spread.
  • Gives selection criteria: 26.7% on average (ChatGPT 27.5%, Claude 27.5%, Gemini 25%) — a 3-point spread.
  • Gives price or cost information: 9.2% on average (ChatGPT 7.5%, Claude 10%, Gemini 10%) — a 3-point spread.
  • Mentions local proximity: 9.2% on average (ChatGPT 15%, Claude 7.5%, Gemini 5%) — a 10-point spread.
  • Tells the buyer to verify credentials: 6.7% on average (ChatGPT 12.5%, Claude 7.5%, Gemini 0%) — a 13-point spread.
  • Warns about red flags or scams: 5.8% on average (ChatGPT 5%, Claude 7.5%, Gemini 5%) — a 3-point spread.
  • Names a specific provider: 4.2% on average (ChatGPT 0%, Claude 7.5%, Gemini 5%) — a 8-point spread.
  • Recommends multiple quotes: 4.2% on average (ChatGPT 5%, Claude 5%, Gemini 2.5%) — a 3-point spread.
  • Tells the buyer to check reviews: 3.3% on average (ChatGPT 5%, Claude 5%, Gemini 0%) — a 5-point spread.
  • Mentions case studies or portfolio: 0.8% on average (ChatGPT 2.5%, Claude 0%, Gemini 0%) — a 3-point spread.

Trust signals

How well the models protect the podiatry buyer.

Beyond whether to hire, the rubric codes how carefully each assistant protects the podiatry buyer once a decision is made. Telling the buyer to check reviews or ratings appeared in 3.3% of answers on average. Verifying credentials or certifications appeared in 6.7%. Warning about red flags or scams appeared in 5.8%.

On structuring the decision, a selection-criteria checklist showed up in 26.7% of answers on average and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 4.2%. The single least-reproduced protective signal for podiatry is "tells the buyer to check reviews" at 3.3% on average — the clearest opening for content that supplies it, since the models are not yet reliably surfacing that guidance on their own.

Referral behavior

Do AI models name Podiatry providers?

For service providers the decisive question is whether these systems name anyone at all. Across 120 podiatry answers, a specific provider was named in 4.2% of responses on average — roughly 0.1 distinct providers per answer. In practice the assistants behave far more as an explanatory layer than as a referral engine for podiatry: visibility comes from being the reasoning a model reproduces, not from being the named recommendation.

The question set

What these 40 Podiatry questions cover.

The 40 questions behind every percentage on this page were drawn from real podiatry (healthcare services; buyer hiring decisions for this specific service) buyer journeys. Each was put to all 3 models once, with identical wording, so the rates above describe how the assistants handled this exact podiatry question set — not a general prior or a hand-picked subset. The full list is shown earlier on this page; the coded percentages are what those specific questions produced.

How to read this

A note on the numbers.

A percentage here is the share of a model's 40 answers in which the behavior appeared at least once — not a confidence score. Because each model answered every question exactly once on 2026-07-06, the figures describe this specific podiatry question set and snapshot rather than a general prior. The full protocol and coding rubric are documented in the study methodology.

Methodology

A controlled snapshot, documented end to end.

40 standardized buyer questions per industry, one response per model per question (ChatGPT (gpt-5-mini), Claude (claude-sonnet-5), Gemini (gemini-3-flash-preview)), collected 2026-07-06, coded against a fixed 12-behavior rubric with human QA. AI outputs vary with model version, location and time — figures describe this sample and window, and are refreshed each edition. Read the full methodology →