Original research · 2026-07 edition

AI SEO Statistics: Solicitor (2026-07 edition)

15 questions · 45/45 expected AI responses · 3 models · measured 2026-07-04

From research to execution

Apply these findings to your solicitor SEO strategy.

This benchmark explains how AI assistants advise buyers. The related service page turns those findings into the technical, content, authority, and conversion priorities for this market.

The question bank

The questions we tested: a frozen buyer-intent benchmark for solicitor.

The question set was curated from a predefined buyer-intent taxonomy and held constant for this edition. Each model received the same wording. These are the prompts behind every percentage on this page.

I'm buying my first home and I'm confused about the legal side—do I need a solicitor or a conveyancer?
What are the typical hourly rates for a family law solicitor in a mid-sized city?
Is it possible to handle a small claims court case without hiring a solicitor to save money?
What specific questions should I ask during a first meeting to see if a solicitor is right for my probate case?
I've been offered a settlement agreement from my job; does my employer have to pay for my solicitor to review it?
How do I know if a solicitor is actually an expert in medical negligence or just a general personal injury lawyer?
Are fixed-fee legal services better than hourly billing for a straightforward divorce?
My neighbor is building on my land—how quickly can a solicitor get an injunction to stop them?
Show all 15 questions
What are the red flags I should look out for when reading a solicitor's terms of engagement?
Can I use a solicitor located in another part of the country for a property transaction, or is local knowledge essential?
How much should I expect to pay upfront as a retainer for a criminal defense solicitor?
What happens if my solicitor misses a deadline in my case? Can I sue them for malpractice?
Is there a way to compare the success rates of different solicitors for employment tribunal cases?
I need to update my will after a second marriage; should I use the same solicitor who did my first one?
Why do some solicitors charge so much more for the exact same service like power of attorney?

Model by model

24.4% question-level model disagreement.

This rate is the average pairwise disagreement between binary behavior codes across questions and behaviors. It is not the gap between the highest and lowest aggregated model percentages.

Behavior matrixModel-by-model evidence
Measured

Behavior prevalence across 15 solicitor benchmark questions, 2026-07 edition. Last column: equal-model mean.

Behavior prevalence across 15 solicitor benchmark questions, 2026-07 edition. Last column: equal-model mean.
BehaviorChatGPTClaudeGeminiEqual-model mean
Recommends hiring a professional86.7%80%53.3%73.3%
Suggests DIY first20%13.3%6.7%13.3%
Names specific providers6.7%6.7%6.7%6.7%
Gives price or cost info13.3%26.7%46.7%28.9%
Tells to check reviews13.3%26.7%0%13.3%
Tells to verify credentials20%33.3%6.7%20%
Mentions case studies / portfolio6.7%13.3%0%6.7%
Mentions local proximity26.7%46.7%20%31.1%
Gives selection criteria46.7%73.3%33.3%51.1%
Warns about red flags6.7%20%13.3%13.3%
Asks a clarifying question60%53.3%0%37.8%
Recommends multiple quotes26.7%53.3%0%26.7%

Question-level agreement

How often all measured models received the same binary code.

Agreement is calculated question by question for each behavior. A high value can coexist with a low behavior prevalence; it means the models usually agreed on whether the behavior appeared.

Behavior matrixModel-by-model evidence
Measured

All-model binary agreement by behavior across 15 benchmark questions.

All-model binary agreement by behavior across 15 benchmark questions.
BehaviorAll-model agreement
Recommends hiring a professional53.3%
Suggests DIY first86.7%
Names specific providers100%
Gives price or cost info60%
Tells to check reviews73.3%
Tells to verify credentials60%
Mentions case studies / portfolio86.7%
Mentions local proximity60%
Gives selection criteria33.3%
Warns about red flags73.3%
Asks a clarifying question33.3%
Recommends multiple quotes40%

By model

How each assistant handled Solicitor questions.

Reading the 45 answers model by model shows how differently the three assistants treat the same solicitor questions. On the most consequential behavior, whether to send the buyer to a professional at all, the rate ranged from 86.7% (ChatGPT) down to 53.3% (Gemini), a 33-point gap on an identical question set.

Across the 15 solicitor answers it produced, ChatGPT recommended hiring a professional in 86.7% of them and suggested a DIY approach first 20% of the time. It named a specific provider in 6.7% of answers (about 0.1 distinct providers per answer) and included price or cost information 13.3% of the time. ChatGPT asked a clarifying question before answering in 60% of cases, warned about red flags or scams in 6.7%, and told the buyer to verify credentials in 20%, averaging 579 words per answer. On the remaining cues it told the buyer to check reviews in 13.3%, pointed to case studies or a portfolio in 6.7%, and framed the choice around local proximity in 26.7%; a selection-criteria checklist appeared in 46.7% of its answers and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 26.7%.

Across the 15 solicitor answers it produced, Claude recommended hiring a professional in 80% of them and suggested a DIY approach first 13.3% of the time. It named a specific provider in 6.7% of answers (about 0.1 distinct providers per answer) and included price or cost information 26.7% of the time. Claude asked a clarifying question before answering in 53.3% of cases, warned about red flags or scams in 20%, and told the buyer to verify credentials in 33.3%, averaging 317 words per answer. On the remaining cues it told the buyer to check reviews in 26.7%, pointed to case studies or a portfolio in 13.3%, and framed the choice around local proximity in 46.7%; a selection-criteria checklist appeared in 73.3% of its answers and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 53.3%.

Across the 15 solicitor answers it produced, Gemini recommended hiring a professional in 53.3% of them and suggested a DIY approach first 6.7% of the time. It named a specific provider in 6.7% of answers (about 0.1 distinct providers per answer) and included price or cost information 46.7% of the time. Gemini asked a clarifying question before answering in 0% of cases, warned about red flags or scams in 13.3%, and told the buyer to verify credentials in 6.7%, averaging 261 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 20%; a selection-criteria checklist appeared in 33.3% of its answers and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 0%.

Taken together, ChatGPT is the assistant most likely to route a solicitor buyer to a professional (86.7%) and Gemini the least (53.3%). ChatGPT produced the longest answers, at 579 words on average. Specific providers were named most often by ChatGPT (6.7%). Even there, roughly one answer in 15 carried a name.

Where they disagree

The behaviors where the choice of model changes the answer.

Question-level model disagreement is 24.4%. This is the average pairwise rate at which models received different binary codes across questions and behaviors. The observed rate spreads below are a separate measure showing where which assistant a solicitor buyer happens to ask matters most:

  • Asks a clarifying question: from 0% (Gemini) to 60% (ChatGPT). The spread is 60 points.
  • Recommends multiple quotes: from 0% (Gemini) to 53.3% (Claude). The spread is 53 points.
  • Gives selection criteria: from 33.3% (Gemini) to 73.3% (Claude). The spread is 40 points.
  • Recommends hiring a professional: from 53.3% (Gemini) to 86.7% (ChatGPT). The spread is 33 points.
  • Gives price or cost information: from 13.3% (ChatGPT) to 46.7% (Gemini). The spread is 33 points.

The widest single gap concerns asks a clarifying question at 60 points. This means a solicitor 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 solicitor market.

Where they agree

The points of near-consensus in Solicitor.

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

  • Names a specific provider: 6.7% across all three models.
  • Suggests a DIY approach first: 6.7%–20% across all three (a 13-point spread).
  • Mentions case studies or portfolio: 0%–13.3% across all three (a 13-point spread).
  • Warns about red flags or scams: 6.7%–20% across all three (a 13-point spread).

Measured question by question, the three assistants coded a response the same way most consistently on "names a specific provider" (identical coding in 100% of questions) and least consistently on "asks a clarifying question" (33.3%).

Every behavior, measured

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

The behaviors AI models reproduce most often for solicitor are recommends hiring a professional (73.3% on average), gives selection criteria (51.1%) and asks a clarifying question (37.8%); the rarest are mentions case studies or portfolio (6.7%), names a specific provider (6.7%) and warns about red flags or scams (13.3%). Each figure below is the share of a model's 15 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: 73.3% on average (ChatGPT 86.7%, Claude 80%, Gemini 53.3%). The spread is 33 points.
  • Gives selection criteria: 51.1% on average (ChatGPT 46.7%, Claude 73.3%, Gemini 33.3%). The spread is 40 points.
  • Asks a clarifying question: 37.8% on average (ChatGPT 60%, Claude 53.3%, Gemini 0%). The spread is 60 points.
  • Mentions local proximity: 31.1% on average (ChatGPT 26.7%, Claude 46.7%, Gemini 20%). The spread is 27 points.
  • Gives price or cost information: 28.9% on average (ChatGPT 13.3%, Claude 26.7%, Gemini 46.7%). The spread is 33 points.
  • Recommends multiple quotes: 26.7% on average (ChatGPT 26.7%, Claude 53.3%, Gemini 0%). The spread is 53 points.
  • Tells the buyer to verify credentials: 20% on average (ChatGPT 20%, Claude 33.3%, Gemini 6.7%). The spread is 27 points.
  • Suggests a DIY approach first: 13.3% on average (ChatGPT 20%, Claude 13.3%, Gemini 6.7%). The spread is 13 points.
  • Tells the buyer to check reviews: 13.3% on average (ChatGPT 13.3%, Claude 26.7%, Gemini 0%). The spread is 27 points.
  • Warns about red flags or scams: 13.3% on average (ChatGPT 6.7%, Claude 20%, Gemini 13.3%). The spread is 13 points.
  • Names a specific provider: 6.7% on average (ChatGPT 6.7%, Claude 6.7%, Gemini 6.7%).
  • Mentions case studies or portfolio: 6.7% on average (ChatGPT 6.7%, Claude 13.3%, Gemini 0%). The spread is 13 points.

Trust signals

How well the models protect the solicitor buyer.

Beyond whether to hire, the rubric codes how carefully each assistant protects the solicitor buyer once a decision is made. Telling the buyer to check reviews or ratings appeared in 13.3% of answers on average. Verifying credentials or certifications appeared in 20%. Warning about red flags or scams appeared in 13.3%.

On structuring the decision, a selection-criteria checklist showed up in 51.1% of answers on average and a recommendation to gather multiple quotes in 26.7%. The single least-reproduced protective signal for solicitor is "tells the buyer to check reviews" at 13.3% on average. This is 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 Solicitor providers?

For service providers the decisive question is whether these systems name anyone at all. Across 45 solicitor answers, a specific provider was named in 6.7% of responses on average, or roughly 0.1 distinct providers per answer. In practice the assistants behave far more as an explanatory layer than as a referral engine for solicitor: visibility comes from being the reasoning a model reproduces, not from being the named recommendation.

The question set

What these 15 Solicitor questions cover.

The 15 questions behind every percentage on this page form a frozen solicitor (legal services; buyer hiring decisions for this specific service) buyer-intent benchmark. Each was put to all 3 models once, with identical wording, so the rates above describe how the assistants handled this exact solicitor question set rather than 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 15 answers in which the behavior appeared at least once. It is not a confidence score. Because each model answered every question exactly once on 2026-07-04, the figures describe this specific solicitor 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.

15 frozen benchmark questions, one expected response per model per question (ChatGPT API (gpt-5-mini), Claude API (claude-sonnet-5), Gemini API (gemini-3-flash-preview)), collected 2026-07-04 and coded against a fixed 12-behavior rubric. The pipeline validates the schema, recomputes aggregates and reports consistency issues. AI outputs vary with model version, location and time, so the figures describe this edition's exact sample and measurement window. Read the full methodology →

Citation

Cite this edition.

Authority Specialist. “AI SEO Statistics: Solicitor (2026-07 edition).” AuthoritySpecialist.com. https://authorityspecialist.com/research/ai-seo-statistics/services/legal/solicitor