ChatGPT or Perplexity: how they use sources differently

If you use AI to look things up, there is a big difference in how ChatGPT and Perplexity find and show their sources. That can determine which tool suits you.

Two different approaches

Perplexity is built as a search engine with answers. According to the comparison from GEO Toolbox, it searches the web on almost every question and shows numbered sources you can click through to.

ChatGPT, on the other hand, is a conversational assistant. It answers primarily based on what it learned during training and only searches the web when it judges that the question requires more recent information. So you do not always get sources, and it is harder to check where an answer comes from.

Which sources do they use?

A May 2026 tally from the agency 5W Public Relations, which GEO Toolbox cites, shows that ChatGPT especially refers to Wikipedia (13.15 percent of references) and Reddit (11.97 percent). Major newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and Bloomberg were not among the 20 most used sources.

Perplexity chooses differently. Here, LinkedIn, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the review site G2, among others, take up more space.

The mix can also shift quickly. According to the same source, an analysis from September 2025 showed that Reddit's share of ChatGPT's references fell from about 60 percent to about 10 percent in two weeks.

Sources are not the same as correct answers

That an answer has sources does not mean it is correct. In a Columbia Journalism Review test of eight AI search engines, Perplexity, which was the most accurate, was still wrong in 37 percent of the tests. ChatGPT misidentified 134 out of 200 articles.

What does it mean for you?

Use Perplexity when you want a quick overview with links you can check yourself. Use ChatGPT when you want help thinking, writing or explaining something.

Whichever tool you choose, you should open the source before using the information for anything important. Also check whether the source is an official site, a news outlet or just a discussion on a forum.

What it means for you

Anyone who uses AI to look things up benefits from knowing the difference. Use Perplexity when you want a quick overview with links you can click through yourself, and ChatGPT when you need help writing, thinking or getting something explained. Whatever the tool, you should open the source before using the information for anything important, and check whether it comes from an official site, a news outlet or just a discussion on a forum.