Which Beauty & Cosmetics Brand Is Most Frequently Recommended by Generative AI? Optyino.ai Analyzes 11,111 AI Responses, Shiseido Takes Top Spot with 32.65%

Optyino.ai is a GEO/AIO/LLMO platform that visualizes and optimizes brand visibility in the age of AI search. Leveraging accumulated AI response logs, it analyzed trends in brand mentions and citations within generative AI responses in the beauty and cosmetics industry.

This study analyzed 11,111 AI responses collected between April 21, 2026, and July 10, 2026, based on 11 prompts in the beauty and cosmetics domain, such as "Tell me your recommended sunscreen!" "Tell me your recommended shampoo!" and "I have sensitive skin as a man. Please recommend a toner!" covering sunscreens, skincare, haircare, men's cosmetics, and hand creams.

Survey Summary

Out of the 11,111 AI responses analyzed, 10,488 (94.39%) contained specific brand names.

A total of 99 distinct brands were detected. The most frequently mentioned brand was SHISEIDO/Shiseido with 3,628 responses (32.65%), followed closely by Curel (3,613 responses, 32.52%) and ANESSA/Anessa (3,448 responses, 31.03%). The gap among the top three brands was only 1.62%.

When analyzed by AI model, only three models—Copilot, Google AI Mode, and Perplexity—listed Shiseido as the most mentioned brand. Gemini cited Curel most frequently, ChatGPT and Claude favored Anessa, Google AI Overview mentioned Nivea, and Grok highlighted Biore, showing significant variation across models.

The rate at which brand names appeared in response texts (brand mention rate) varied from 99.90% for Google AI Overview to 86.42% for Claude—a 13.48% difference. While 94.39% of responses mentioned brand names, only 2.06% of the cited URLs contained brand-related domains, revealing a substantial gap between mention and citation.

Background of the Survey

Beauty and cosmetics products are often purchased after consulting third-party reviews and user testimonials. It is believed that, beyond traditional search engines, more users are now asking generative AI for product recommendations.

For beauty and cosmetics brands implementing strategies such as GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), LLMO, or AIO, understanding how often and in which models their brand is mentioned in AI responses is crucial for prioritizing initiatives.

However, a brand being mentioned in the response text and its official website being cited as a source are fundamentally different metrics. Confusing the two could lead to misjudging the actual situation.

Therefore, this survey analyzed AI responses to prompts in categories like sunscreen, skincare, haircare, men's cosmetics, and hand cream from four perspectives: brand-specific mention patterns, AI model-specific trends, category-specific trends, and brand relevance in cited URLs.

Main Survey Results

94.39% of beauty and cosmetics responses mentioned brand names, with SHISEIDO/Shiseido leading at 32.65%

Out of the 11,111 responses analyzed, 10,488 (94.39%) contained specific brand names.

Rank

Brand

Category

Number of Mentions

Share

1

SHISEIDO/Shiseido

General Cosmetics

3,628

32.65%

2

Curel

Skincare

3,613

32.52%

3

ANESSA/Anessa

Sunscreen

3,448

31.03%

The top four brands ranged from 32.65% to 29.52%, with a maximum share difference of just 3.13%, indicating a tight race.

In contrast, there was a 4.61% gap between the fourth and fifth place (ORBIS/Orbis at 24.91%), suggesting the top four brands are clearly ahead.

For detailed data including fourth place and below (Biore, NIVEA), please refer to:

https://optyino.ai/press/beauty-cosmetics-brand-citation-rate

The most mentioned brand varies significantly by AI model: Gemini favors "Curel," while ChatGPT and Claude prefer "Anessa"

Only three models—Copilot, Google AI Mode, and Perplexity—listed Shiseido as the most mentioned brand, accounting for just 37.5% of the eight models analyzed.

AI Model

Number of Responses

Brand Mention Rate

Number of Brands Detected

Most Mentioned Brand

Google AI Overview

987

99.90%

96

NIVEA/Nivea

Grok

842

99.29%

86

Biore

Google AI Mode

1,839

98.53%

94

SHISEIDO/Shiseido

Copilot

543

97.42%

81

SHISEIDO/Shiseido

The remaining five models (62.5%) cited brands other than Shiseido as the most mentioned: Gemini cited Curel, ChatGPT and Claude cited Anessa, Google AI Overview cited Nivea, and Grok cited Biore.

The brand mention rate ranged from a high of 99.90% (Google AI Overview) to a low of 86.42% (Claude), a difference of 13.48%.

Results for the remaining four models—Perplexity, Gemini, ChatGPT, and Claude—are available here:

https://optyino.ai/press/beauty-cosmetics-brand-citation-rate

Skincare stands out with a brand mention share of 157.09%—a fiercely competitive category where multiple brands appear in a single response

Among 14 categories, skincare had the highest values with 20 brands and a total mention share of 157.09%.

A total share exceeding 100% indicates that multiple brands are frequently mentioned together within a single response.

Across all 11,111 responses, skincare brands were mentioned at an average rate of over 1.5 brands per response. Haircare followed at 80.87%, sunscreen at 60.88%, and men's cosmetics at 58.10%, all showing a tendency for multiple brand mentions.

In contrast, Korean cosmetics (1.45%), makeup (2.46%), and affordable cosmetics (5.89%) had low rates, suggesting these categories tend to focus on just one or two specific brands per response.

While brand mentions in the response text reached 94.39%, only 2.06% of cited URLs contained brand-related domains

The rate at which brand names appeared in response texts was 9