ChatGPT Search or Google Search: Which is Better?

This week ChatGPT announced that they are taking the gloves off and will compete with Google in web search. Over the past two decades, this has been the technological equivalent of starting a land war in Asia or tilting at windmills, but there is a recent precedent: Perplexity.ai has been doing the same since November 2022.

So why is AI better than traditional search? OpenAI says yes, and that it’s not even close.

“ChatGPT can now search the web much better than before,” the company said. said in the announcement of a new product.

But is this true? I decided to check with 10 different queries.

World Series MVP – Winner: ChatGPT

I asked Google and ChatGPT a simple question: “Who was the World Series MVP?” I haven’t provided any context regarding timing.

Google returns four news stories about Freddie Freeman, who actually won the MVP in the recent MLB World Series. But it also gives a brief description of the award and its full name: “Willie Mays World Series Most Valuable Player Award.” Since I didn’t know this, I first thought that it was returning an incorrect and very old answer.

Additionally, the People Also Ask section with general questions was actually helpful, and the first real search result, which you have to scroll pretty far down to find on Google these days, was the Wikipedia entry for the MVP award.

ChatGPT, on the other hand, perfectly understands what I want and provides a quick, concise and correct answer, as well as a source of additional information:

Solar Energy – Winner: ChatGPT

How about a more challenging question: “Is solar energy good for the environment?”

This is a much more complex request with a much more complex answer. Both Google and ChatGPT work quite well, but the difference is that ChatGPT wants to provide an answer, whereas Google wants – at least in this case – to provide you with relevant web results.

Google starts with a “cut snippet,” which is Google’s way of trying to give you a direct answer to your query without having to bother finding and clicking a link, and it’s pretty good:

But it’s hard to beat ChatGPT’s answer, which is a mini-essay that lists five positive aspects of solar energy while acknowledging that there are some challenges, such as “the energy and materials needed to produce and dispose of solar panels.”

Bathroom Remodel – Winner: ChatGPT

We are doing a kitchen and bathroom remodel, and toilets are one of the many things on the list to research and purchase. So I asked the following question: “Which bidet is better to buy?”

It’s not even close.

The entire first screen of Google results are not actually search results. Every item on the first screen is a sponsored result, that is, an advertisement, and the largest sponsored list also contains details about dehumidifiers, vacuum cleaners, mattress toppers, and electric scooters. We sometimes don’t even notice it because we’ve developed blindness out of pure self-preservation, but it’s literally terrifying:

ChatGPT, on the other hand, gives me a nice clean list of top-rated bidets, each with a link to more detailed information in reputable publications like Wired, Popular Science, and The Verge. Clicking on the “Sources” link opens a convenient sidebar with links and previews

Google has several similar links, but they are located far down the page.

Smartphones – Winner: Google

I do a lot of research as part of my job, so getting the right facts is critical. The same applies to knowing the sources of these facts and being able to make a reasonable determination of whether they are trustworthy.

So I asked, “How many smartphones are there in the world?”

Google’s Featured Snippet gives the answer right at the top of the page: 6.84 billion. He also credits the source to Exploding Topics, which sounds like a content farm making advertising dollars, but additional links and snippets further down the page confirm the featured snippet.

ChatGPT, on the other hand, gives a great answer:

“As of 2024, there are approximately 4.88 billion smartphone users worldwide, representing approximately 60.42% of the global population. The total number of active smartphones is higher, at about 7.21 billion, as many people own multiple devices.”

The problem is that one of the sources is Prioridata, which sounds plausible, almost like an analytics firm. However, the site’s About Us page has no names and uses incredibly beautiful, very young analysts that, as a reverse image search shows, are almost guaranteed to be stock photos.

Professional Sports – Winner: Draw

We often use web searches to find things to do. I asked Google and ChatGPT, “What is the next New York Rangers home game?”

Both responded instantly and well: tomorrow they play at home with the New York Islanders. Interestingly, Google changed the Easter time for me to 10am on the West Coast; ChatGPT simply said it was 1:00 pm Eastern Time.

Shopping – winner: tie

I recently received a coupon at a conference for a free pair of pants from a local brand, so I asked Google and ChatGPT, “Where is DU/ER in Vancouver?”

Google gave me an instant response with the full address, as well as a link to the company’s homepage and a direction button. ChatGPT provided this and also gave me store hours and a link to a map.

Weather Winner: Google

I’m on the humid coast of Vancouver, north of Seattle, and we get a lot of rain in the winter. So I asked both search engines, “What will the weather be like tomorrow?”

Both responded with weather forecasts, but only one knew my location: near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Additionally, Google didn’t just provide me with text, it provided me with a temperature graph and weather forecast for the next week.

ChatGPT provided me with a weather forecast for my IP address pointing to my location: Kamloops, British Columbia. Unfortunately, it is 220 miles or 354 kilometers away.

Distance – winner: draw

To get this distance higher, I googled and got the data from ChatGPT. Both responded correctly and equally to the distance between the two cities.

Thanks to Google for providing the map with the answer; Thanks to ChatGPT for also providing crow flies and plane distance information.

Travel – Winner: ChatGPT

I have a conference coming up in Lisbon, Portugal, so I asked ChatGPT and Google: “What to do in Lisbon?”

Google’s monetization model reared its ugly head again, with the first results screen being completely filled with sponsored ads, rather than responses, from Viator, GetYourGuide, Airbnb and Tripadvisor.

ChatGPT provided me with a wonderful list of historical attractions, cultural experiences, scenic views, culinary delights, modern attractions and nearby day trips that, for someone who has been to Lisbon five or six times, ring true. However, I haven’t been to the Jeronimos Monastery yet, so maybe I should go on an upcoming trip.

Internet Winner: Google

Considering I’ve been searching the internet all day, I asked Google and ChatGPT which is the best search engine on the planet.

Google responds with a knowledge chip from In Motion Marketing that is quite impressive:

“Google leads the way as the most popular search engine in the world, with significant market share. Which search engine is the best and safest? DuckDuckGo, Startpage and Brave Search are the best choices for those who prioritize security as they do not track user data and offer advanced privacy features.”

ChatGPT, on the other hand, doesn’t really mean to offend anyone by stating that “determining the ‘best’ search engine is a matter of individual preference, including factors such as search accuracy, privacy, user interface, and additional features.”

Well, perhaps this is true, but it is unlikely to be definitive.

Summing up

• ChatGPT: 4 wins
• Google: 3 wins
• Draw: 3

ChatGPT wins this fight, although let’s be honest: it’s hardly scientific. To make a more precise determination, we would need to submit hundreds, if not thousands of queries to Google and ChatGPT.

What I can say most definitely is that ChatGPT provides the answers, and while Google is trying to do that, it also has to provide links. Answers are what we usually want, and since ChatGPT now also provides sources, we can dig deeper whenever we want. This is a big plus, and we’ll likely see more of this from Google as Gemini becomes more embedded in Google Search.

Additionally, Google has a huge number of sponsored results, which really makes it impossible to ask a question and get a straight answer. I’m sure ChatGPT will have something similar soon – Perplexity.ai already has – but hopefully they’ll find a cleaner way to do it.

One thing in Google’s favor is that its long history, extensive product portfolio, and deep connections and relationships allow it to provide useful items such as maps, weather charts, and more. This is something ChatGPT may want to build over time.