How many websites pass the External Recent check?
Based on 512 audited sites · Updated 2026-07-16
95% confidence interval: 60%–68.3%
About This Check
Checks whether recent mentions exist (last ~6 months). Freshness signals help AI systems assess relevance.
Why This Matters
LLM Discoverability
Recent external mentions are a strong freshness signal for AI systems; a brand or topic being actively discussed signals to models that the content is current and relevant to contemporary queries.
SEO Impact
Fresh backlinks and new brand mentions signal to Google that a site is actively growing its authority; a sustained cadence of earned mentions is a key driver of long-term ranking trajectory.
What To Do Next
35.7% of audited sites need attention on external recent (183 of 512 sites are warning or failing).
- Prioritize external recent on templates that create many URLs, because one template fix can improve a large share of off-site presence & mentions.
- After changing the page, re-run the audit and compare the observed value for this check instead of relying on visual inspection alone.
- Use the 64.3% pass rate as a benchmark: if your site fails here, passing the check moves it closer to the visible majority of crawlable, AI-readable pages.
Status Breakdown
Compliance Trend
Daily pass, warning, and failure rates across benchmark snapshots (up to 90 days).
Industry Breakdown
How different industries perform on this check.
71.2% of audited Media & Entertainment sites pass this check (n=73), compared with 62% of Travel & Hospitality sites (n=50).
| Industry | Pass rate | Avg score | Sites |
|---|---|---|---|
| Media & Entertainment | 71.2% | 73.8 | 73 |
| Technology | 67.7% | 72 | 232 |
| Finance & Banking | 66.7% | 72.8 | 30 |
| Travel & Hospitality | 62% | 74.8 | 50 |
| Recruitment & HR | 100% | 80 | 3limited |
| Healthcare | 71.4% | 76.7 | 7limited |
| Education | 68.2% | 71.8 | 22limited |
| E-Commerce | 67.9% | 69.6 | 28limited |
| Retail | 66.7% | 78.3 | 3limited |
| Government | 53.8% | 73.1 | 13limited |
Related Checks
Run a free audit to see whether your site passes this check, or browse the leaderboard and the audited-sites directory.