Findings · 2026-10-21 · By VSNARY | Emmanuel Orta
Google AI Overview sources for Denver tree removal cost
One real search on 21 October 2026, read on the results page itself. One directory, one forum thread, four local businesses. One cited contractor refuses every crawler we sent.
On 21 October 2026 Google's AI Overview for “how much does tree removal cost in Denver” answered roughly $400 to $2,000 and cited seven pages on six sites: three contractors, a landscaping company, a national directory and a forum thread. Every cited page states dollar figures in its own text, and five of the seven put the question or its answer in the title. Crawler readability did not decide it: one cited contractor page answers browsers but refused all fifteen crawler identities CrawlCheck sent.
Disclosure: CrawlCheck publishes this, and VSNARY, which owns CrawlCheck, operates one of the cited contractor sites. The reading was taken from an ordinary Google search page; nothing here comes from a ranking tool. The other cited sites are not named, because we have not contacted their owners.
On 21 October 2026 we searched Google for how much does tree removal cost in Denver and read the AI Overview at the top of the page. This is what it said, what kind of page it cited, and what those pages have in common.
What did the overview say? #
It opened with a range of roughly $400 to $2,000 for a removal in Denver, followed by a price table by tree height and add-on prices for stump grinding and hauling. It named one local contractor in its text.
Which sources did it cite? #
The overview linked seven pages on six sites. We fetched each one and scanned it.
| Cited site | Page cited | What it is | Dollar figures on the page | CrawlCheck grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contractor A | Cost guide for the city | Contractor cost guide, with an FAQ block | Yes | Not graded: answers browsers, refused all 15 crawler identities we sent |
| Contractor B | Two cost posts | Contractor cost guides | Yes | B / 74 |
| Discussion forum | City thread asking for arborist recommendations and average prices | Forum thread | Yes, from commenters | Not scanned |
| National directory | City tree-removal cost page | Directory cost page | Yes | C / 81 |
| Landscaping company | Blog post on tree and stump removal cost | Landscaping cost guide, with price markup | Yes | C / 80 |
| Contractor C (operated by VSNARY) | Homepage | Contractor homepage, with price and FAQ markup | Yes | A / 98 |
What do the cited pages have in common? #
- Every one states prices in plain text. Not a quote form, not “call for an estimate”. The overview is a cost answer, and it was built from pages that already contain costs.
- Four of the six are not directories. Three contractors and a landscaping company were cited beside one directory and one forum. A local business page can be a source for a price question; it does not have to be a national aggregator.
- Grade did not decide it. The cited sites range from A/98 to C/80, and one could not be graded at all. Being readable to crawlers and being cited are different things.
- One cited contractor refuses every crawler. Its page answered our browser request and refused all fifteen crawler identities we sent, including the ones answer engines use. Google still cited it, because Google reads as Googlebot and Googlebot was not refused. Any answer engine that reads as itself gets nothing from that page.
What should a local business do with this? #
- Put the number on the page. If people ask what your service costs, a page that answers with a range and a table is the kind of page the overview cited. Two of the six cited sites were cited for pages that are nothing but that. Our study of how rarely sites publish prices and hours shows how much room there is.
- Answer the question in the title. Five of the seven cited pages have the question, or its answer, in their title.
- Let crawlers in, by name. Refusing crawlers did not keep that contractor out of Google’s overview; it keeps it out of every answer engine that is not Google. Check what your site serves each named crawler before assuming you are visible: how to tell if crawlers are refused, redirected or served less.
How we read it #
The CrawlCheck browser extension records, on your own device, whether a Google search you run shows an AI Overview and which sites it cites. It reads the results page you already opened and sends nothing unless you switch sharing on. This search was read that way, then every cited page was fetched and scanned by hand to confirm what the table says. One search on one day is one observation, not a rate; the overview and its sources can change by the hour.
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Questions this post answers
What kind of pages does Google's AI Overview cite for local price questions?
In this search it cited pages that state prices in plain text: contractor cost guides, a directory cost page, a forum thread with commenters' prices and a contractor homepage with price markup. None of the cited pages hid the price behind a quote form.
Can a small local business be cited in an AI Overview?
Yes. In this search four of the six cited sites were local businesses rather than national directories. A local page that directly answers the question can be a source.
Does a high crawlability grade get a page cited in an AI Overview?
Not on its own. The cited sites in this search ranged from an A to a C grade, and one could not be graded because it refused crawlers. Readability and citation are separate outcomes.
Can a site that blocks AI crawlers still appear in Google's AI Overview?
Yes, if it still lets Googlebot in, because Google reads pages as Googlebot. But answer engines that fetch as their own crawler get nothing from it, so it is invisible to them.
How can I see which sites an AI Overview cites?
Read the overview on the results page and open each linked source. The CrawlCheck browser extension can record this on your own device for searches you run, sending nothing unless you switch sharing on.
Is one search enough to say how AI Overviews choose sources?
No. One search on one day is a single observation. Overviews and their sources can change by the hour, so treat it as an example, not a rate.
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