- Developer
- Microsoft
- Web source
- Bing index (
Bingbot) - Fast notification
- IndexNow protocol — pings changed URLs instantly
- First-party measurement
- Bing Webmaster Tools → AI Performance (total citations, cited pages, grounding queries)
- Surfaces
- Copilot app, Bing, Edge, Windows, Microsoft 365
To be cited in Copilot your site must be well indexed in Bing: verify it in Bing Webmaster Tools, submit a sitemap, notify new and updated pages via IndexNow[3], and don’t block Bingbot[2]. The AI Performance report Bing Webmaster Tools opened in public preview in February 2026 shows how often, and with which pages, your site is cited in Copilot answers[1] — one of the few places you can see AI citations with first-party data.
What should you do to appear in Copilot?
- Verify in Bing Webmaster Tools: add the site, submit the sitemap, watch crawl errors[2] (you can import from Google Search Console).
- Set up IndexNow: notify Bing of new or updated pages instantly instead of waiting for a recrawl[3].
- Don’t block `Bingbot`: check firewall and CDN rules.
- Answer-first content: Copilot extracts passages too; the question-heading + answer-first pattern works here as well (citable content).
- Review AI Performance monthly: see which pages get cited and for which queries; prioritize important pages that don’t.
Why spend time on Bing?
Because the question is no longer “how much traffic does Bing send?” but “which AI answers does the Bing index feed?”. Copilot is a daily tool for enterprise Microsoft users, which makes it especially important for B2B brands. The setup cost is low, and thanks to the AI Performance report the return is measurable.
Frequently asked questions
01Where does Copilot get its answers?
For web questions Microsoft Copilot grounds its answer in Bing’s search index: queries run against Bing, relevant passages are extracted from candidate pages and the answer is supported by those passages[1].
02How can I see how often Copilot cites my site?
The AI Performance report in Bing Webmaster Tools (public preview since February 2026) shows total citations, the pages cited and related grounding queries[1].
Sources
- Bing Webmaster Blog — Introducing AI Performance in Bing Webmaster Tools (Feb 2026) · accessed 27 September 2026
- Bing Webmaster Guidelines · accessed 27 September 2026
- IndexNow · accessed 27 September 2026