Key Metric · AI Trust Layer

Recommendation Eligibility Score.

A scored measure of how close a store is to meeting the minimum threshold for AI recommendation eligibility. Not a percentage. A gate counter.

Category Key MetricScale 0 to 5 gatesRelated AI Recommendation Eligibility
Ready to enter AI recommendations?
2 / 5
Gates Open
Not Eligible
Click a red gate to open it.
Definition
The Recommendation Eligibility Score quantifies how close a store is to the minimum threshold required to enter AI recommendation flows. Unlike the AI Commerce Score, which measures overall recommendation quality, the Recommendation Eligibility Score focuses specifically on gate-level requirements. A store below the eligibility threshold gets zero recommendations regardless of its score on other dimensions. The Recommendation Eligibility Score shows exactly how far away eligibility is and what is blocking it.
Why AI Cares
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Why AI Cares

For stores below the eligibility threshold, optimizing content or positioning is wasted effort. The first priority is always eligibility. The Recommendation Eligibility Score makes that priority measurable and actionable.

Example
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Example

A store scores 38 on AI Commerce Score overall, but its Recommendation Eligibility Score is 2 out of 5 because it blocks GPTBot, has no schema, and has no return policy in HTML. Fixing all three moves the eligibility score to 5 and unlocks the recommendation pool.

The Metro Map

One broken station. Every trip ends there.

Eligibility is a line, not a destination. Click any station to break it and watch what happens to the rest of the line, all the way to Ranking.

All stations clear. Ranking reached.
Click a middle station to break or fix it.
Buyer asks
↓
AI opens your store
↓
Can I read it?
YES
↓
Can I verify it?
NO
END
Same Idea, One More Way

It does not matter which seat you have.

Ticket
Passport
Security
Boarding
Flight
If you do not clear security, the flight does not board you, no matter how good your seat is. Eligibility gates work the same way regardless of how strong your other signals are.
Distance To Eligibility

You are 3 fixes away.

Recommendation Pool
2 / 5 gates open
✓Enable GPTBot access
✓Publish a return policy
✓Add product schema
Outside
Not Eligible
You have entered the recommendation pool
The Eligibility Wall

Every fix removes one brick.

You
AI Recommendations
3 of 5 gates are still standing between this store and the recommendation pool. Each fix removes one brick, not a percentage of the wall.
FAQ

Questions about the Recommendation Eligibility Score

What is the Recommendation Eligibility Score?
It is a 0 to 5 measure of how close a store is to the minimum threshold required to enter AI recommendation flows. It is different from the AI Commerce Score, which measures overall recommendation quality once a store is already eligible.
Why isn't a high AI Commerce Score enough?
A store can score well on content and positioning and still fail the gate. In the worked example on this page, a store scores 38 on the AI Commerce Score but only 2 out of 5 on the Recommendation Eligibility Score, because it blocks GPTBot, has no schema, and has no return policy in HTML. None of that shows up as a content problem, it shows up as an eligibility problem.
What happens when the score reaches 5 out of 5?
The store enters the recommendation pool. That is a state change, not a percentage improvement. Below 5 out of 5, the store is outside the pool regardless of how good its content is. At 5 out of 5, ranking becomes possible for the first time.
How do I raise my Recommendation Eligibility Score?
Fix the specific gates that are failing. In the worked example, enabling GPTBot access, publishing a return policy, and adding product schema each close one gate and move the score from 2 out of 5 toward 5 out of 5.

How many gates are open right now?

Get your Recommendation Eligibility Score.

Get a free AI Commerce Score and see your gate-by-gate eligibility breakdown, not just an overall number.

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Related terms
AI Recommendation EligibilityThe gate this score measures AI Commerce ScoreOverall quality, once you are eligible AI Trust LayerThe verification gate, in full AI ReadabilityThe readability gate, in full Machine Trust SignalsWhat machine-verifiable trust looks like Recommendation ConfidenceRanking, once you are eligible