How to Use Perplexity AI for Research (Better Than Google for Most Things)
Perplexity does what Google search does, but differently: instead of showing you a list of links, it reads those links and gives you an answer — with citations so you can verify everything.
For certain types of research — the kind where you're trying to understand something, not find a specific page — Perplexity is faster and more useful than Google.
Here's exactly how to use it.
What Perplexity Is
Perplexity is an AI-powered search engine. When you ask it a question, it:
- Searches the web in real time
- Reads the relevant pages
- Synthesises an answer from multiple sources
- Shows you which sources it used, with links
You get a researched answer, not a list of links to potentially read.
This is the fundamental difference. Google shows you where to find the answer. Perplexity gives you the answer.
Cost: Free at perplexity.ai. No account required to start.
Getting Started: Your First Search
Go to perplexity.ai. Type a question in plain language.
Example: "What are the current UK VAT rates and thresholds for 2026?"
Perplexity will:
- Return an answer in prose with specific numbers
- Show numbered citations inline in the text
- Display the source links in a panel on the right
- Offer follow-up questions at the bottom
Click any citation number to see which source it came from. Click the source link to read the full page if you want to verify.
This cited approach is what makes Perplexity useful for professional research. You're not just trusting an AI summary — you can trace every claim to its source.
8 Types of Research Perplexity Does Well
1. Understanding Industry Topics
Google approach: Search → open 4 tabs → read fragments → try to synthesise manually.
Perplexity approach: Ask the question → read the synthesised answer → click into 1-2 sources to verify key points.
Example: "What's happening with the UK bookkeeping market in 2026? What trends are affecting small accounting firms?"
2. Comparing Options
Example: "What are the differences between Stripe, PayPal, and GoCardless for UK small business payments? Which is best for recurring billing?"
Perplexity reads comparison articles, review sites, and documentation to give you a synthesised comparison — usually better than reading three separate pages yourself.
3. Regulatory and Legal Questions
Example: "When does a UK business need to register for VAT? What are the exceptions?"
For factual regulatory questions — not complex legal advice — Perplexity is excellent at synthesising accurate, cited answers from HMRC and government sources.
Important: For anything with legal or financial implications, verify with a professional. Use Perplexity to understand the landscape, not as definitive advice.
4. Researching Competitors or Businesses
Example: "What is [Company Name] known for? What do their customers say about them? What's their pricing model?"
Perplexity pulls from news articles, review sites, and company pages to give you a business overview.
5. Recent Events and News
Example: "What's happened in the AI tools space this month? Any major product launches?"
Perplexity searches current web content, so it's up to date in a way that ChatGPT (training cutoff) is not.
6. Technical Questions
Example: "How do I set up SPF and DKIM records for my domain on Cloudflare?"
Technical documentation questions get clear, step-by-step answers with sources from official docs.
7. Market Research
Example: "What are UK small business owners' biggest concerns in 2026? Any recent surveys?"
Perplexity finds recent studies and surveys and synthesises the key findings.
8. Learning a New Topic Quickly
Example: "Explain how Making Tax Digital works for sole traders, as if explaining to someone who's never done it before."
Good for getting up to speed on an unfamiliar topic before a client meeting.
The Follow-Up Conversation Feature
After Perplexity answers your question, you can ask follow-up questions in the same thread. It maintains context.
Example:
- "What are the differences between Zapier and Make.com?"
- "Which is better for a business processing fewer than 500 automations per month?"
- "What does Make's free tier actually include?"
Each follow-up refines the research rather than starting from scratch. This conversational approach is faster than multiple separate Google searches.
Where Google Still Wins
Perplexity is not better than Google for everything. Google still wins for:
Finding a specific website or page you know exists. "Google Analytics login" → you want the login page, not an explanation of what Google Analytics is.
Local business searches. "Coffee shop near Victoria station open Sunday 8am" — Google Maps integration, reviews, and real-time hours make this Google's territory.
Image searches. Perplexity shows images in some answers, but Google Images is the right tool for visual searches.
Shopping. Product comparison, price checking, retailer searches — Google Shopping is better here.
Brand new events in the last 24-48 hours. Perplexity's crawl is not always instant.
Advanced Feature: Spaces (Pro)
Perplexity Pro ($20/month) adds "Spaces" — personal research workspaces where you can upload documents and ask questions across your own files as well as the web.
For most small business research needs, the free tier is sufficient. The Pro tier becomes useful when you need to combine web research with your own document analysis.
The Quick Test
Go to perplexity.ai now. Ask a question you'd normally Google — something about your industry, a tool you're considering, or a topic you want to understand better.
Compare the experience to Google for the same query.
For most information-gathering research, you'll prefer the Perplexity answer. For finding specific pages or local results, you'll prefer Google.
Use both. Route the right queries to each.
Watch the Demo
I compared Perplexity vs Google on 5 real research tasks live on the Automate Lane YouTube channel: Automate Lane on YouTube
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