What is llms.txt?
llms.txt is a proposed plain-text file at the root of a website that summarises the site for large language models and points them to its most useful pages — a suggestion to AI systems, not an instruction, and as of 2026 not confirmed to be read by any major assistant.
Is llms.txt worth adding to my website?
Honest answer: it costs almost nothing and helps almost nothing measurable yet. No major assistant — OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Perplexity — has confirmed reading llms.txt, and our own study of real small-business sites found no visibility difference between sites with and without one. Add it if you have ten spare minutes; do not expect it to move a score.
What does move a score is the content the file would point to: pages that open with an answer, headings phrased as questions, structured data that says what you are, and crawlers that are actually allowed in. Those are what assistants read today.
Our full verdict on llms.txt · Generate an llms.txt in a minute
How is llms.txt different from robots.txt?
robots.txt is a standard every major crawler obeys; it says where bots may not go. llms.txt is a proposal from 2024 that says where models might like to look. One is enforced by the crawlers themselves, the other depends entirely on a reader choosing to honour it. Blocking a bot in robots.txt while inviting it in llms.txt achieves nothing.
What should an llms.txt contain if you add one?
A one-paragraph description of the business in plain words, then a short list of your most useful pages with one-line descriptions each — the About page, the pricing page, the FAQ, the two or three guides customers actually need. Keep it under a screen; it is a map, not a copy of the site.
Frequently asked questions
What does llms.txt mean?
llms.txt is a proposed plain-text file at the root of a website that summarises the site for large language models and points them to its most useful pages — a suggestion to AI systems, not an instruction, and as of 2026 not confirmed to be read by any major assistant.
Is llms.txt worth adding to my website?
It is harmless and cheap, but as of 2026 no major AI assistant confirms reading it and we measured no visibility difference for sites that have one. Spend the time on crawler access, answer-first content and structured data first.
Do ChatGPT, Claude or Google read llms.txt?
None of them has said so. Anthropic publishes its own documentation in the format, and some developer tools read it, but there is no evidence the consumer assistants consult it when answering a question about your business.
Can llms.txt replace robots.txt?
No. robots.txt is the enforced standard for what crawlers may fetch; llms.txt is a voluntary summary. They answer different questions and only one of them is obeyed.