Explainer
What is llms.txt?
llms.txt is a proposed Markdown file that gives AI tools a short summary of a website and links to its most useful pages. Jeremy Howard proposed it in September 2024. It is not a formal standard, and Google Search ignores it.
What goes in the file
The proposal at llmstxt.org places the file at a site's root or under a subpath, such as /docs/llms.txt. Only the first element below is required.
- An H1 heading with the name of the site or project.
- A blockquote with a short summary.
- Paragraphs or lists with more detail.
- H2 sections listing Markdown links, each with optional notes.
What it does not do
It does not control crawling or access. That remains the job of robots.txt and your server.
It does not help in Google Search. Google's documentation says Search ignores these files, and that adding one neither harms nor helps visibility or rankings. Other services may treat it differently, so check each one you care about.
See a live example
Pracandy publishes one at pracandy.com/llms.txt. It lists our products and key pages, and is a plain summary of what is already public.
Frequently asked questions
Is llms.txt a web standard?
No. The llmstxt.org site describes it as a proposal to standardise on the file, and its specification remains open to community input.
Does llms.txt improve Google rankings?
No. Google's documentation says Google Search ignores these files, and that adding one neither harms nor helps visibility or rankings.
Is llms.txt the same as robots.txt?
No. robots.txt tells crawlers which paths they may fetch. llms.txt summarises a site and points to useful pages, and it does not block anything.
Should I add an llms.txt file?
Add one if a service you care about reads it, or if a clean summary is useful to you. It is small to maintain, but do not expect it to bring search traffic.