# What is llms.txt and how do you create one?

> llms.txt explained: what it is, whether it helps AI search, and how to write one in 10 minutes. Includes a copy-paste template and a way to generate one automatically.

llms.txt is a plain markdown file at yoursite.com/llms.txt that gives AI tools a short, clean summary of your site and links to the pages that matter most. It isn't an official standard enforced by any search engine, and no AI company guarantees it changes your rankings. But it takes about 10 minutes to write and makes your site easier for AI tools to understand in one fetch.

By Nathan Johnson, founder of GotCited. Updated October 25, 2026.

## What llms.txt is (and what it isn't)

It's a proposal from 2024 (llmstxt.org) for a markdown file that sums up a site for language models. Think of it as a cover letter for your website.

- It is not robots.txt. It doesn't allow or block anything; crawler access still lives in robots.txt.
- It is not a sitemap. A sitemap lists every URL; llms.txt picks the few that explain you.
- It is not a ranking guarantee. Treat it as cheap insurance, not a growth hack.

## What goes in an llms.txt file

- An H1 with your site or product name.
- A blockquote with one or two sentences on what you sell and who it's for.
- A few H2 sections (key pages, docs, comparisons), each a list of links with a one-line description.

## Copy-paste template

```markdown
# YourBrand

> One-sentence description of what you sell and who it is for. Price if you publish one.

## Key pages
- [Pricing](https://yoursite.com/pricing): plans and what each includes
- [Product](https://yoursite.com/product): what it does and how it works
- [FAQ](https://yoursite.com/faq): common questions, answered plainly

## Comparisons
- [YourBrand vs Competitor](https://yoursite.com/vs/competitor): side-by-side, with prices
```

You can see a live one at [gotcited.app/llms.txt](https://gotcited.app/llms.txt).

## Step by step

1. **Write it.** Start from the template. Plain facts beat marketing copy: what it is, who it's for, what it costs.
2. **Upload it to the root.** It must load at https://yoursite.com/llms.txt, not in a subfolder.
3. **Check it serves as text.** Open it in a browser. It should show as plain text (text/plain or text/markdown), not a 404 page or HTML.
4. **Keep links current.** Every link should return 200. Update the file when you add a key page.

## llms.txt vs robots.txt vs sitemap.xml

| File | Job | Who reads it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| robots.txt | Allows or blocks crawlers (GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, Googlebot) | All well-behaved crawlers |
| sitemap.xml | Lists every URL you want indexed | Search engines |
| llms.txt | Summarises the site and links its key pages | AI tools that choose to fetch it |

## Common mistakes

- Marketing fluff instead of plain facts.
- Broken or redirected links.
- A perfect llms.txt while robots.txt blocks AI crawlers, which cancels it out.
- Dumping every URL in it. That's what the sitemap is for.

## Generate yours automatically

GotCited checks whether you have an llms.txt and whether your robots.txt lets GPTBot, ClaudeBot and PerplexityBot in. The full audit ($9/month) writes both for you from your real pages. [Run the free scan](https://gotcited.app/free-ai-visibility-checker) to see where you stand.

## FAQ

### What is llms.txt?

A plain markdown file at /llms.txt that gives AI tools a short summary of your site and links to your most important pages. It's a 2024 proposal (llmstxt.org), not an official search engine standard.

### Do I need an llms.txt file?

You don't strictly need one, and it isn't a guaranteed ranking factor. It's cheap to add and may help AI tools understand your site, so I'd add one.

### How do I create an llms.txt file?

Write an H1 with your name, a one-sentence blockquote summary, and H2 sections listing your key pages as markdown links with one-line descriptions. Upload it to your site root so it loads at /llms.txt as plain text.

### Is llms.txt the same as robots.txt?

No. robots.txt allows or blocks crawlers. llms.txt only describes your site. You need robots.txt to let AI crawlers in for llms.txt to matter.

## Keep reading

- [How to get recommended by ChatGPT and Perplexity](https://gotcited.app/guides/get-recommended-by-chatgpt-and-perplexity)
- [Free AI visibility checker](https://gotcited.app/free-ai-visibility-checker)

[Check your site free](https://gotcited.app/free-ai-visibility-checker)

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GotCited · https://gotcited.app · mail@gotcited.app · Built by Nathan Johnson (@nathanjhsn)