What is llms.txt and how to write one (with a template)
llms.txt is a plain-text file that tells AI engines who you are and what you offer. What it contains, where it goes, what it does not fix, plus a template.
llms.txt is a simple text file at yourdomain.com/llms.txt that tells language models — ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity — in one place who you are, what you offer and which pages to read. Think of it as a business card written for machines: no layout, no menus, only facts and links.
The standard was proposed in September 2024 by Jeremy Howard of Answer.AI and is documented at llmstxt.org. Technology companies adopted it first for their documentation — Anthropic and Perplexity among them — and it increasingly makes sense for any business that wants AI tools to describe it correctly.
What llms.txt solves, and what it does not
This deserves honesty, because a fair amount of fog is sold around llms.txt:
| True? | |
|---|---|
| AI tools and agents can read it | Yes — the file is built for exactly that, and some crawlers do read it. |
| Google uses it for search | No. Google has confirmed it does not use it for search or AI Overviews, at least for now. |
| It replaces a well-built website | No. If a page is unreadable to crawlers, llms.txt does not fix that. |
| It guarantees a mention in ChatGPT | No. Nothing and nobody guarantees that. |
llms.txt is therefore one signal, not a shortcut. Its real value: a model that reads the file gets your facts in a form it is hard to misunderstand — names, prices, service area, contact. Without it the model assembles your business from fragments, and that is where invented prices and wrong services come from.
One unique data point: of twelve Slovenian agencies that sell generative engine optimization, only six publish an llms.txt on their own domain (checked 6 September 2026). The file is a quick test of whether a provider does for itself what it sells to you.
What the file looks like
The format is standardised and deliberately modest: a title (#), a short description in a blockquote (>), sections (##) and bullet points with links. Here is a complete template for a fictional plumbing business — swap in your facts and you have a usable starting point:
# Novak Plumbing Services
> Novak Plumbing Services, Janez Novak s.p., installs plumbing and
> handles emergency repairs in Ljubljana and within 30 km.
> Contact: info@novak-plumbing.si · +386 40 000 000.
## Services
- [Emergency repairs](https://novak-plumbing.si/emergency-repairs):
2-hour response inside Ljubljana, 24/7. Call-out from 80 €.
- [Plumbing installation](https://novak-plumbing.si/installation):
New builds and bathroom renovations. Quote within 3 working days.
## Key facts (for AI citation)
- Operating since 2012, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
- Emergency repairs: 2-hour response, every day of the week.
- Prices are final; a quote is prepared within 3 working days.
## About
- Legal entity: Vodovodne storitve, Janez Novak s.p.
- Service area: Ljubljana and surroundings (30 km)
- [Contact and references](https://novak-plumbing.si/about)
Three things the template does not show:
- Short sentences, one fact per bullet. Models lift individual bullets; cram five facts into one and the prices and caveats are exactly what gets lost in the summary.
- The "Key facts" section matters most. These are the sentences you want to see quoted — write them so they stand on their own.
- Every claim must be verifiable on the linked page. A file that promises more than the site says signals inconsistency to the model.
Where to put it
The file must be reachable at the root of the domain, yourdomain.com/llms.txt, served as plain text (text/plain, UTF-8).
- WordPress: upload it via FTP to the root folder or use a static-file plugin. Some SEO plugins have generated one automatically since 2025 — check what they wrote before you publish it.
- Custom or static site: add it to the public files, exactly like robots.txt.
To confirm it is published correctly, open the address in a browser: you should see bare text, not a styled page and not a file download.
Common mistakes
- Mile-long sentences. A bullet with five sub-clauses is a puzzle for a model. The most important line of the file is usually the one people write as a single 100-word monster.
- No facts section. A bare list of links gives the model nothing to cite.
- Stale prices. The file has to be updated together with the price list — an old price in llms.txt is where invented quotes come from.
- robots.txt blocks AI crawlers at the same time. Publishing llms.txt while blocking GPTBot with the other hand is a contradiction we see surprisingly often.
- The file exists but the site is unreadable to crawlers. llms.txt complements server-rendered content; it does not replace it — more in How to get cited by ChatGPT.
See a working example
The easiest way to learn is from a real one: ours is at flisko.si/llms.txt — with sections for services, key facts and even a note on product naming, which is what confuses models most often. Whether your domain already has an llms.txt, and how the other signals look, the free AI visibility checker shows in half a minute. If you do not have the file yet, we write one for your business as part of the AI search setup — not from a template.
Related reading:
- How to get cited by ChatGPT — all five steps, of which llms.txt is one.
- GEO vs SEO: what your business actually needs — where llms.txt sits in the whole picture.
Frequently asked questions
What is llms.txt?
llms.txt is a plain-text Markdown file at the root of a domain (yourdomain.com/llms.txt) that tells language models who the business is, what it offers and which pages to read. It was proposed by Jeremy Howard of Answer.AI in September 2024 and is documented at llmstxt.org. Think of it as a business card written for machines: no layout, no menus, only facts and links.
Does Google use llms.txt for search?
No. Google has confirmed it does not use llms.txt for search or AI Overviews. AI crawlers and agents from OpenAI, Anthropic and Perplexity can read it, which is where its value lies: the model gets your names, prices and service area in a form it cannot easily misread.
Do I need an llms.txt generator?
Not for a business site. A useful llms.txt is ten to forty lines that a person writes once: title, one-paragraph description, a services section with links, and a key-facts section of short verifiable sentences. Generators bundled with SEO plugins tend to dump every URL on the site, which gives a model nothing to quote.
Where do I put llms.txt and how do I check it works?
At the root of the domain, served as plain text (text/plain, UTF-8): yourdomain.com/llms.txt. On WordPress, upload it to the root folder via FTP or a static-file plugin; on a custom or static site, add it next to robots.txt. Open the address in a browser — you should see bare text, not a styled page and not a download.