What is llms.txt?
llms.txt is a Markdown file at the root of a website (/llms.txt) that gives AI models a short summary of the site and links to its most important pages. Jeremy Howard proposed it in September 2024, and it is a proposal, not an official standard: Google says its Search doesn't use it, and an SE Ranking study of about 300,000 domains found no link between having one and being cited by AI. What actually affects AI citations: the full guide to generative engine optimization.
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What goes in an llms.txt file?
According to the original proposal on llmstxt.org, it is a plain Markdown text file, in a fixed order:
- An H1 heading with the name of the site or project. This is the only required part
- A blockquote with a short summary: what it is and who it is for
- Paragraphs with more detail, if needed
- H2 headings, each followed by a list of links, each link with a name and a short note
- An "Optional" section for secondary links a model can skip when it is short on space
The file usually sits at the root of the site, but the proposal also allows it in a subfolder, where it covers the pages beneath it.
Does Google use llms.txt?
No. In its guide to optimizing for generative AI features in Search, Google says its Search doesn't use llms.txt or similar files and ignores them. According to Google, you don't need one to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and it won't help or hurt your visibility in Search. It adds that such files may still matter to other services.
Does llms.txt help you get cited by AI?
Based on the data available today, not in a way anyone can measure. SE Ranking looked at about 300,000 domains and found that only 10.13% had an llms.txt file. It found no relationship between having one and how often a domain is cited in model answers, and in its statistical model, removing the file as a factor actually improved accuracy.
That is a correlation study, not proof that the file never matters. But what AI engines actually cite are pages they find through search: clear content with a direct answer and sources. I wrote about that in the guide: how to get ChatGPT to cite you.
llms.txt vs robots.txt vs sitemap.xml
| File | What it does | Who uses it |
|---|---|---|
| robots.txt | Tells crawlers which parts of the site they may access | Search engines and AI crawlers; a long-established standard |
| sitemap.xml | Lists every URL on the site, with an update date | Search engines |
| llms.txt | A curated summary of the site and its key pages, in plain language | AI models and tools that choose to read it; a proposal, not a standard |
llms.txt doesn't replace the other two. If robots.txt blocks an AI crawler, an llms.txt file won't let it in.
Does velut.ai have an llms.txt?
Yes, at velut.ai/llms.txt. The site's code generates it: a summary of Velut, the services, the guides, and every term in this glossary with its definition, in English with a link to the Hebrew version. When a page is added, it goes into the file with no manual work.
We don't count on it. It costs nothing because it is generated, but the results we got in AI engines came from the content itself. What we did and what worked: our SEO and GEO case study.
Should you create an llms.txt file?
If you can generate it automatically, there is no reason not to. If it takes ongoing manual work, other things come first: make sure robots.txt doesn't block AI crawlers, and write pages that answer the questions your customers ask.
Frequently asked questions
Is llms.txt an official standard?
No. It is a proposal Jeremy Howard published on llmstxt.org in September 2024. No standards body has adopted it, and each AI service decides for itself whether to read the file.
Does Google support llms.txt?
Not in Search. Google says its Search doesn't use such files and ignores them, and that they won't help or hurt your visibility.
Where do you put an llms.txt file?
At the root of the site, at /llms.txt. The proposal also allows one in a subfolder, where it describes the pages beneath it.
Can llms.txt hurt SEO?
According to Google, no. It doesn't affect visibility in its Search, for better or worse.
Do you need llms.txt for GEO?
No. A study of about 300,000 domains found no link between the file and AI citations. Clear, well-sourced content and a site crawlers can read matter far more.