What Is llms.txt? (and How to Write One)

llms.txt is a proposed standard: a plain-text file at the root of your site (yoursite.com/llms.txt) that points AI systems to your most important pages in a clean, easy-to-read format. Think of it as a curated map for language models, the way robots.txt is a map for crawlers.

Why it exists

Web pages are cluttered with navigation, ads and scripts that make it harder for a model to find the substance. llms.txt lets you hand the model a tidy list of your key URLs with short descriptions, so it does not have to guess what matters. It is an emerging convention, not yet a rule every engine obeys, but it is cheap to add and forward-looking.

What it looks like

The format is just Markdown. A minimal example:

• A top # Your Brand heading and a one-line summary of what you do.
• A section of key links, each as [Page title](https://…): short description.
• Optional sections for docs, product pages, and an “Optional” group for less critical links.

How to write one in a few minutes

1. List your 10 to 20 most important pages, product, pricing, best guides, docs.
2. Write a one-line description for each, plainly.
3. Save it as llms.txt and put it at your site root.
4. Keep it updated when you ship important pages.

Does it actually help?

It will not rescue thin content, and not every engine reads it yet. But it is low-effort, it makes your priorities explicit, and it fits the broader job of making your site easy for AI to understand and cite. Add it, then focus your energy on the content itself.