What is llms.txt, and does my site need one?

Q: What is llms.txt, and does my site need one?

llms.txt is a plain Markdown file at the root of a website that tells AI systems what the site contains: a one-paragraph summary of the company followed by a short, annotated list of its most important pages. If you want AI assistants to describe your company accurately, you need one, because it is the only page on your site written for them.

What goes in it

A title, a short summary in a blockquote, and sections of links, each with a one-line description. That is all. It is not a sitemap, which lists every URL for a search crawler. It is an editor's selection: the pages that explain what you do, for whom, at what price and with what proof, in the order a reader should meet them.

What a good one looks like

It is short enough to read in a minute. Its links point to your own domain. The summary names the customer, not just the product. Every link has a description that says what the reader will learn there. And it is current, which in practice means it is generated from the site rather than written once and forgotten.

Common mistakes

Listing every page. Linking mostly to other sites. Writing the summary as a slogan. Forgetting the pages that carry the facts a buyer asks about, such as pricing, integrations and who the product is not for. And publishing it once, then redesigning the site without updating it.

How to get one

Generate a starter file from your domain, then edit the summary by hand, since that paragraph is what assistants quote. If you already have one, grade it: a grader checks structure, link health and coverage, and tells you which pages the file forgot.

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