Guide · 5 minute read

llms.txt: the file AI reads first

A short Markdown file at the root of your domain that tells language models who you are and which pages matter most. Here is the format and a complete example.

What llms.txt is

Web pages are full of navigation, scripts and layout that language models have to wade through. An llms.txt file skips all of that. It is an open proposal for a plain Markdown file, served at /llms.txt, that gives AI tools a clean summary of your site and a curated list of links.

It is not an official standard and not every AI provider reads it yet. It takes ten minutes to make, costs nothing to host and removes guesswork for any tool that does read it, which is why we treat it as part of the baseline.

The format

  • One H1 with your business or site name. This is the only required line.
  • A blockquote summary (a line starting with >) that says what you do, where and for whom.
  • Optional details as plain paragraphs or bullet points: hours, service area, key facts.
  • H2 sections with Markdown link lists: - [Title](https://full-url): short note.
  • An "Optional" section for links an AI can skip when it has limited room.

A complete example

# Valley Flow Plumbing

> Licensed plumbing company in Covina, California, offering same-day repairs,
> water heater installation and drain cleaning across the San Gabriel Valley.

- Open 7 days, 7 am to 7 pm. Emergency line 24/7: (626) 555-0142
- Upfront pricing. Diagnosis from $89, credited to the repair.
- License CA #1000000. Family owned since 2009.

## Services
- [Water heater repair and replacement](https://valleyflow.com/water-heaters): tank and tankless
- [Drain cleaning](https://valleyflow.com/drains): hydro jetting and camera inspection
- [Emergency plumbing](https://valleyflow.com/emergency): 24/7 response times by city

## Company
- [Service area](https://valleyflow.com/areas): Covina, West Covina, Glendora, Azusa
- [Reviews](https://valleyflow.com/reviews)
- [Book online](https://valleyflow.com/book)

## Optional
- [Blog](https://valleyflow.com/blog)

Common mistakes

  • Relative links. Use full URLs starting with https so links work outside your site.
  • Marketing fluff. "We are passionate about excellence" tells a model nothing. Facts do.
  • Serving HTML. Some platforms return your homepage for unknown paths. Open /llms.txt in a browser and confirm you see plain text.
  • Blocking it. If robots.txt blocks AI crawlers, they will not read llms.txt either.
  • Never updating it. Prices, hours and services change. Review it when your site does.

How to publish it

Upload the file to your site's root folder so it loads at https://yourdomain.com/llms.txt. On WordPress, use a file manager or an SEO plugin that supports it. On Wix, Squarespace and similar builders, check for a custom file or redirect feature, or ask us. Then run the scanner to confirm it is detected.

Build yours in a few minutes, with validation.

Open the llms.txt Generator