llms.txt
llms.txt is a proposed standard, first published by Jeremy Howard on September 3, 2024, for a Markdown file at /llms.txt that gives AI agents a short, curated guide to a site with links to LLM-friendly pages. It is used on demand by agents, mostly for documentation. It is not a ranking signal: Google says you don’t need “AI text files” to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode.
What does the llms.txt specification say?
Per the proposal (v2, August 10, 2026), the file is Markdown with sections in this order: an H1 with the site or project name (the only required section), a blockquote summary, optional detail paragraphs, and H2-delimited “file lists” of links, each formatted [name](url): notes. An “Optional” section holds links agents can skip.[1] The file can sit at the root or any subpath, and the spec suggests offering Markdown versions of pages at the same URL with .md appended.[1]
# Example Site
> One-sentence summary.
## Docs
- [Guide](https://example.com/guide.md): Short description
Does llms.txt help you appear in AI search?
There is no first-party evidence that it does for search. Google: “You don’t need to create new machine readable files, AI text files, or markup to appear in these features.”[2] The proposal itself says llms.txt is “used on demand, when an agent needs information,” and is expected to be useful mainly “for inference rather than training.”[1]
How is llms.txt different from robots.txt and sitemap.xml?
- robots.txt tells crawlers what access is acceptable; llms.txt does not grant or deny access.[1] Crawler control remains in robots.txt; see AI crawlers.
- sitemap.xml lists all indexable pages; llms.txt is a curated subset sized to fit in a model’s context and can link external resources.[1]
Who supports llms.txt?
The proposal reports that “thousands of sites” publish one, that documentation platforms generate it automatically, and that OpenAI, Anthropic and Google’s Gemini publish llms.txt files for their developer docs.[1] We have not found any AI search engine documenting that it uses llms.txt for ranking or citation.
Frequently asked questions
Should I add an llms.txt file?
It is cheap and harmless, and helpful if agents use your docs. Do not expect it to change rankings or AI Overview inclusion.
Does this wiki have one?
Yes, at /llms.txt.
Is llms.txt an official standard?
No. It is an open proposal maintained at llmstxt.org, not an IETF or W3C standard.
See also
References
Sources accessed October 14, 2026 unless another date is given. See all sources.
- “The /llms.txt file, v2”. Jeremy Howard, llmstxt.org. first published September 3, 2024; v2 August 10, 2026.
- “AI features and your website”. Google Search Central. accessed October 14, 2026.