llms.txt explained

llms.txt is a proposed plain-text file at the root of your site that summarises what the site is and lists its most useful pages for language models. It is a convention that some tools read, not a standard every engine follows.

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Synopsis

Where: https://your-domain/llms.txt
Format: Markdown: a title, a one-line summary and lists of links with short notes.
Purpose: Give a language model a clean map of your site without crawling every page.
Companion: llms-full.txt holds the full text of your key pages in one file.
Status: A proposal published at llmstxt.org. Support varies by tool.

Does llms.txt matter?

It is cheap to add and can help tools that read it, but no engine has to use it, so do not expect it to change your visibility by itself. Treat it as one small signal next to crawlable pages and good markup.

Worth doing if

You have documentation or many pages worth pointing to
You want an AI tool to find your best pages first
You can keep the file up to date

Not a fix for

Pages that crawlers cannot fetch
Missing or wrong structured data
Content that does not answer the question

How do you write an llms.txt?

Start with the name of the site, add a one-line summary as a quote, then group your best pages under headings, each with a link and a short note.

# Example Company

> Example Company makes invoicing software for small businesses in the EU.

## Products
- [Invoicing](https://example.com/invoicing): create, send and track invoices
- [Pricing](https://example.com/pricing): plans and prices in euros

## Help
- [FAQ](https://example.com/faq): answers to common questions
- [Contact](https://example.com/contact): how to reach support

Keep the notes factual and short. List the pages you would send a new visitor to first.

How do you check it?

Open the file in a browser at the root of your domain. It should load as plain text with a 200 status. A Benchmarq scan checks for llms.txt and llms-full.txt as site-wide settings.

Questions.

Straight answers about llms.txt.

Is llms.txt the same as robots.txt?

No. robots.txt tells crawlers what they may fetch. llms.txt describes your site and points to your best pages. AI crawler access.

What is llms-full.txt?

A companion file with the full text of your key pages in one place, so a model can read them without crawling each page.

Does Benchmarq have an llms.txt?

Yes. Benchmarq publishes llms.txt and llms-full.txt at benchmarq.io.

Check your site-wide files

Run a scan to see whether your llms files, robots rules and sitemap are in place.