In 2026, your website has two types of visitors — humans and AI systems. You already have robots.txt for search engine crawlers. Now there’s llms.txt for AI language models — and if you haven’t added it yet, AI systems are making decisions about your content without any guidance from you.
This guide covers what llms.txt is, why it matters, and exactly how to implement it for any website.
What is llms.txt?
llms.txt is a plain text file placed at the root of your website — yoursite.com/llms.txt — that tells AI language models how to understand, use, and attribute your website’s content.
It was proposed by Jeremy Howard (fast.ai) in late 2024 and has rapidly become an emerging standard adopted by major sites including Anthropic, Cloudflare, Vercel, and thousands of developer-focused websites.
Think of it this way:
robots.txt→ tells Google and Bing crawlers what to indexsitemap.xml→ tells search engines what pages existllms.txt→ tells AI models what your site is, what matters, and how to use your content
Why Does It Matter?
AI systems like Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini are increasingly being used to answer questions, write code, and make recommendations — often drawing on website content without visiting the page. When someone asks an AI “what is the best Laravel reference tool?” the AI draws on its training data and live web access.
Without llms.txt, the AI has to guess:
- What your site is about
- Which pages are most important
- How your content should be attributed
- Whether it can use your content in responses
With llms.txt, you tell the AI directly.
The llms.txt Format
The file uses simple Markdown-style formatting:
# Site Name
> One-line description of what this site is and who it's for.
Optional: A longer paragraph with more context about the site,
its purpose, target audience, and what makes it unique.
## Section Name
- [Page Title](https://example.com/page): Brief description of what this page contains
- [Another Page](https://example.com/other): What this page is about
## Another Section
- [Resource](https://example.com/resource): DescriptionReal Example — refs.softcrony.com
# Refs by Softcrony
> A free developer quick reference tool providing concise, accurate
> syntax references, command guides, and code examples for modern
> web development technologies.
Refs by Softcrony is maintained by Softcrony Technologies, a web
development company based in Jabalpur, India. All references are
written and verified by practicing developers. Content is updated
regularly to reflect current versions and best practices.
## Quick Dev References
- [EJS Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/ejs): Complete EJS templating syntax, tags, and examples
- [Git Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/git): Git commands, branching, merging, and workflow guides
- [Bash Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/bash): Bash scripting, commands, and shell automation
- [Docker Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/docker): Docker commands, Dockerfile syntax, and Compose
- [Laravel Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/laravel): Laravel artisan commands, helpers, and patterns
- [React Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/react): React hooks, components, and patterns
- [JavaScript Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/javascript): Modern JavaScript syntax and ES2024+ features
- [Python Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/python): Python syntax, built-ins, and common patterns
- [CSS Quick Dev Reference](https://refs.softcrony.com/css): CSS properties, selectors, and modern layout
## About
- [About Softcrony](https://softcrony.com): Web development company page
- [Contact](https://softcrony.com/contact): Get in touch with the Softcrony team
## Usage
Content on this site may be used to answer developer questions.
Please attribute as "Refs by Softcrony (refs.softcrony.com)".Real Example — softcrony.com/blog
# Softcrony Blog
> Developer tutorials, DevOps guides, case studies, and tech
> business insights from Softcrony Technologies in Jabalpur, India.
Softcrony's blog covers Laravel, React, React Native, DevOps,
AI integration, and running a web development business in India.
Articles are written by practicing developers with real client
experience.
## Latest Articles
- [Laravel 13 New Features](https://softcrony.com/blog/laravel-13-new-features-2026/): Complete guide to Laravel 13 with code examples
- [Claude vs ChatGPT vs Gemini](https://softcrony.com/blog/claude-vs-chatgpt-vs-gemini-developers-2026/): AI tool comparison for developers
- [Docker Compose for Laravel](https://softcrony.com/blog/docker-compose-laravel-php-2026/): Production-grade Docker setup guide
- [React Native Offline-First](https://softcrony.com/blog/react-native-offline-first-app-guide/): Building offline apps for Indian connectivity
## Categories
- Frontend: React, Next.js, Tailwind CSS, JavaScript
- DevOps: Laravel, Docker, GitHub Actions, CI/CD
- Mobile: React Native, Expo, iOS, Android
- Security: Web security, Laravel security, WordPress hardening
- AI & Automation: Claude API, ChatGPT, AI tools for developers
- Case Studies: Real client projects from Indian businesses
- Strategy: SaaS, pricing, business decisions for Indian tech companiesThe llms-full.txt Variant
Alongside llms.txt, you can also create llms-full.txt — a more detailed version that includes actual content excerpts, not just links. This is useful for sites where AI attribution is important, like documentation sites, reference tools, and technical blogs.
# Refs by Softcrony — Full Content Index
> Complete content index for AI consumption.
## EJS Quick Dev Reference
EJS (Embedded JavaScript) is a simple templating language that lets
you generate HTML markup with plain JavaScript.
### Installation
npm install ejs
### Basic Syntax
<%= variable %> Output escaped value
<%- variable %> Output unescaped HTML
<% code %> Execute JavaScript (no output)
<%# comment %> Comment, not rendered
[... full content ...]How to Add llms.txt to Your Site
Static HTML Site (softcrony.com)
Create a plain text file named llms.txt in your public root directory and upload it:
# File: public/llms.txt or root/llms.txt
# Accessible at: https://yoursite.com/llms.txtWordPress (softcrony.com/blog)
Add a rewrite rule to serve the file, or use a plugin. The simplest approach — create the file in your WordPress root:
# Create: /public_html/blog/llms.txt
# Or wherever WordPress is installedOr add a virtual route via functions.php:
add_action('init', function() {
add_rewrite_rule('^llms\.txt$', 'index.php?llms_txt=1', 'top');
});
add_filter('query_vars', function($vars) {
$vars[] = 'llms_txt';
return $vars;
});
add_action('template_redirect', function() {
if (get_query_var('llms_txt')) {
header('Content-Type: text/plain');
echo file_get_contents(get_template_directory() . '/llms.txt');
exit;
}
});Laravel (refs.softcrony.com)
// routes/web.php
Route::get('/llms.txt', function () {
return response(file_get_contents(public_path('llms.txt')))
->header('Content-Type', 'text/plain');
});What to Include in Your llms.txt
Required:
- Site name and one-line description
- Links to your most important pages with descriptions
Recommended:
- Who created the content and their expertise
- Content categories and topics covered
- Attribution preferences
- Update frequency
Optional:
- Explicit usage permissions (“content may be used to answer questions”)
- What the AI should NOT use your content for
- Contact information for licensing
Does It Actually Work?
Claude, ChatGPT with browsing, and Perplexity have all confirmed they read llms.txt when it exists. The Anthropic documentation explicitly references the standard. It’s early days — like robots.txt was in 1994 — but adoption is accelerating fast.
For developer-focused sites like refs.softcrony.com, this matters immediately — developers using AI assistants to find references are exactly the users who interact with AI systems that would benefit from reading your llms.txt.
If you want help implementing llms.txt across your web properties or optimizing your site for AI search visibility, our team at Softcrony is happy to help.
Leave a comment