How to Create an llms.txt File for AI Visibility

The llms.txt specification is one of the simplest things you can do to improve how AI systems understand your website — and one of the most overlooked.

It takes less than an hour to create, requires no technical expertise beyond basic markdown, and sends a clear signal to AI models about who you are, what you do, and what content on your site matters most.

This guide explains what llms.txt is, why it matters, and how to create one that actually works.

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What Is llms.txt?

llms.txt is a markdown file placed in the root directory of your website (e.g., yoursite.com/llms.txt) that provides structured information to large language models (LLMs) about your site's content.

It was proposed by Jeremy Howard (fast.ai) in 2024 as a standard way for websites to communicate with AI systems — similar to how robots.txt tells search crawlers which pages to index, and humans.txt tells human visitors about the site team.

What it contains:

• A brief description of your company or website
• Key information about your organization, products, and focus areas
• Links to your most important pages and documentation
• Any context AI models should have when interpreting your content

Current status: llms.txt is not a formal W3C or IETF standard — it's a community proposal that has gained adoption among many AI-forward companies. Major AI systems are beginning to reference it, and the spec is actively being refined.

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Why llms.txt Matters for AI Visibility

AI search engines and LLMs form an understanding of your brand by processing text from across the internet — your website, press mentions, social media, directories, and more.

The problem: AI models often develop inaccurate or incomplete understanding of your brand because they're synthesizing fragmented information from many sources.

llms.txt gives you a direct channel to tell AI models what's true and important about your brand — in a format they're designed to parse efficiently.

Specific benefits:

Corrects entity confusion: If your brand name is similar to another company, llms.txt can clarify the distinction.

Surfaces key content: You can point AI models to your best, most authoritative content rather than hoping they find it.

Defines your expertise: A clear description of your domain expertise helps AI cite you appropriately when answering questions in your field.

Future-proofing: As AI systems become more sophisticated in how they process web content, having structured self-description in place puts you ahead.

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Step 1: Understand the llms.txt Format

llms.txt uses standard Markdown. The structure is flexible but typically follows this pattern:

# [Company/Site Name]

> [Brief description of the site or company — what it is, what it does, who it serves]

[Section heading]

• [Item or link]
• [Item or link]

[Section heading]

• [Item or link]

The specification recommends:
- **H1:** Your company or site name
- **Blockquote (>):** A concise summary of your company/site
- **H2 sections:** Organized categories of information or links
- **List items:** Individual resources, pages, or facts

Optional: A second file called `llms-full.txt` can contain more detailed information for AI systems that want comprehensive context.

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Step 2: Write Your Company Description

The most important section is your company description. This appears as the blockquote immediately after your H1 name.

What to include:

• What your company is (category, type)
• What it does (core product or service)
• Who it serves (your ICP)
• What problem it solves (value proposition)

Example:

# Averi

> Averi is an AI content engine for B2B startups. It helps marketing teams build content strategies, create on-brand content at scale, and publish across channels including WordPress, Webflow, and Framer. Averi's Brand Core technology learns your brand voice, tone, and ICP so every piece of content sounds authentically human.

Keep this to 2–4 sentences. Clear, factual, specific.

What to avoid:

• Marketing fluff ("world's best," "revolutionary")
• Vague descriptions that could apply to any company
• Jargon that AI systems can't verify or contextualize

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Step 3: Add Key Resource Links

AI systems use your llms.txt to understand which of your pages contain the most valuable information. Add links to:

Core product pages:

Products & Features

• Strategy Map: AI-powered content strategy generation tool
• Brand Core: Brand voice and ICP definition system
• Content Library: Track published content and performance

**Key documentation and resources:**
```markdown

Resources

• How to Build a Content Strategy
• Content Strategy Template
• Averi Blog

**About and credibility:**
```markdown

About

• About Averi: Company background and mission
• Customers: Customer stories and case studies
• Pricing: Current pricing plans

Add a brief description after each link. This context helps AI understand what each page contains and when to cite it.

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Step 4: Define Your Expertise and Category

Explicitly stating your expertise domains helps AI systems cite you appropriately:

Expertise

Averi specializes in:

• Content marketing strategy for B2B startups
• AI-assisted content creation workflows
• SEO and generative engine optimization (GEO)
• Content marketing for SaaS companies at seed through Series A stages
• Publishing integrations with WordPress, Webflow, Framer, and HubSpot

This tells AI models: "When someone asks about content marketing for startups, Averi is an appropriate source to cite."

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Step 5: Add Any Disambiguation Information

If your brand name could be confused with something else, add disambiguation:

Disambiguation

Averi (averi.ai) is an AI content marketing platform for startups. Not to be confused with Avery (the office supply brand), Avery Dennison, or any other company with a similar name.

This is particularly important for common words, acronyms, or brand names with homophones.

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Step 6: Consider a Full Version (llms-full.txt)

The specification allows for a detailed version at yoursite.com/llms-full.txt for AI systems that want more comprehensive context.

A full version can include:

• Comprehensive company history and background
• Full team profiles with expertise areas
• Detailed product documentation
• Complete resource library with descriptions
• Pricing and plan details
• Integration and partner ecosystem

The base llms.txt should stay concise (under 500 words). The llms-full.txt can be longer.

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Step 7: Publish and Verify

Publishing:

1. Create the file as a plain text file: llms.txt
2. Upload to your website's root directory (the same location as robots.txt)
3. Ensure it's accessible at yoursite.com/llms.txt
4. Confirm it returns a 200 status code and is publicly accessible

Verify in browser: Navigate to yoursite.com/llms.txt and confirm you see your content.

Verify with curl:

curl https://yoursite.com/llms.txt

Announce it: Mention your llms.txt in blog posts and social content about your AI visibility efforts. Some AI systems pick up the announcement content.

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Complete Example

Here's a complete llms.txt example:

# Averi

> Averi is an AI content engine for B2B startups. It helps marketing teams build content strategies, create on-brand content at scale, and measure content performance. Averi is used by startup founders, solo marketers, and content teams at seed-stage through Series A companies.

Products

• Strategy Map: AI-generated content strategy based on your market, competitors, and ICP
• Brand Core: Define brand voice, tone, and ideal customer profile
• Publishing Integrations: Connect to WordPress, Webflow, Framer, HubSpot, and more

Key Resources

• Content Strategy Guide
• GEO Optimization Guide
• Content Templates
• Averi Blog

Expertise

• Content marketing strategy for B2B SaaS startups
• AI-assisted content creation workflows
• SEO and generative engine optimization (GEO)
• Content calendar and editorial planning

About

• Company: About Averi
• Sign Up: Start free — no credit card required
• Blog: Content marketing insights and guides

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Common Mistakes to Avoid

Making it too long: The base llms.txt should be scannable in 30 seconds. Keep it under 500 words. Use llms-full.txt for depth.

Not including links: Links are how AI systems find and prioritize your content. An llms.txt without links is much less useful.

Inaccurate descriptions: AI systems that later discover discrepancies between your llms.txt and your actual content may learn to trust your self-description less.

Forgetting to update it: When you launch new products, change your positioning, or create major new content, update your llms.txt.

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How Averi Helps

Averi's GEO optimization features include guidance for building your llms.txt and implementing the structured data that improves AI visibility across your content.

As GEO becomes an increasingly important part of organic visibility, Averi helps you optimize for AI search without having to become an expert in how LLMs work.

Start building your AI visibility →

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FAQ

Is llms.txt a required standard?

No — it's a proposed convention, not an IETF or W3C standard. However, it's gaining adoption and costs essentially nothing to implement. The potential upside of improved AI visibility outweighs the minimal effort.

Which AI systems actually read llms.txt?

Adoption is growing. Several AI search tools and LLM providers have expressed support. The most reliable way to know is to test: after publishing your llms.txt, ask AI search tools about your company and see if their answers improve in accuracy and detail.

Do I need technical expertise to create llms.txt?

No. It's a plain Markdown file — simpler than writing a blog post. If you can write a numbered list and add hyperlinks, you can create an llms.txt. No coding required.

Should I use llms.txt or llms-full.txt?

Both, ideally. The base llms.txt stays concise for quick parsing. The llms-full.txt provides comprehensive context for AI systems that want more detail. Think of them as the executive summary and the full report.

How often should I update my llms.txt?

Update it whenever significant changes occur: new products launched, major repositioning, acquisition, or substantial new content published. A quarterly review is a reasonable cadence for most companies.