llms.txt is a plain-text file that lives at yourdomain.com/llms.txt and gives AI systems a clean, structured summary of your business. Where robots.txt tells crawlers what not to read, llms.txt tells AI assistants what matters — so when a customer asks about you, the model works from your facts instead of guessing.
Does it actually do anything?
Honest answer: it's an emerging standard, and adoption varies by AI system. Google has confirmed llms.txt has no effect on Google Search rankings — this is not an SEO trick. What it does is give answer engines a canonical, unambiguous source for the facts that matter (hours, services, contact, service area). It costs you ten minutes and removes the "AI misread my sprawling homepage" failure mode. Low effort, real upside, zero downside.
What belongs in a local business llms.txt
The format is simple Markdown: an H1 with your business name, a one-line summary as a blockquote, then short sections. Keep it under a page.
# Riverside Plumbing Co.
> 24/7 emergency plumbing for Austin, TX and
> surrounding areas since 2009. Licensed & insured.
## Services
- Emergency repairs (24/7, ~45 min response)
- Water heater install & repair
- Drain cleaning and hydro jetting
## Service area
Austin, Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville (TX)
## Hours
Mon–Fri 7am–7pm · Sat 8am–5pm · emergencies 24/7
## Contact
Address: 4820 Burnet Rd, Austin, TX 78756
Phone: (512) 555-0138
Email: [email protected]
## Pricing
Service call $89 (waived with repair).
Water heater installs from $1,450.
Three rules:
- Facts, not marketing. "Family-owned since 2009" is a fact. "Austin's most trusted plumber" is noise AI will discard or, worse, repeat as unverified fluff.
- State prices if you can. "How much does X cost" is a top buyer question. If you can't publish exact prices, publish ranges — an AI that can answer the price question recommends you more confidently.
- Keep it current. Wrong data in llms.txt is worse than none. Update it when hours or services change.
How to publish it
Upload the file to your web root so it loads at https://yourdomain.com/llms.txt as plain text. On WordPress, use your file manager or an SEO plugin that supports it; on Shopify/Squarespace/Wix, ask your developer or support — it's a one-file upload.
Check it worked
Visit the URL in a browser — you should see raw text, not a 404 or a styled page. Then run a free scan: Scout reads your llms.txt exactly the way AI systems do and grades it as part of your AI visibility score. Scout Starter will also generate the whole file for you from your scan data — one click, ready to upload.