I knew how to add llms.tx file (but I just didn't bother). I believe it was a mistake. I Finally Set Up llms.txt Last Week. I seriously think you should learn how to add llms.txt file for WordPress (or any other site). This is how
Here's What Happened.
I'd read all the articles. I still didn't do it for months.
I want to be upfront about something before you read any further.
I knew about llms.txt for a while. I'd seen the discussion around Google's announcements, read the takes about AEO and GEO, nodded along to the argument that "AEO/GEO is still SEO" — and then did absolutely nothing about it.
Not because I thought it was wrong. I just kept filing it under "will get to this" and moving on to things that felt more urgent.
Last week, I finally got to it.
2 minutes later, it was live. I used Rankmath (see how to do it below, thanks to Luke Marthinusen )
The Numbers That Made Me Feel a Bit Stupid
Luke writes that his llms.txt file had been hit 190 times in 30 days.
The average page on their site? Three to four hits.
One plain text file he'd been putting off for months was pulling 50x more AI traffic than anything else they publish. The blog posts. The landing pages. The service pages I spent weeks getting right.
The AI walked straight past all of it and went directly to a simple text file.
I'm not going to pretend I saw that coming. But once I saw the data, everything clicked.
What I Should Have Done Sooner (And What You Can Do Today)
Here's the bit I kept reading about and not acting on — and the bit I want you to actually act on.
All the conversation around AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation) makes it sound complicated. Like there's some sophisticated strategy required before you can participate. The message that "AEO/GEO is still SEO" felt like it needed a big, considered response.
It doesn't. Or at least — it doesn't start that way.
It starts with a text file.
llms.txt is exactly what it sounds like: a plain text file sitting at the root of your domain. No design. No JavaScript. No clever formatting. Just a clear, honest description of who you are, what you do, and links to the pages that matter.
Think of it as a sitemap — except instead of being built for Google bots, it's built for AI systems. It's a direct note to the LLMs saying: "Here's what's worth your attention."
And they respond to it. Clearly and measurably.
Why AI Systems Actually Prefer llms.txt
This part helped it make sense to me.
According to Rankmath,
"A typical
llms.txtfile includes:Clean formatting that skips navigation clutter, sidebars, or ad"
A short intro or summary about your site
A curated list of URLs pointing to your best content, including help docs, product pages, blog posts, and other content that reflects your brand
Optional notes or context to help AI understand the value of those pages
Compute isn't free. Every page an AI crawls, every token it processes, every piece of content it has to parse and interpret — it costs something. These systems are ruthlessly efficient about where they spend those resources.
A beautifully designed landing page with hero images, animations, and a carefully agonised-over button colour? That's expensive to parse. A plain text file that says exactly what a business does and where to find the relevant content? That's efficient.
When an AI hits one file 190 times while averaging 3-4 hits on everything else, it isn't confused. It knows exactly what it's doing. It's found the most useful thing on the site and it keeps coming back.
That's the signal I missed for months while I was busy with things that felt more important.
How to Setup LLMS.txt File (Rankmath Method)
If you use Rankmath, the setup takes less than 2 minutes. All you have to do is to get to RankMath plugin dashboard, look for llms.txt, and toggle it on.
Learn how to use llms.txt in Rankmath
The Setup, Luke's Method (Genuinely 30 Minutes, I Timed It)
No developer. No platform. No cost.
- Create a plain text file called
llms.txt - Add your key pages — services, about, core content — with one line describing each
- Upload it to the root of your domain so it lives at
yourdomain.com/llms.txt - That's it
I spent more time second-guessing the wording than actually building the thing (for both of the methods on How to Add a LLMS.txt file.
Why I'm Sharing This
Honestly? Because I wasted months not doing something that took half an hour.
The conversation around AI search has felt big and abstract — Google announcements, industry frameworks, strategy decks. And I kept treating it like something that needed a big, considered response before I could act.
It doesn't. You can do the meaningful first step today, before lunch, for free.
If you've been reading the same articles I've been reading and also not doing anything about it yet — this is me saying: just make the file. The data on the other side is worth it.
Already have llms.txt set up? I'd genuinely love to know what your crawler data looks like.