You'll Have the Answer in 30 Seconds
Right now, type this into your browser's address bar: yoursite.com/robots.txt
Does the file that opens mention GPTBot, ChatGPT-User, or
Google-Extended? If there's a Disallow: / next to them, congratulations —
your site is closed to AI.
I'm serious: Your site is live. It shows up on Google. But ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity? They can't even see your website. And you have no idea.
It's like keeping your store's door open but painting the windows black. People walk by but can't see inside.
Why Is This So Common?
The statistic is shocking: An estimated 70-90% of websites block AI crawlers. And most don't know it.
How does this happen?
- WordPress plugins: Security plugins block "unknown" bots by default. GPTBot counts as "unknown"
- Hosting companies: Some hosting providers block AI bots at the server level
- Old robots.txt: A
Disallow: /rule written years ago targeted Google bots. Now it blocks AI bots too - CDN settings: Cloudflare and similar CDNs sometimes block bot traffic automatically
This Isn't What You Should Be Blocking
Wait — some of you are thinking: "But AI is stealing my content. Isn't it logical to block it?"
This thinking is common but dangerous. Here's why:
Critical Reality
When you block AI bots, AI can't "steal" your site. But it also can't recommend you. Your competitor isn't blocking bots. AI reads their site, understands it, recommends it. And your customers go to your competitor.
In other words: blocking AI isn't protecting yourself — it's making yourself invisible.
How to Fix It: 4 Steps
Step 1: Check Your robots.txt
Go to yoursite.com/robots.txt. Check if there's a Disallow rule for these bots:
GPTBot— OpenAI / ChatGPTChatGPT-User— ChatGPT Browse modeGoogle-Extended— Google AI / GeminiPerplexityBot— PerplexityClaudeBot— Anthropic / Claude
Step 2: Allow AI Bots
Add this to your robots.txt:
User-agent: GPTBot → Allow: /
User-agent: Google-Extended → Allow: /
Repeat for each AI bot.
Step 3: Add llms.txt
robots.txt opens the door. llms.txt tells AI what to see.
This file gives AI a quick summary about your brand: who you are, what you do, which services you offer.
Full guide: What is llms.txt?
Step 4: Check Hosting and CDN Settings
If you use Cloudflare, Sucuri, or another security service, make sure AI bots are in the "allowed" list in your bot management panel.
Not Tomorrow. Today.
This test takes 30 seconds. Fixing it takes 10 minutes.
But every day you don't, AI can't see you. And if AI can't see you, an increasing number of your customers can't see you either.
Customers don't browse 10 Google results anymore. They ask AI and take the first recommendation. Is that recommendation you?
Is your site invisible to AI?
We'll check your robots.txt, llms.txt, and AI bot accessibility in 10 minutes.
Get a free AI visibility check