Unblock AI Crawlers from Your Website
Your robots.txt is preventing AI systems from accessing your content. This simple fix can dramatically improve your AI visibility.
Symptoms
You might have this problem if you're experiencing:
No AI-referred traffic despite good traditional SEO
AI systems have no information about your brand
Server logs show no visits from GPTBot, ClaudeBot, etc.
AI gives very generic responses about your company
Common Causes
This problem is usually caused by:
Blanket 'Disallow: /' rules affecting AI bots
Specific blocks on AI user agents
Overly restrictive robots.txt inherited from templates
Security concerns leading to over-blocking
Unawareness that AI bots need explicit permission
How to Fix It
Follow these steps to resolve this issue:
Add explicit allow rules for GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot
Review and update robots.txt to allow AI crawlers
Remove overly broad disallow rules
Test robots.txt with Google's testing tool
Monitor server logs to confirm AI crawlers are accessing your site
Consider creating an llms.txt file for AI-specific guidance
Prevention Tips
Prevent this problem from happening again:
Audit robots.txt quarterly
Stay updated on new AI crawler user agents
Test AI crawler access after any robots.txt changes
Balance security needs with AI visibility goals
Helpful Resources
Other Common Problems
Not Appearing in ChatGPT Recommendations
Your competitors show up when users ask ChatGPT for recommendations, but your brand is nowhere to be found. Here's why and how to fix it.
AI Giving Outdated Information About Your Brand
AI assistants are telling users wrong or outdated information about your company, products, or services. Learn how to correct this.
Competitors Being Recommended Instead of You
When users ask AI for solutions in your category, competitors get mentioned while you're invisible. Here's how to change that.