Everyone's generating llms.txt. Which tool actually works?
Everyone's generating llms.txt. Which tool actually works?
Here's what I found after benchmarking 14 AI visibility tools.
The llms.txt rush is real.
Every tool under the sun is now offering to "generate your llms.txt file." Some are free. Some charge. Some are plugins. Some are standalone. And everyone's claiming to be the best.
I got curious. So I tested 14 of them. Not just the ones with slick websites — the actual tools solopreneurs can use. I scored them on what matters: generation quality, validation, AI readability scoring, re-testing, JavaScript rendering, and whether they actually help you improve.
Here's what I found.
The tl;dr: Most tools do one thing and do it badly. A few do two things. Almost none do the full loop.
The Full-Loop Problem
Here's what I mean by "full loop":
- Diagnose — Can the tool tell you what's wrong?
- Optimize — Can it fix it?
- Test — Can you verify the fix worked?
- Repeat — Can you track progress over time?
Most tools on the market? They do #1. Maybe #2. Almost none do #3 and #4.
That matters because here's the thing: generating an llms.txt file is the easy part. Making it actually useful — making AI actually read and cite your content — that's the hard part. And you can't do the hard part if your tool quits after step 2.
We built LLMtxt Mastery to do all 4. I needed a tool that would actually move the needle, not just generate a file and call it done.
The Benchmark Results
I scored 14 tools across 10 factors. Here's the leaderboard:
| Tool | Score (out of 30) | Has Full Loop? |
|---|---|---|
| LLMtxt Mastery | 18 | ✅ Yes |
| LLMrefs | 15 | Partial |
| Otterly AI | 14 | Partial |
| Peec AI | 12 | Partial |
| Cairrot | 11 | Partial |
| AIOSEO | 4 | No |
A few things jumped out:
We're #1 on value. At $4.95/month, we scored 3.8x higher on value (features ÷ price) than the next closest paid tool. The enterprise players? They're charging $29-$489/month for less functionality.
We're the only full-loop tool. Every other option needs you to use multiple tools, switch between dashboards, or manually track your own progress. We built the loop because that's what actually works.
But we have a gap. AI Citation Tracking — being able to see when and where AI cites you — is something customers consistently ask for. We're at 0 on that. Competitors are at 2-3. That's the next thing I'm building.
What actually matters
If you're evaluating these tools, here's what I'd pay attention to:
JavaScript rendering is non-negotiable. If your tool can't render JavaScript (most can't), it sees a different version of your site than AI does. We use Playwright. That's why we catch things others miss.
Your llms.txt is only as good as your site. Here's an analogy: having a bad llms.txt is like planning a party but forgetting to tell anyone where and when. The file tells AI what you have. But if your site isn't set up for AI search — poor content architecture, no semantic structure, thin pages — no file in the world will help. You need both: a site worth citing AND a file that points to it.
Free generators are lead magnets, not tools. Most free llms.txt generators aren't built to work. They're vibe-coded to get your email address and upsell you. They don't render JavaScript, so they miss half your content. They generate bloated files that hurt more than help. Some produce files that actually break AI parsing. The "free" part is the hook. You're the bait.
Readability scoring needs to be specific. Generic "AI friendly" scores are useless. We scan 27 specific factors. The more specific the scoring, the more actionable the advice.
The re-test is where most tools fail. You make changes. How do you know they worked? If your tool can't re-scan and show you the delta, you're flying blind.
Where we fit
Two products, two audiences:
AImpactScanner is the full loop. It diagnoses what's holding your site back, optimizes your AI visibility, and tests whether changes worked. It includes llms.txt generation, but that's unlocked at the Growth tier (currently ~$12.46/mo, prices going up soon). For solopreneurs who want the complete picture and the complete solution — one tool, done right.
LLMtxt Mastery is the leaner option. It just generates your llms.txt file. No diagnostics, no scoring, no re-testing. For people who know exactly what they need and just want the file. At $4.95/mo, it's the entry point.
I'm not going to sit here and tell you we beat everyone on everything. We don't. LLMrefs has more platform integrations. Otterly covers more LLMs. Peec has enterprise features we don't.
But for solopreneurs who want the full loop at a price that doesn't require a budget line item? We score best. And I've got the benchmark to prove it.
If you want the full benchmark methodology and every data point, I've published it separately. But the short version is: I tested everything so you don't have to.
Run your site through the free validator at llmtxtmastery.com/validator and see where you stand.