How often should I update my Shopify store's llms.txt?

Update your llms.txt whenever you add new collections, run major sales, or change your product lineup significantly. For most stores, quarterly updates are sufficient, though stores with frequent inventory changes should update monthly.

How to Add llms.txt to Your Shopify Store

What is llms.txt?

llms.txt is a markdown file you add to your website that gives AI systems a structured summary of what your site is about. Think of it as a robots.txt for AI -- except instead of telling crawlers what not to look at, it tells AI assistants what matters most.

For a Shopify store, that means your product collections, bestselling items, brand story, shipping policies, and anything else that helps an AI accurately describe and recommend your store.

Why Shopify stores need this now

Three things changed recently that make llms.txt important for e-commerce:

AI shopping traffic grew ~700% year-over-year according to Adobe Analytics. Consumers are asking ChatGPT and Perplexity for product recommendations, and purchases are happening directly inside these chat interfaces.
Shopify launched Agentic Storefronts in January 2026, integrating with ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Microsoft Copilot for in-chat checkout. This validates that AI commerce is real.
AI systems need structured data to make accurate recommendations. Without an llms.txt file, AI assistants piece together whatever they can crawl from your store -- often producing incomplete or inaccurate descriptions of what you sell.

Agentic Storefronts vs. llms.txt

Shopify's Agentic Storefronts handle the transaction -- getting your products into ChatGPT and Perplexity for checkout. llms.txt handles the discovery -- helping AI systems understand your brand, your product range, and why they should recommend you. They complement each other.

Step 1: Generate your llms.txt file

The fastest way to create an llms.txt file for your Shopify store is to use our Shopify-optimized generator. Enter your store URL and it will:

Read your sitemap to discover all products, collections, pages, and blog posts
Rank pages by importance (collections and key products first)
Generate e-commerce-appropriate descriptions for each page
Organize everything into sections: Collections, Featured Products, Policies, Blog

Generate llms.txt for My Store

What gets included

A Shopify store's llms.txt file typically includes:

Collections -- your product categories ("Browse the Summer Collection")
Featured products -- top items with descriptions
About page -- your brand story
Policies -- shipping, returns, and privacy information
Blog posts -- if you have a store blog

Here is what the output looks like for a Shopify store:

# Your Store Name

> Online store at your-store.com. Browse products, collections, and policies.

## Collections

- Summer Collection: Browse the full Summer collection
- Organic Skincare: Browse the full Organic Skincare collection

## Featured Products

- Hydrating Face Serum: Shop Hydrating Face Serum
- Daily Moisturizer SPF 30: Shop Daily Moisturizer Spf 30

## About

- About Us: Brand story and company information

## Policies

- Shipping Policy: Shipping rates and delivery information
- Return Policy: Return and refund policy details

Step 2: Add it to your Shopify theme

Once you have your llms.txt content, you need to make it accessible on your store. The recommended approach uses Shopify's theme editor.

Option A: Theme Editor (recommended)

In Shopify Admin, go to Online Store > Themes
Click the ... menu on your active theme, then Edit code
Under Templates, click Add a new template
Select type page and name it llmstxt
Replace all the template content with:

{% layout none %}
{{ page.content }}

The {% layout none %} directive tells Shopify to serve the page content without the theme header, footer, or navigation -- just the raw llms.txt markdown.

Go to Online Store > Pages and create a new page
Set the page template to llmstxt (the template you just created)
Paste your llms.txt content into the page body
Under Search engine listing, set the URL handle to llms-txt
Save the page

Your file will now be accessible at your-store.com/pages/llms-txt.

About the URL path: Shopify doesn't allow serving files at the exact /llms.txt root path. The page will be at /pages/llms-txt. Most AI crawlers will find it at this location. If you need it at exactly /llms.txt, you can set up a Cloudflare proxy or redirect rule.

Option B: Liquid template file (advanced)

If you prefer working directly with theme files, create a new file called templates/page.llms-txt.liquid in your theme:

{% layout none %}{% comment %}
  llms.txt - AI-readable store summary
  Generated with llmstxt.studio
{% endcomment %}
{{ page.content }}

Then create a page using this template with your llms.txt content, same as Option A.

Step 3: Verify it works

Visit your-store.com/pages/llms-txt in your browser
You should see your llms.txt content displayed as plain text (no theme styling)
Run our free Shopify AI audit to verify your store's overall AI readiness

Keeping it up to date

Your llms.txt should reflect your current product catalog. Update it when you:

Add or remove product collections
Launch new product lines
Run major seasonal changes (holiday collections, summer lineups)
Change shipping or return policies

For most Shopify stores, updating quarterly is sufficient. Stores with frequent inventory changes should aim for monthly updates. You can regenerate your file any time.

Frequently asked questions

What is llms.txt and why does my Shopify store need it?

llms.txt is a structured markdown file that tells AI systems like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews what your store sells and which pages matter most. Without it, AI assistants piece together information from whatever they can crawl, often producing incomplete or inaccurate recommendations.

Can I put llms.txt at the root path on Shopify?

Shopify does not allow arbitrary files at the root path. Your file will live at /pages/llms-txt by default. To serve it at /llms.txt exactly, use a Cloudflare proxy or redirect. Most AI crawlers will find the file at either location.

How is this different from Shopify Agentic Storefronts?

Agentic Storefronts handle the transaction layer -- getting products into ChatGPT and Perplexity for checkout. llms.txt handles the discovery layer -- helping AI understand your brand, what makes you different, and why they should recommend you over competitors. They work together.

How often should I update my store's llms.txt?

Update whenever you add new collections, run major sales, or change your product lineup. Quarterly updates work for most stores. Stores with frequent inventory changes should update monthly.

Does llms.txt actually help AI recommend my products?

AI systems use structured data to inform recommendations. An llms.txt file gives these systems a clear, authoritative summary written in the format they are designed to consume. Stores with llms.txt provide AI with better context, which increases the likelihood of accurate recommendations.