Control AI Crawlers with a Safer robots.txt

Create crawler-specific robots.txt rules, publish the file at your site root, and verify the live result. The tools separate AI training, AI search, user-triggered agents, and regular search crawlers so broad rules are less likely to damage search visibility.

Generate robots.txt Check my robots.txt

Allow search, block AI training

Keep Google and Bing open while signaling restrictions to training crawlers.

Block all AI crawlers

Use a stricter template for AI search, training and user-triggered agents.

Check current access

See whether GPTBot, OAI-SearchBot, ClaudeBot, Googlebot and other crawlers are allowed.

Build a robots.txt policy you can explain

The website helps site owners create and verify crawler rules without treating every bot as the same thing. Use the robots.txt generator to build a clear policy, then use the robots.txt checker to test the file that is actually published on your website.

The goal is practical control with fewer accidental side effects. A broad rule can block more than you intended, while a crawler-specific rule can target one service without changing access for unrelated search engines or tools.

Separate AI training, AI search, user-triggered agents, and regular search

Different crawlers may serve different purposes. Some collect data for model training, some support AI-powered search, some fetch a page after a user asks an assistant to open it, and others power conventional search or SEO analysis. Your policy should reflect the outcome you want instead of using one blanket rule for everything.

  • Keep regular search available: avoid blocking search crawlers such as Googlebot or Bingbot unless that is intentional.
  • Control AI training separately: use the documented User-agent token for the crawler you want to restrict.
  • Review AI search access: blocking an AI search crawler may reduce how reliably your content can be discovered or cited by that service.
  • Check the final result: rules can interact through wildcard groups, crawler-specific groups, path patterns, and ordering.

Use the tools in three steps

  1. Choose a policy. Start with a preset or set crawler rules individually in the generator.
  2. Publish the file. Place robots.txt at the root of the relevant host, such as https://example.com/robots.txt.
  3. Verify the live version. Run the checker against your domain and test important paths before relying on the policy.

You can also browse the crawler directory, copy a tested robots.txt template, or read the practical guides when you need a more detailed explanation.

Understand what robots.txt cannot do

Robots.txt is a crawling instruction for compliant automated clients. It is not authentication, a firewall, or a guarantee that an unwanted scraper will stay away. Do not use it to protect private files, customer data, administration areas, or paid content. Sensitive resources should be protected with access controls at the application or server level.

Robots.txt also controls crawling rather than guaranteeing removal from search results. If indexing is the problem, review the indexing controls supported by the relevant search engine instead of assuming that a crawl block will produce the same result.

FAQ

What does the website do?

It helps you generate crawler-specific robots.txt rules and check the version currently published on your site. It also explains how AI training crawlers, AI search crawlers, user-triggered agents, and regular search crawlers differ.

Should I block every AI crawler?

Not automatically. A crawler used for model training, AI search, or a user-requested page fetch may have a different impact on your site. Choose rules according to your publishing, visibility, licensing, and infrastructure goals.

Can robots.txt keep private content secure?

No. Robots.txt is not access control and compliant crawlers are only being asked to follow it. Protect private or sensitive content with authentication, authorization, server rules, or another real security control.

Can robots.txt rules affect search visibility?

Yes. Blocking a regular search crawler can prevent it from fetching page content, and blocking an AI search crawler may reduce visibility in that service. Test crawler-specific rules before publishing broad restrictions.

Popular pages

Robots.txt generator controls and a generated rules document AI Robots.txt Generator

Choose a policy mode, enter your website and sitemap, add any path or crawler overrides, then generate and download a robots.txt file. Publish it at the root of the correct host and verify the live rules with the checker before relying on them.

 Robots.txt checker inspecting a website and reporting allowed and blocked crawler access Robots.txt Checker for AI Crawlers

Enter a domain, choose a crawler, and test a path. The checker downloads the live robots.txt file, finds the applicable User-agent group and most specific rule, then explains whether access is allowed or blocked.

 Crawler directory separating training, AI search, user-requested, conventional search, and SEO crawler purposes AI Crawler List

This directory groups crawler tokens by purpose so you can decide what to allow or block without treating every automated request as the same. Open a crawler page for its documented role, exact robots.txt token, policy trade-offs, and verification guidance.

 Website selectively blocking AI training crawler routes while keeping search discovery routes open How to Block AI Crawlers with robots.txt

To block an AI crawler, add a group for its exact User-agent token and use Disallow: /. Block only the crawler purposes you intend to restrict, keep ordinary search crawlers open when visibility matters, and remember that robots.txt is a request to compliant bots rather than a security control.

 Website allowing an AI search discovery route while blocking a separate model-training route How to Allow AI Search but Block AI Training

Use separate User-agent groups for each purpose: allow AI search crawlers such as OAI-SearchBot and Claude-SearchBot, while disallowing training-oriented crawlers such as GPTBot and ClaudeBot. These controls are independent, so do not block an entire provider when your goal is only to opt out of training.