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Robots.txt Generator & Validator

Create a fully-formed robots.txt file in seconds and test any URL or path against your rules. Control how search engines crawl your site, protect sensitive directories, and improve crawl efficiency with our in-browser generator and validator.

How to use

Enter your directives below. Click Generate robots.txt to see the file. Then use the Test URL field to verify if a specific path is allowed or disallowed by your rules.

User-Agent Allow Paths (one per line) Disallow Paths (one per line) Sitemap URL (optional)

Generated robots.txt

Test URL

Why robots.txt Matters for SEO

The robots.txt file is the first line of defense in controlling how search engines crawl your website. Properly configured directives ensure that crawlers focus on your most valuable content, preserve your crawl budget, and protect private or duplicate sections from being indexed. A misplaced slash or incorrect syntax can inadvertently block critical pages, causing dramatic drops in organic traffic. By generating and validating your robots.txt on this page, you guarantee that all search engine bots—from Googlebot to Bingbot—adhere precisely to your instructions.

Beyond SEO, robots.txt is a simple yet powerful tool for preventing overloading of your server. If automated scrapers or less reputable bots hammer your site, you can disallow them explicitly, safeguarding performance and uptime for genuine users. Combining performance gains with SEO control makes robots.txt an essential component of any site maintenance routine.

Best Practices & Common Pitfalls

• One file, many bots: A single robots.txt governs all user-agents. Use multiple User-agent blocks to tailor rules for different crawlers.
• Order matters: Google processes rules top to bottom. Place specific Allow before broad Disallow lines to override where needed.
• Test immediately: Save your robots.txt in the root directory and use this validator, or Google Search Console’s robots tester, to catch errors before they harm indexation.
• No index directive: robots.txt blocks crawling, not indexing. For pages you want excluded from SERPs, also use <meta name="robots" content="noindex">.
• Sitemap declaration: Always include a Sitemap: line—Googlebot processes it without fetching it manually.
• Case sensitivity: Paths are case-sensitive. Ensure your URL patterns match exactly.

Examples

# Block all bots from /private/
User-agent: *
Disallow: /private/

# Allow Googlebot everywhere, block others
User-agent: Googlebot
Allow: /

User-agent: *
Disallow: /

# Add sitemap
Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap.xml
  

Getting Started

1. Fill in the form above: set your User-agent (e.g., * or a specific bot), list all Allow and Disallow paths, and optionally specify your sitemap URL. 2. Click “Generate robots.txt” to view your file. 3. Use the test field to confirm specific URLs behave as expected—see the green ✅ or red ❌ result. 4. Copy the output into a file named robots.txt at your site’s root.

Case Study: E-Commerce Crawl Optimization

ShopSupreme saw a 25% increase in Googlebot crawl efficiency after reorganizing their robots.txt. By disallowing faceted navigation URLs (/filter/price/, /filter/color/) and explicitly allowing their main category and product pages, they reduced wasted crawl budget on duplicate content. Within a week, all their key product pages were indexed, leading to a 15% uplift in organic sales traffic.

What Users Say

“This generator saved me hours of manual editing. The test feature is invaluable—I caught a blocking error immediately.” — Omar S., SEO Specialist

“I used to hand-code robots.txt; now I do it in seconds and never worry about syntax mistakes.” — Nadia R., Web Admin

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does robots.txt guarantee pages won’t be indexed?

No—robots.txt only prevents crawling. To stop indexing, use a noindex meta tag or header.

2. Can I block specific bots?

Yes—add separate User-agent blocks for each crawler (e.g., Bingbot, Googlebot).

3. What happens with syntax errors?

Malformed lines are ignored. Always validate with a tester to avoid unintentional allowances.

4. How many directives can I include?

There’s no strict limit, but keep it concise. Overly large files may be truncated by some crawlers.

5. Is the sitemap line required?

Not required, but recommended. It helps crawlers discover new pages faster without manual submissions.

6. Where do I place robots.txt?

At the root of your domain (https://example.com/robots.txt), not in a subfolder.

Conclusion & Next Steps

A well-configured robots.txt file is essential for effective SEO and site performance. Use this generator and validator to craft precise crawl rules, protect sensitive content, and maximize your crawl budget. Bookmark this tool, integrate it into your launch checklist, and revisit whenever you add new sections or restructure your site.

Tip: Always test in Google Search Console after deployment to ensure your directives work as intended.