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Better Robots.txt
Replace the default WordPress robots.txt workflow with a smarter, structured version you can preview before publishing, with Free, Pro, and Premium ed …
The facts
- Rating
- 4.5★ from 102
- Active installs
- 5k+
- Price
- Free
- Last updated
- 4 Jul 2026
- Added
- May 2018
- Requires WP
- 5.0
- Tested up to
- WP 7.0.4
- Requires PHP
- 7.4
- Downloads
- 323,397
Our analysis
AI-assistedBetter Robots.txt is a WordPress plugin that enhances the default robots.txt functionality by providing a guided workflow for managing crawl control. It allows you to configure and preview your robots.txt file before publishing, making it accessible for both beginners and advanced users.
The plugin helps you manage how various automated agents, including search engines and AI crawlers, interact with your site. It includes features such as preset options, visibility of core WordPress protection rules, and the ability to clean up low-value crawl paths.
Best for: This plugin is suitable for WordPress site owners who want to manage how crawlers interact with their site.
What it does well
- ✓Guided workflow for configuring robots.txt
- ✓Preview feature before publishing changes
- ✓Controls various types of automated agents
- ✓Suitable for both beginners and advanced users
- ✓Covers essential crawl control features
Where it falls short
- •Additional features available only in Pro and Premium editions
Verdict
Better Robots.txt offers a structured approach to managing crawl control, making it user-friendly while providing essential features for effective bot governance.
From the developer
Pagup's own description of Better Robots.txt, lightly tidied.
Better Robots.txt replaces the default WordPress robots.txt workflow with a smarter, structured version you can configure and preview before publishing.
Instead of a blank textarea, you get a guided wizard with presets, plain-language explanations, and a final Review & Save step so you can inspect the generated robots.txt before it goes live.
Built for beginners and advanced users alike, Better Robots.txt helps you control how search engines, AI crawlers, SEO tools, archive bots, bad bots, social preview bots, and other automated agents interact with your site.
Trusted by thousands of WordPress sites, Better Robots.txt is designed for the AI era without resorting to hype, vague promises, or hidden rules.
Better Robots.txt is available in Free, Pro, and Premium editions. The free plugin covers the guided workflow and essential crawl control features, while Pro and Premium unlock additional governance, protection, and AI-ready modules. Some screenshots on the plugin page show features from all three editions.
A quick overview
Why Better Robots.txt is different
Most robots.txt plugins fall into one of three categories:
- Simple text editor
- Virtual robots.txt manager
- Single-purpose AI or policy add-on
Better Robots.txt goes further.
It gives you a complete, guided crawl control workflow so you can:
- Choose a preset that matches your goals
- Control major crawler categories without writing everything by hand
- Keep core WordPress protection rules visible and editable
- Clean up low-value crawl paths that waste crawl budget
- Generate a cleaner robots.txt output
- Preview the final result before saving
What you can control
Better Robots.txt helps you manage:
- Search engine visibility
- AI and LLM crawler behavior
- AI usage signals such as search, ai-input, and ai-train preferences
- SEO tool crawlers
- Bad bots and abusive crawlers
- Archive and Wayback access
- Feed crawlers and crawl traps
- WooCommerce crawl cleanup
- CSS, JavaScript, and image crawling rules
- Social media preview crawlers
- ads.txt and app-ads.txt allowance
- llms.txt generation
- Advanced directives such as crawl-delay and custom rules
- Final review before publishing
Editions
Tagged as
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