# Do the raw citation averages show any real advantage? | Trakkr Research

Canonical URL: https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/do-the-raw-citation-averages-show-any-real-advantage
Published: 2026-03-14
Last updated: 2026-03-14
Author: Mack Grenfell

No meaningful one. Average citations are 6.8 with llms.txt and 6.7 without it, which is functionally flat in a study this size.

## Methodology

Built from HTTP scans of 37,894 AI-cited domains, linked to 337,362 citations and 882 citation snapshots in the Trakkr corpus.

## Direct Answer

No meaningful one. Average citations are 6.8 with llms.txt and 6.7 without it, which is functionally flat in a study this size.

## What this means

This answer matters because it turns a study finding into an operating rule teams can use when they decide what to publish, refresh, or measure next.

## Evidence table

| Metric | Value | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Average citations with llms.txt | 6.8 | Mean citations for domains with llms.txt. |
| Average citations without llms.txt | 6.7 | Mean citations for domains without llms.txt. |
| Mann-Whitney p-value | 0.85 | No statistically significant citation effect detected. |

## Frequently Asked Questions

### Do the raw citation averages show any real advantage?

No meaningful one. Average citations are 6.8 with llms.txt and 6.7 without it, which is functionally flat in a study this size.

### Which numbers from The llms.txt Effect matter most here?

Average citations with llms.txt: 6.8. Mean citations for domains with llms.txt. Average citations without llms.txt: 6.7. Mean citations for domains without llms.txt.

### What should a team do next?

Treat llms.txt as an optional housekeeping file, not a primary citation-growth lever. Prioritize answer quality, source coverage, and page structure before spending disproportionate effort on llms.txt. If you do publish llms.txt, measure discovery and crawl behavior directly instead of assuming it improved citation performance.

## What to do next

- [Treat llms.txt as an optional housekeeping file, not a primary citation-growth lever.](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/do-the-raw-citation-averages-show-any-real-advantage#next-step-1)
- [Prioritize answer quality, source coverage, and page structure before spending disproportionate effort on llms.txt.](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/do-the-raw-citation-averages-show-any-real-advantage#next-step-2)
- [If you do publish llms.txt, measure discovery and crawl behavior directly instead of assuming it improved citation performance.](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/do-the-raw-citation-averages-show-any-real-advantage#next-step-3)

## Related pages

Continue through the same study cluster.

- [is llms txt a leading indicator of ai readiness](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/is-llms-txt-a-leading-indicator-of-ai-readiness) - Related answer page
- [what is the best way to read the null result](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/what-is-the-best-way-to-read-the-null-result) - Related answer page
- [government and academic sites barely use llms txt](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/facts/government-and-academic-sites-barely-use-llms-txt) - Related fact page
- [llmstxt adoption by sector tracker](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/trackers/llmstxt-adoption-by-sector-tracker) - Related tracker page

## Data And Sources

- [The llms.txt Effect](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect) - Flagship study behind this page
- [Page JSON](https://trakkr.ai/data/research-answers/llmstxt-effect/answers/do-the-raw-citation-averages-show-any-real-advantage.json) - Machine-readable companion file