PerplexityBot in robots.txt
PerplexityBot is run by Perplexity. Purpose: search. Source: Perplexity documentation.
What blocking PerplexityBot changes
This agent builds the index that AI search answers draw from. Blocking it can keep your pages out of those answers.
Block PerplexityBot
User-agent: PerplexityBot Disallow: /
Block PerplexityBot from one folder
User-agent: PerplexityBot Disallow: /private/
Allow PerplexityBot
If no group names PerplexityBot, it follows your "User-agent: *" rules. To allow it while other bots are blocked:
User-agent: PerplexityBot Allow: /
How many sites block PerplexityBot?
Of the 49 SaaS sites in our State of AI readiness check on 2026-10-17, 0 block PerplexityBot from their homepage.
More: the guide AI crawlers in robots.txt and the AI crawler checker.
Questions
What is PerplexityBot?
PerplexityBot is the user agent token for an agent run by Perplexity. Its purpose: search. See the Perplexity documentation linked on this page.
How do I block PerplexityBot?
Add a group to robots.txt with "User-agent: PerplexityBot" and "Disallow: /". The rule applies to agents that follow robots.txt.
How do I check if my site blocks PerplexityBot?
Run the free check on this site. It tests your robots.txt against 8 AI agents on your homepage. The $19 deep report tests 18 agents per path.
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