# The significance test comes back null | Trakkr Research

Canonical URL: https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/facts/the-significance-test-comes-back-null
Published: 2026-03-14
Last updated: 2026-03-14
Author: Mack Grenfell

An analysis of the llms.txt effect on citation rates reveals no statistically significant impact.

## Methodology

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

## Claim

The llms.txt citation comparison returns a Mann-Whitney p-value of 0.85, indicating no statistically significant citation effect.

## Why it matters

Strategists and operators should allocate resources away from llms.txt implementation and treat it as a low priority until empirical evidence demonstrates a measurable impact on citation frequency.

## Supporting metrics

| Metric | Value | Context |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mann-Whitney p-value | 0.85 | No statistically significant citation effect detected. |

## Related pages

Continue through the same study cluster.

- [which industries adopt llms txt most](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/which-industries-adopt-llms-txt-most) - Related answer page
- [does llms txt help you even if it does not raise citations](https://trakkr.ai/trakkr-research/llmstxt-effect/answers/does-llms-txt-help-you-even-if-it-does-not-raise-citations) - Related answer 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/facts/the-significance-test-comes-back-null.json) - Machine-readable companion file