Block the AI bots that train on your site, keep the ones that cite it
Velbrake shows which AI bots crawl your WordPress site, how many requests and how much data each one takes over 7, 30 or 90 days, and what that costs at your host's price per GB. Its default policy blocks training crawlers such as GPTBot, ClaudeBot, CCBot and Bytespider, and keeps the AI search and assistant bots that read and link to you: OAI-SearchBot, ChatGPT-User, Claude-SearchBot and PerplexityBot. Rules are enforced on the server, not only in robots.txt, and a bot that uses a crawler's name from outside its owner's published network gets a 403.
Built-in bot list and default policy, Velbrake 1.0.0
| Bot | Operator | Group | Default policy | Identity check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GPTBot | OpenAI | AI training | Blocked | OpenAI IP list |
| OAI-SearchBot | OpenAI | AI search | Allowed | OpenAI IP list |
| ClaudeBot | Anthropic | AI training | Blocked | Anthropic IP list |
| PerplexityBot | Perplexity | AI search | Allowed | Perplexity IP list |
| Bytespider | ByteDance | AI training | Blocked | user agent |
Source: products/velbrake/store/listing.json (built-in bot list and default policy of Velbrake 1.0.0).
Velbrake vs the alternatives
Published prices, each checked on the date shown; prices change, so confirm on each site.
| Product | Price | Free | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Velbrake (free) and Velbrake Pro | Pro $39/year (1 site), $79/year (5), $149/year (25), $349 lifetime (25) | free plugin: bot report, training-crawler blocking, impostor detection | live |
| Blackhole Pro (Plugin Planet) | 1 site $30/year or $50 lifetime; 3 sites $70/year; 10 sites $160/year; 300 sites $380/year | free Blackhole for Bad Bots plugin | 2026-10-10 |
| BotBlocker Security | Premium $12/month; Pro $50/month; Ultimate $100/month | free plugin with AI crawler allow/block | 2026-10-10 |
| Known Agents (formerly Dark Visitors) | Startup $29/month (3 projects); Growth $299/month | free plan, 1 project, 100K events a month | 2026-10-10 |
Why teams pick Velbrake
- Get cited, not copied: training crawlers are blocked by default while AI search and assistant bots stay allowed.
- Enforced on the server: robots.txt is only a request, so Velbrake also returns 403 to blocked bots.
- Catches impostors: a bot claiming to be GPTBot or PerplexityBot from outside its owner's published IP list is refused.
- Shows the cost: requests and data per bot, and dollars at your host's price per GB.
- The free plugin does the blocking; Pro adds protected paths, an IP allowlist, llms.txt, a weekly email bot report, CSV export and rule import/export.
How it works
- Download the free Velbrake plugin and upload it in WordPress (Plugins, Add New, Upload).
- Open the Velbrake report to see which AI bots crawl you and how much data they take.
- Keep the default policy (training blocked, search allowed) or switch any bot; add Pro for protected paths, llms.txt and weekly reports.
FAQ
Will blocking AI crawlers hurt my Google or ChatGPT traffic?
Not with the default policy: search engines and AI search and assistant bots (OAI-SearchBot, ChatGPT-User, Claude-SearchBot, PerplexityBot) stay allowed; only training crawlers are blocked.
Why not a robots.txt-only plugin?
robots.txt asks politely and crawlers may ignore it. Velbrake enforces your rules on the server and checks bot identity.
Why not Blackhole Pro?
Blackhole Pro ($30/year for 1 site) traps bad bots that ignore robots.txt. Velbrake is built around AI bots: it separates training from search bots, verifies their identity and reports bandwidth per bot.
Why not BotBlocker Security?
BotBlocker is a broader firewall with CAPTCHA modes and AI crawler allow/block, with paid cloud plans from $12/month. Velbrake is focused on AI bots and their bandwidth cost, with Pro at $39 a year.
Any limits?
Pages served from a full-page cache or a CDN never reach WordPress, so Velbrake can't block those requests; use your CDN's bot rules too.