In short. Start with a connected domain and proxied traffic, select the account and domain, then open AI Crawl Control to review crawler activity.
Definition: Cloudflare AI Crawl Control is a dashboard feature for monitoring AI crawler access to website content and managing access rules. As of 17 October 2026, Cloudflare documents automatic operation on all plans, with a connected domain and traffic proxied through Cloudflare as setup requirements.
Key facts
- Cloudflare's setup guide requires a Cloudflare account, a connected domain, and traffic passing through Cloudflare's proxy.
- The product overview describes AI Crawl Control as working automatically on all Cloudflare plans.
- Cloudflare's crawler-management guide starts with selecting an account and domain in the dashboard.
- The roles reference lists an AI Crawl Control Read Only role for viewing the product and its metrics.
What access is needed?
Cloudflare's roles reference places AI Crawl Control Read Only among domain-scoped roles, which apply to a given domain within an account. This role provides read access to AI Crawl Control and metrics, making it suitable for reviewing crawler activity.
For configuration work, the same reference describes Domain Administrator as granting full access to domains in an account. An agency preparing to change crawler actions should check its assigned role and domain scope before proceeding. Viewing analytics and changing access rules require different levels of access.
Which zone should be selected?
A zone is the domain whose pages are being monitored, as described in Cloudflare's setup guide. The crawler-management guide directs account and domain selection before opening AI Crawl Control. For an account containing several domains, setup therefore starts with the domain whose crawler traffic is being reviewed.
Cloudflare's DNS explanation states that, for an active domain, requests to proxied DNS records pass through Cloudflare. DNS records associate domain names with information such as server addresses; their proxy status determines whether website traffic takes that route. Checking the website's record is therefore part of checking the setup prerequisite.
What are the initial dashboard steps?
Cloudflare's setup guide provides this dashboard destination:
https://dash.cloudflare.com/?to=/:account/:zone/ai
After account and domain selection, the Overview tab provides a snapshot of AI crawler activity. Filters narrow the view by date range, crawler, operator, hostname, or path. The Metrics tab provides detailed breakdowns; on free plans it displays the past 24 hours.
For an initial access decision, the crawler-management guide describes a Block action for individual crawlers. Blocking creates or updates a custom rule in Cloudflare's web application firewall (WAF), the security system that enforces the block on the selected zone. That setting changes crawler access and deserves review before it is applied.
Related terms
- How do I allow one crawler in Cloudflare AI Crawl Control?
- How do I block AI crawlers with Cloudflare's bot setting?
- How do I check whether a CDN blocked an AI crawler?
FAQ
Do I need a paid plan to start?
Cloudflare's product overview says AI Crawl Control works automatically on all plans. You can start with the account, domain connection, and proxy prerequisites described above.
Can I use read-only access to review activity?
Yes. Cloudflare's roles reference explicitly provides AI Crawl Control Read Only access to the product and metrics for the relevant domain.
Sources
- Cloudflare, "Get started", 23 April 2026
- Cloudflare, "AI Crawl Control", 14 August 2026
- Cloudflare, "Manage AI crawlers", 28 July 2026
- Cloudflare, "Roles", 12 October 2026
- Cloudflare, "How Cloudflare DNS works", 20 April 2026
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