How to Validate Sitemaps

What is a Sitemap?

A site map of a website is an XML file that lists all the pages on a website, along with metadata about each page such as when it was last updated, how often it changes, and how important it is relative to other pages on the site.

Sitemaps help search engines like Google discover and crawl all the pages on a website more efficiently.

The main purposes of a XML sitemap are:

1. Help Search Engines Discover and Index Content: Sitemaps make it easier for search engine crawlers like Googlebot to find and index all the pages on a website, including those that may not be easily discoverable through regular crawling.
2. Provide Crawling Prioritization: Sitemaps allow website owners to indicate which pages are most important and should be crawled more frequently.
3. Improve Crawl Coverage: Sitemaps ensure that search engines can find and index all the content on a website, even pages that may be difficult to discover through links alone.

Common Errors Found in XML Sitemaps

When checking your XML sitemap, you may encounter several common errors. Recognizing these issues is crucial for maintaining your site’s SEO health. Here are some frequent errors to watch out for:

1. Incorrect URL Format: URLs in the sitemap must be absolute URLs. Ensure they start with "http://" or "https://".
2. Exceeding URL Limits: Each XML sitemap can only contain 50,000 URLs, and its size should not exceed 50MB. If you have more URLs, create additional sitemaps.
3. Incorrect Priority Values: If the priority values are incorrectly assigned, it can mislead search engines on which pages are more important.
4. Invalid XML Structure: The XML sitemap must adhere to a specific structure. Ensure it is well-formed and valid.
5. Missing Metadata: Pages should have lastmod, changefreq, and priority values. Missing this data can affect how search engines interpret the sitemap.
6. Duplicate Sitemap Entries: Including the same URL multiple times can confuse search engine crawlers.

Best Practices for Creating Effective XML Sitemaps

To maximize the impact of your XML sitemap, adhere to these best practices:

1. Keep It Updated: Regularly update your sitemap to reflect changes in your website, including new content, updated pages, and deletions.
2. Submit to Search Engines: After creating or updating your XML sitemap, submit it manually through Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools to ensure search engines are aware of it.
3. Limit the Number of URLs: If your website contains a significant number of pages, consider creating multiple sitemaps organized by categories or sections.
4. Use Relevant Metadata: Employ the lastmod, changefreq, and priority tags thoughtfully to provide search engines with valuable information regarding your URLs.
5. Validate Your Sitemap: Before submission, always validate your XML sitemap using an online checker to ensure it meets all technical criteria.

What is the overall process to generate and view the Sitemap of your website?

1. Generate an XML sitemap file for your website, either manually or using a CMS plugin.
2. Enter the URL of your sitemap file into the validation tool.
3. Review any errors or warnings reported by the tool and make the necessary corrections.
4. Resubmit the updated sitemap to the validation tool to confirm it is error-free.
5. Re-submit the validated sitemap to search engines like Google through their webmaster tools.

How to Generate a Sitemap

There are a few main ways to generate a sitemap for a website:

1. XML Sitemap Generator Tools: Many free online tools can automatically generate an XML sitemap for a website, such as XML-Sitemaps.com, Screaming Frog, and Google Search Console.
2. CMS Plugins: Content management systems (CMS) like WordPress, Drupal, and Joomla often have plugins that can automatically generate and update sitemaps.

wordpress sitemap

shopify sitemap

squarespace site map

yoast sitemap

1. Manual Creation: For smaller websites, the sitemap can be created manually by listing out all the URLs and adding the required XML tags and metadata.

How to Validate a Sitemap

How to Check Your XML Sitemap

Checking your XML sitemap is critical for ensuring its functionality and effectiveness. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Access Your Sitemap: Typically, the sitemap is found at yourwebsite.com/sitemap.xml. Input this URL in your web browser to view the sitemap.
2. Use an XML Sitemap Checker Tool: There are various online tools specifically designed to check XML sitemaps. Tools like Screaming Frog, Google Search Console, and various XML sitemap validators will provide insights into any errors present.

The goal is to fix any errors found in the sitemap so search engines can properly discover and index all the pages on the website. Regularly validating and updating the sitemap is an important part of ongoing SEO maintenance.

1. Google Search Console Sitemap Validator: This is Google's official tool for checking the validity of XML sitemaps. It can identify any errors or issues with the sitemap format.
2. XML-Sitemaps.com Validator: A free online tool that checks a sitemap's XML structure and formatting.
3. Website planet sitemap validator: Once you enter your sitemap, it checks your file and tells you where the errors are.
4. Indexly Sitemap Viewer: This tool will help you see your XML sitemap.

Indexly - Indexing tool for Google and Bing

SEO Indexing tool for Google and Bing

Indexly - Indexing tool for Google and Bingindexly

FAQs

1. What is the difference between XML and HTML sitemaps?
   • An XML sitemap is designed primarily for search engines, while an HTML sitemap is user-friendly, made for website visitors to navigate the site.
2. How often should I update my XML sitemap?
   • It’s best to update your XML sitemap each time you publish new content or remove outdated pages. Regular updates keep it accurate.
3. Can I create multiple XML sitemaps for my website?
   • Yes, if your website contains more than 50,000 URLs, you can create multiple sitemaps and even implement a sitemap index file to link them.
4. Do I need an XML sitemap for a small website?
   • While smaller websites may not have many pages, an XML sitemap can still aid in visibility and indexing, making it beneficial even for small sites.
5. Are XML sitemaps necessary for SEO?
   • While not mandatory, XML sitemaps significantly enhance SEO by making it easier for search engines to crawl and index your site.
6. Can I submit my XML sitemap through robots.txt?
   • Yes, you can provide the URL of your XML sitemap in the robots.txt file, which helps search engines discover it.