XML Sitemap Generator

You don't need to know XML to get started. Follow these steps to build your sitemap.

1. Add your website URLs

Enter the full URL of each page you want to include. Use the complete address, including https://, rather than a relative path such as /about.

2. Review your sitemap entries

Check each URL and edit its last modified date, priority, or change frequency if needed. You can also add or remove entries to keep the sitemap relevant to your website.

3. Preview the XML

Review the generated XML before exporting it. Check that the URLs are correct and that you haven't included duplicate pages or URLs you don't want search engines to discover.

4. Download or copy your sitemap

When everything looks right, copy the XML or download it as a file. You can also export the URL list in TXT or CSV format for other uses.

5. Upload and submit the sitemap

Save the XML file as sitemap.xml and upload it to your website's root directory if that suits your setup. You can then submit the sitemap through Google Search Console.

An XML sitemap is a file that lists the URLs you want search engines to know about on your website. It follows a standard format that helps search engines discover pages and understand information associated with those URLs.

For example, a website might have a homepage, an About page, several service pages, and a blog. A sitemap can list these URLs in one place, making it easier for search engines to discover pages they might otherwise take longer to find.

A sitemap is particularly useful for new websites, larger sites, and websites that publish or update content regularly. It can also help search engines discover important pages that aren't easily reached through internal links.

Keep in mind that including a URL in a sitemap doesn't guarantee that the page will be crawled or indexed. Search engines make their own decisions about which pages to crawl and show in search results.

A useful sitemap contains the URLs you want search engines to discover and potentially include in search results.

For most websites, these might include:

• Homepage: Your main website URL.

• Important landing pages: Service pages, product categories, and other key pages.

• Product pages: Individual products that should be discoverable through search.

• Blog posts and articles: Published content that provides useful information to visitors.

• Other important content: Public pages that are accessible to search engines and worth including in search results.

Avoid adding URLs simply to make the sitemap larger. Pages that redirect, return errors, or are intentionally excluded from search results generally don't belong in your sitemap.

Where multiple URLs show the same or substantially similar content, use the preferred canonical URL rather than listing every variation.

Each entry in an XML sitemap can contain several fields. Here's what they mean and when they are useful.

URL (<loc>)

This is the address of the page. It is the essential field in a standard XML sitemap.

Use a complete, absolute URL, such as:

https://example.com/services/

Check that the address is correct and points to the intended page.

Last Modified (<lastmod>)

The lastmod field records when a page was last significantly updated.

For example, if you substantially revise a blog post on 20 October 2026, its last modified date may be set to 2026-10-20.

Use a date that reflects the actual update. Changing the date every day without making a meaningful change can make this information less useful to search engines.

Change Frequency (<changefreq>)

This field describes how frequently a page is expected to change. Common values include daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly.

You can set this value when creating your sitemap, but Google ignores it when deciding how frequently to crawl your pages. You don't need to spend time fine-tuning it for Google.

Priority (<priority>)

Priority is a value between 0.0 and 1.0 that describes the relative importance of a URL within a website.

For example, you might assign your homepage a value of 1.0 and a less important page a value of 0.5.

However, Google ignores this field. Setting every page to the highest priority won't improve your Google rankings.

Creating a sitemap is only one part of making your website accessible to search engines. A few simple checks can help you avoid common mistakes.

Use the correct URLs. Include the preferred version of each page, with the correct protocol, hostname, and path.

Keep the sitemap focused. Include pages you want search engines to discover. Don't fill it with redirecting URLs, error pages, or duplicate URL variations.

Use accurate modification dates. Update lastmod when the page's content changes significantly. Avoid changing dates just to make a page appear fresh.

Check your XML before uploading. Make sure the file is properly formatted and contains valid URLs. A malformed sitemap may not be processed as expected.

Keep your sitemap up to date. If pages are added, removed, or moved, update the sitemap accordingly.

Don't rely on the sitemap alone. Important pages should also be accessible through internal links. A sitemap helps with discovery, but it doesn't replace a clear website structure.

Check the sitemap in Google Search Console. After publishing the file, submit it through Search Console and check for processing errors.

Once your sitemap is ready, you can make it available to Google.

1. Download your sitemap and save it as sitemap.xml.

2. Upload it to your website's root directory, so it can be accessed at an address such as https://example.com/sitemap.xml.

3. Open Google Search Console and select the property for your website.

4. Go to the Sitemaps section.

5. Enter the sitemap path and submit it.

6. Check the status later to see whether Google could fetch and process the file.

You can also include a sitemap declaration in your website's robots.txt file. For example:

Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap.xml

Replace the example address with your actual sitemap URL.

Submitting a sitemap doesn't guarantee indexing or an immediate change in search rankings. It gives Google another way to discover your URLs.

If you use WordPress, check whether your website already generates a sitemap before creating another one.

WordPress provides a built-in sitemap, and SEO plugins such as Yoast SEO can generate sitemaps for your site's published content. Depending on your setup, the existing sitemap may already be all you need.

A manually created sitemap can still be useful when you need to prepare a specific list of URLs or edit sitemap entries independently. However, it won't automatically stay in sync with your WordPress content unless you have a process for updating it.

For a website that publishes new posts or products frequently, an automatically maintained sitemap is generally more convenient.