Validate XML sitemaps and sitemap indexes. Find duplicate URLs, invalid entries and structural issues.
Start an analysis to explore real URLs, review findings and download your results.
Understand what the file contains, what a crawler can discover and how to make your sitemap available to search engines.
An XML sitemap is a file listing the URLs of pages on your website that you want search engines to discover. It can also record when content was modified. It usually lives at an address such as example.com/sitemap.xml: it is intended for crawlers, while an HTML sitemap helps people navigate your site.
It gives Google and other search engines an explicit list of pages to discover, alongside your internal links. For example, it can flag a new article or a recently published product page, even when your site contains thousands of URLs.
Google Search Central documentationA sitemap does not guarantee indexing or better rankings. Small, well-linked sites may need it less; it does not replace internal links, useful content or accessible pages.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9">
<url>
<!-- Use the absolute canonical URL -->
<loc>https://example.com/</loc>
<!-- Optional: actual content modification date -->
<lastmod>2026-10-01</lastmod>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/guides/xml-sitemaps</loc>
<lastmod>2026-10-01</lastmod>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/products/widget</loc>
<lastmod>2026-09-20</lastmod>
</url>
</urlset>Example addresses and dates: replace them with your own canonical URLs and real modification dates before use.
A sitemap helps Google discover URLs. It is a discovery signal, not a promise of crawling, indexing or better rankings. Keep internal links working and investigate excluded pages separately in Search Console.
Google Search Central documentationDiscovers URLs from public HTML and sitemaps. JavaScript rendering, when enabled, has a separate budget.
Use the report to identify the cause. An HTTP problem, a crawl exclusion and invalid XML require different fixes.
A loc value such as /about is incomplete. Use the full canonical address, including https:// and the host. Remove malformed entries and duplicates; do not add login credentials to URLs.
<loc>https://example.com/about</loc>Close every tag, keep the sitemap namespace and escape special characters. In URL query strings, write & instead of a bare ampersand. Validate the file again after editing it.
?page=1&lang=enA page can return 200 and still be excluded: it may declare noindex or point to another canonical URL. Check whether that choice is intentional. Update the sitemap or page directives accordingly, rather than removing directives blindly.
200 + noindex → Excluded404 means a missing resource; 403 means access was refused. Check your server, firewall and public access. A timeout has no HTTP status. A robots.txt exclusion is skipped without a request; it is not an invented 403 or 404.
403 / 404 / 5xxPublish the file on your website first. Search Console receives its URL, not an XML upload.
Google Search Central documentationPublish sitemap.xml and check its public URL without signing in.
In Search Console, select the correct verified property with owner access.
Open Sitemaps, enter your sitemap URL and choose Submit.
Check the processing status and open any errors for details.
A successful submission confirms sitemap processing, not that every URL is indexed. Inspect individual URLs separately. The robots.txt reference below is another way to help search engines discover the file.
Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap.xmlFind your sitemap, submit it to search engines and diagnose common errors. Step-by-step guides connected to the tools you can use.
Locate the real XML file in robots.txt, WordPress or Shopify and understand sitemap indexes.
Read guide02Publish the file, submit its URL and check processing in both webmaster consoles.
Read guide03Separate HTTP access failures from invalid XML and page-level indexing issues.
Read guideAnswers to common questions about SitemapXML.
Free tools. No account required.
Free tools. No account required.
XML urlset and sitemapindex files, including GZ compression. Enter a public URL, paste XML or open a file up to 2 MB.
Discovers URLs from public HTML and sitemaps. JavaScript rendering, when enabled, has a separate budget.
Structure checks only: page availability and Google indexing are not verified.