What is an XML sitemap?

An XML sitemap is a file that lists the URLs of a website along with optional metadata (last modified date, change frequency, priority). Search engines use sitemaps to discover and crawl pages more efficiently, especially new or infrequently linked pages.

What is a sitemap index file?

A sitemap index file is an XML file that lists multiple individual sitemap files. Large sites use this to split their URLs across several sitemaps, since each sitemap file is limited to 50,000 URLs and 50 MB uncompressed.

What fields are required in an XML sitemap?

The only required field in each entry is (the page URL). The optional fields are (last modified date in ISO-8601 format), (how often the page changes), and (relative importance from 0.0 to 1.0).

What format should dates be in?

The value should be in ISO-8601 format: YYYY-MM-DD (e.g. 2024-03-15) or the full datetime format with timezone (e.g. 2024-03-15T12:00:00+00:00). Google also accepts W3C Datetime format.

The value is a float between 0.0 and 1.0 indicating the relative importance of a URL compared to other URLs on your site. The default is 0.5. Note that Google largely ignores and — they consider these informational hints only.

Should I include all pages in my sitemap?

Only include canonical, indexable pages. Exclude pages with noindex tags, redirects (3xx), broken links (4xx/5xx), pagination duplicates, or thin content. Including non-indexable URLs wastes crawl budget.

How do I submit my sitemap to Google?

You can submit your sitemap through Google Search Console (select your property → Sitemaps → Add a new sitemap). You can also reference it in your robots.txt file with a Sitemap: directive. Google will crawl and re-crawl it periodically.

What is the maximum size of a sitemap?

Each sitemap file may contain a maximum of 50,000 URLs and must not exceed 50 MB when uncompressed. For larger sites, use a sitemap index file to reference multiple individual sitemaps.

Web Tools /

Sitemap validator

Paste an XML sitemap to validate its structure, check for missing fields, and verify URL and date formats.

100% in your browser. Your sitemap content is never sent to any server.

Paste your sitemap XML

How to use

Paste the content of your sitemap.xml or sitemap_index.xml into the textarea.
Click Validate to check structure and field validity.
Fix any issues highlighted, then re-validate before submitting to Search Console.

Common use cases

Pre-submission check — validate before adding to Google Search Console.
Date format audit — ensure all lastmod values are ISO-8601 formatted.
URL format check — confirm all loc values are absolute and use HTTPS.
Sitemap index validation — check that your index file references valid child sitemaps.

Also see: Robots.txt Validator and Links Extractor.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an XML sitemap?: An XML sitemap is a file that lists the URLs of a website along with optional metadata (last modified date, change frequency, priority). Search engines use sitemaps to discover and crawl pages more efficiently, especially new or infrequently linked pages.
What is a sitemap index file?: A sitemap index file is an XML file that lists multiple individual sitemap files. Large sites use this to split their URLs across several sitemaps, since each sitemap file is limited to 50,000 URLs and 50 MB uncompressed.
What fields are required in an XML sitemap?: The only required field in each <url> entry is <loc> (the page URL). The optional fields are <lastmod> (last modified date in ISO-8601 format), <changefreq> (how often the page changes), and <priority> (relative importance from 0.0 to 1.0).
What format should <lastmod> dates be in?: The <lastmod> value should be in ISO-8601 format: YYYY-MM-DD (e.g. 2024-03-15) or the full datetime format with timezone (e.g. 2024-03-15T12:00:00+00:00). Google also accepts W3C Datetime format.
What is the <priority> field?: The <priority> value is a float between 0.0 and 1.0 indicating the relative importance of a URL compared to other URLs on your site. The default is 0.5. Note that Google largely ignores <priority> and <changefreq> — they consider these informational hints only.
Should I include all pages in my sitemap?: Only include canonical, indexable pages. Exclude pages with noindex tags, redirects (3xx), broken links (4xx/5xx), pagination duplicates, or thin content. Including non-indexable URLs wastes crawl budget.
How do I submit my sitemap to Google?: You can submit your sitemap through Google Search Console (select your property → Sitemaps → Add a new sitemap). You can also reference it in your robots.txt file with a Sitemap: directive. Google will crawl and re-crawl it periodically.
What is the maximum size of a sitemap?: Each sitemap file may contain a maximum of 50,000 URLs and must not exceed 50 MB when uncompressed. For larger sites, use a sitemap index file to reference multiple individual sitemaps.

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