Free XML Sitemap Validator

Our validator checks your sitemap's XML structure, URL count (max 50,000), file size (max 50 MB uncompressed), accessibility and whether it is declared in robots.txt. We also analyze individual URLs for issues such as invalid formats, missing required fields and incorrect priority values.

Common errors include exceeding the 50,000 URL limit, incorrect XML formatting, missing namespace declarations, including non-canonical URLs (redirects, duplicates), using relative instead of absolute URLs and forgetting to declare the sitemap in robots.txt. Our tool flags all of these issues automatically.

Handle issues by severity: critical errors (XML formatting, URL structure) should be fixed immediately, while warnings (missing lastmod dates, no compression) can be addressed over time. Most errors can be fixed by regenerating your sitemap with correct absolute URLs, removing redirects and ensuring a valid XML structure.

A sitemap index file is a parent sitemap that lists several child sitemaps. Use one when you have more than 50,000 URLs, want to organize URLs by category (blog, products, pages) or your sitemap exceeds 50 MB. Each child sitemap can contain up to 50,000 URLs.

You usually only need to submit your sitemap to Google Search Console once. After that, Google checks it for updates automatically. However, if you make major structural changes, add thousands of new pages or move your sitemap, it is a good idea to resubmit it or notify Google of the update.

Common reasons include: sitemap not declared in robots.txt, wrong sitemap URL, XML formatting errors, the server returning the wrong content-type header (it should be application/xml or text/xml), 404 or 500 server errors, or robots.txt blocking the sitemap file itself. Use our validator to identify these issues.

Yes, you can extend your sitemap with image and video tags to help search engines discover and index your media content. This is especially important for image-heavy sites (e-commerce, portfolios) or video platforms. You can include them in your main sitemap or create separate image/video sitemaps referenced in a sitemap index.