XML Sitemap Validator — Check for Errors & Index Issues
Validate your XML sitemap for errors, malformed URLs, missing lastmod dates, and index issues. Free sitemap checker — instant, unlimited results.
What is a XML Sitemap Validator?
The XML Sitemap Validator fetches your sitemap XML file and checks it against the sitemap protocol specification: correct XML structure, valid UTF-8 encoding, URL count within the 50,000-URL limit per file, properly formatted loc entries, ISO 8601 dates in lastmod fields, valid changefreq and priority values, and correct handling of sitemap index files that reference child sitemaps.
When Should You Use XML Sitemap Validator?
Run this after generating a new sitemap, after a CMS update that regenerates the sitemap automatically, or any time Google Search Console reports a sitemap processing error. Errors in a sitemap prevent Googlebot from reading your submission, which can delay indexing of new and updated pages. A malformed sitemap is one of the most common causes of a sudden drop in indexed pages after a site change.
How to Read XML Sitemap Validator Results
Errors shown in the results prevent the sitemap from being processed by search engines and must be fixed before resubmitting. Warnings indicate non-critical issues — missing lastmod dates or priority values outside the 0.0–1.0 range — that reduce sitemap quality but do not stop it from being read. The tool also shows total URL count and flags sitemap index files for separate validation of each child sitemap.
What Should You Know Before Using XML Sitemap Validator?
After fixing errors, resubmit your sitemap in Google Search Console and monitor the Coverage report for changes in indexed page counts over the following two weeks. Keep your sitemap limited to canonical URLs returning a 200 status — do not include redirects, noindex pages, or paginated URLs unless you specifically intend them to be indexed. For large sites, use a sitemap index file rather than a single oversized sitemap.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an XML sitemap and why is it important?
An XML sitemap is a file that lists the URLs on your website and tells search engines which pages exist, when they were last updated, and how frequently they change. Submitting a valid sitemap to Google Search Console helps Googlebot discover and index your pages faster, especially for large or newly launched sites.
How do I submit my sitemap to Google?
Go to Google Search Console, select your property, navigate to Sitemaps in the left menu, and paste your sitemap URL (typically yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml). Before submitting, validate the file with the XML Sitemap Validator to ensure there are no errors that would prevent Google from processing it.
What errors can an XML sitemap contain?
Common sitemap errors include malformed XML structure, URLs returning non-200 status codes, lastmod dates in the wrong format, priority values outside the 0.0–1.0 range, and exceeding the 50,000-URL limit per file. The XML Sitemap Validator checks all of these and shows errors versus warnings separately.
How many URLs can an XML sitemap contain?
Each XML sitemap file can contain a maximum of 50,000 URLs and must be no larger than 50MB uncompressed. For sites exceeding this limit, use a sitemap index file that references multiple child sitemaps. Submit the sitemap index URL to Search Console rather than individual child sitemaps.
Should I include all pages in my XML sitemap?
No. Only include canonical URLs that return a 200 status code and that you want indexed. Exclude redirect URLs, noindex pages, paginated URLs that duplicate canonical content, and parameter-based variants. Including non-indexable pages in your sitemap wastes crawl budget and dilutes its signal to Google.
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