Free XML Sitemap Generator
Create a sitemap.xml for your website in seconds. We crawl your site from the homepage, keep only the pages that belong in search, and give you a clean file to upload and submit to Google.
Free · No sign-up · Nothing stored
At a glance
- An XML sitemap is a file that lists the pages you want search engines to find, at an address like yoursite.com/sitemap.xml.
- Only include pages that should rank: working, indexable pages with no other canonical. The generator does this filtering for you.
- Upload, reference, submit: put it in your root folder, add a Sitemap: line to robots.txt, and submit it in Search Console.
- If your platform already makes one (WordPress, Shopify, most SEO plugins), use that and check it with our Sitemap Checker instead.
How the sitemap generator works
The generator starts at your homepage and follows the links in each page's HTML, the way a search engine crawler discovers a site. For every address it finds, it checks the result and decides whether the page belongs in your sitemap:
| What it finds | In the sitemap? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Returns 200 and is a web page | Included | It's a real page people can land on |
| Marked noindex | Left out | You've asked search engines not to show it |
| Canonical points elsewhere | Left out | The page names a different address as the main version |
| Blocked by robots.txt | Left out | Crawlers aren't allowed to fetch it |
| Redirects to another site or errors (4xx, 5xx) | Left out | There's no working page at that address |
| Images, PDFs, scripts, feeds | Left out | A page sitemap lists pages; images and video have their own sitemap formats |
| Tracking parameters (utm_, gclid, fbclid) | Removed | Keeps one clean address per page |
It reads your robots.txt first and respects it, stops after 150 pages or about 30 seconds, and lists the pages from the homepage outwards, shallow pages first. Where your server sends a last-modified date, it's added as lastmod.
How to create and submit an XML sitemap
- Generate it: paste your homepage address and run the generator.
- Review the list: check that your important pages are there and nothing private slipped in. The excluded list shows what was left out and why.
- Download sitemap.xml and upload it to your website's root folder, so it loads at
yoursite.com/sitemap.xml. - Reference it in robots.txt with a line like
Sitemap: https://yoursite.com/sitemap.xml. Our Robots.txt Generator adds it for you. - Submit it in Google Search Console (Indexing → Sitemaps) and Bing Webmaster Tools.
- Check it with the Sitemap Checker, which tests every listed address.
What the sitemap file looks like
The output follows the sitemaps.org protocol that Google, Bing and other search engines read. Each page is one <url> entry:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9">
<url>
<loc>https://www.example.com/</loc>
<lastmod>2026-10-16</lastmod>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://www.example.com/services/</loc>
</url>
</urlset>There's no priority or changefreq: Google's sitemap documentation says plainly that it "ignores <priority> and <changefreq> values". For more examples, including image and video sitemaps, see our guide to what a sitemap is.
XML sitemap rules every file must follow
A valid sitemap is UTF-8, lists full addresses from one site, and stays under 50,000 URLs and 50 MB. The generator handles all of these for you; they matter if you edit the file by hand or build one in code:
| Rule | Requirement | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Size | No more than 50,000 URLs and 50 MB (52,428,800 bytes) uncompressed per file | sitemaps.org |
| Encoding | UTF-8 | |
| Addresses | Full, absolute URLs (https://www.example.com/page/, not /page/), all from the same host and protocol as the sitemap | sitemaps.org, Google |
| Special characters | Escaped: & becomes &, and < > quotes and apostrophes likewise. The generator escapes them | sitemaps.org |
| Required tags | <urlset>, and a <url> with a <loc> for each page. Everything else is optional | sitemaps.org |
| Bigger sites | Split into several sitemaps and list them in a sitemap index file |
lastmod: the one optional tag worth getting right
Include lastmod only if it's accurate. Google says lastmod should reflect "the date and time of the last significant update to the page", and it uses the value only when it's consistently and verifiably right. In its 2023 announcement Google added: "You can use a lastmod element for all the pages in your sitemap, or just the ones you're confident about."
That's why the generator takes lastmod only from the Last-Modified date your server sends, and leaves it out otherwise. Check the dates in the file before you upload it. If every page shows today's date, your server is reporting the time of the request rather than of the last edit, and you're better off deleting the lastmod lines.
Real result: our own site
We ran the generator on cmoowls.com. In about seven seconds it found 107 pages to include, 92 of them with a last-modified date from our server. It left out four addresses, each for a good reason:
- Two blocked by robots.txt: our sign-in and sign-up links, which we deliberately keep out of search.
- One noindex page: our cookie policy, which we've chosen not to show in search.
- One error: a Cloudflare email-protection link that isn't a real page.
That's the point of filtering: a sitemap that lists only real, indexable pages tells search engines exactly where to spend their time.
How to submit a sitemap to Google and Bing
Submit it once in each search engine's webmaster tool, and add it to robots.txt so every other crawler finds it.
- Google: in Search Console open Indexing → Sitemaps, type
sitemap.xmland press Submit. The Sitemaps report then shows whether Google could read it and how many pages it found. - Bing: in Bing Webmaster Tools open Sitemaps and submit the same address (Bing's guide).
- Everyone else: add
Sitemap: https://yoursite.com/sitemap.xmlon its own line anywhere in robots.txt. Google documents this line, and the robots.txt standard (RFC 9309) allows crawlers to read extra records like it, so other search engines can find your sitemap without a submission. - When pages change: Google retired its old sitemap "ping" address in 2023, so pinging no longer does anything. Keep the file current and Google will recrawl it; for Bing, Yandex and others, IndexNow notifies them about individual changed pages straight away.
A status of "Couldn't fetch" in Search Console usually means the address is wrong, the file is blocked by robots.txt, or your server returned an error. Open the address in your browser first; if you see the XML, wait a day and check again.
Does your site need an XML sitemap?
Most sites benefit, and it costs nothing, but small, well-linked sites can do without. Google's sitemaps overview lists when you might need one and when you might not:
| You probably need one if | You may not need one if |
|---|---|
| Your site is large | It has about 500 pages or fewer that you want in search |
| Your site is new and few other sites link to it | Every important page is linked from your homepage or menus |
| You have lots of video or images, or appear in Google News | You don't have many media files or news pages to show in search |
Our advice: make one anyway. It takes a minute, it lets you see in Search Console which listed pages Google has and hasn't indexed, and it helps new pages get found before anyone links to them. This generator makes the XML sitemap that search engines read; for the page-for-people kind and how the two differ, see our sitemap guide.
XML sitemaps on WordPress, Shopify, Wix and Webflow
| Platform | Sitemap | Use this generator? |
|---|---|---|
| WordPress | Built in at /wp-sitemap.xml since WordPress 5.5; Yoast and Rank Math replace it with /sitemap_index.xml | Only to compare or troubleshoot |
| Shopify | Created automatically at /sitemap.xml | No |
| Wix, Squarespace, Webflow | Generated automatically by the platform | No |
| Hand-coded or static sites | None unless you make one | Yes |
| Custom apps and frameworks | Depends on the setup; often missing | Yes, or generate it in your build |
What the sitemap generator doesn't do
- It can only find linked pages. Orphan pages, pages behind forms and pages only reachable by JavaScript won't appear.
- It stops at 150 pages. For bigger sites, use your CMS or an SEO plugin's sitemap, which updates itself.
- It doesn't host or update the file. Regenerate and re-upload after you add or remove pages.
- It doesn't make image, video or news sitemaps. Those formats are explained in our sitemap guide.
An XML sitemap on one map
Your next step
Check whether you already have a sitemap: open yoursite.com/sitemap.xml and yoursite.com/sitemap_index.xml. If neither loads, generate one here, upload it, add the Sitemap: line to robots.txt and submit it in Search Console today. A week later, open the Sitemaps report to see which listed pages Google has indexed. Pages in your sitemap but still not in Google? Run the Indexability Checker on them, and read our guide to why a page isn't indexed.
Keep every page findable as your site grows
Watch Owl crawls up to 500 of your pages in a real browser and reports broken links, missing tags and indexing problems, worst first.
Frequently asked questions
How do I create an XML sitemap for my website?
Paste your homepage address into the generator. It crawls your site from the homepage, keeps the pages that should be in search, and gives you a sitemap.xml to download. Upload it to your site's root folder, then submit it in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
How many pages can the generator include?
Up to 150 pages per run, found by following links from your homepage within about 30 seconds. Larger sites should use their CMS's built-in sitemap or an SEO plugin, which list every page automatically.
Which pages does it leave out?
Pages that return an error, pages marked noindex, pages whose canonical tag points to a different address, pages your robots.txt blocks, and files that aren't web pages, such as images and PDFs. Those don't belong in a sitemap.
Where do I upload the sitemap?
To the root folder of your website, so it loads at yoursite.com/sitemap.xml. Then add a line to robots.txt (Sitemap: https://yoursite.com/sitemap.xml) and submit the address in Search Console.
Does my website need a sitemap?
Google says small, well-linked sites may not need one, but a sitemap rarely hurts and helps search engines find new pages faster. Sites with many pages, new sites with few links, and sites with pages that aren't well linked benefit most.
Does WordPress or Shopify already make a sitemap?
Yes. WordPress has a built-in sitemap at /wp-sitemap.xml, and SEO plugins such as Yoast add their own; Shopify creates /sitemap.xml automatically. Use this generator for hand-built sites, static sites or to compare against what your platform produces.
Why don't all my pages appear?
The generator finds pages by following links in your HTML. Pages that no other page links to (orphan pages), pages only reachable through JavaScript or search forms, and pages beyond the 150-page limit won't be found.
Should I include priority and changefreq?
No. Google says it ignores priority and changefreq values, so the generator leaves them out. It adds lastmod only where your server reports a real last-modified date.
How often should I update my sitemap?
Whenever you add or remove pages. Platform-generated sitemaps update automatically; if you upload one by hand, regenerate it after each batch of changes.
Should my sitemap.xml be public?
Yes. Search engines need to read it, and anyone can open it, so never list private, staging or admin pages in it. Blocking the sitemap in robots.txt stops crawlers from reading it.
Sources
- Sitemaps XML format, sitemaps.org, 2016
- Build and submit a sitemap, Google Search Central, 2026
- Learn about sitemaps, Google Search Central, 2026
- Manage your sitemaps with sitemap index files, Google Search Central, 2026
- Sitemaps ping endpoint is going away, Google Search Central Blog, 2023
- Manage sitemaps with the Sitemaps report, Search Console Help, 2026
- Sitemaps, Bing Webmaster Tools Help, 2026
- RFC 9309: Robots Exclusion Protocol, IETF, 2022
- IndexNow documentation, IndexNow.org, 2026
- New XML sitemaps functionality in WordPress 5.5, Make WordPress Core, 2020
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