How to create a WordPress sitemap is usually simpler than it sounds: WordPress 5.5 and later automatically generate an XML sitemap at /wp-sitemap.xml. Open that address on your site, submit the active sitemap index to Google Search Console, and use only one sitemap-generating system.
A sitemap can help search engines discover important pages, but it does not guarantee crawling, indexing, rankings, or traffic. The steps below show how to find the sitemap WordPress already created, use Yoast SEO when appropriate, submit the correct URL, and fix common errors.
Key takeaways
- WordPress core automatically generates an XML sitemap on WordPress 5.5 and later, normally at
https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xml. - Submit the active sitemap index—not every child sitemap—to Google Search Console using the correct verified property.
- Yoast SEO commonly uses
/sitemap_index.xml, while WordPress core commonly uses/wp-sitemap.xml. - A sitemap helps Google discover URLs, but Google does not guarantee that listed URLs will be crawled, indexed, or ranked.
- Each sitemap file may contain up to 50,000 URLs or 50 MB uncompressed, whichever limit is reached first.
What is a WordPress sitemap?
A WordPress sitemap is a machine-readable XML file or sitemap index that lists important, publicly accessible URLs on a website. Search engines can use it to discover posts, pages, products, taxonomy archives, images, videos, news content, and other eligible content.
A sitemap index is a directory of separate sitemap files. For example, a WordPress sitemap index might link to one file for posts and another for pages or custom post types. Google explains the purpose and limitations of sitemaps in its sitemap overview.
| Tool | Primary purpose | What it does not do |
|---|---|---|
| XML sitemap | Provides an additional URL-discovery signal to search engines | Does not guarantee crawling, indexing, rankings, or traffic |
| Internal links | Help visitors and crawlers navigate related content | Do not become unnecessary because a sitemap exists |
robots.txt |
Provides crawler access instructions | Is not a reliable general method for removing pages from search results |
noindex |
Tells a search engine not to include a crawlable page in search results | Does not replace access control for private information |
| HTML sitemap | Shows human visitors a linked list of site content | Does not replace an XML sitemap submitted to search engines |
A sitemap should complement clear navigation and internal linking. A sitemap is especially useful for a new site with few external links, a large or frequently updated site, a site with complex navigation, a site that publishes video or news content, or a site that has recently migrated or been redesigned.
Do you need a WordPress sitemap?
Most WordPress site owners should leave the automatically generated sitemap available, even though a very small, well-linked site may not strictly need to submit one. Google describes approximately 500 or fewer pages that need search visibility as a rough small-site guideline, not a mandatory cutoff, in its guidance on when sitemaps are useful.
A sitemap is more valuable when:
- Your website is new and has few links from other websites.
- Your website has many posts, products, pages, or other indexable URLs.
- Your navigation, filters, archives, or URL structure are complicated.
- Your website publishes content frequently.
- Important pages are not strongly connected through internal links.
- You publish significant video, image, or news content.
- You recently changed domains, redesigned the site, or migrated hosting.
A sitemap is not a ranking shortcut. Google may ignore, delay, or decline to index a listed URL if the page is duplicate, low quality, blocked, redirected, canonicalized to another URL, or otherwise unsuitable for search.
How to check whether WordPress already created your sitemap
The fastest way to create a WordPress sitemap is to open the sitemap that WordPress core already generates.
- Replace
yourdomain.comwith your real domain. - Open
https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xmlin a new browser tab. - Confirm that an XML document or sitemap index loads.
The default WordPress core sitemap URL is:
https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xmlA sitemap index may list child files for posts, pages, authors, taxonomies, or custom post types. The exact list depends on your site’s content types and configuration. You do not need to create or update those XML files manually; WordPress generates the output from the site’s current content and settings.
WordPress core sitemap support began with WordPress 5.5. The WordPress sitemap lesson explains the default path and the basic verification process, while the WordPress developer reference for the sitemap system documents the core implementation.
How do you check the sitemap in robots.txt?
Open your site’s generated robots.txt file at https://yourdomain.com/robots.txt. WordPress core can include a sitemap directive pointing crawlers to the sitemap index.
https://yourdomain.com/robots.txtA typical sitemap declaration has this form:
Sitemap: https://example.com/wp-sitemap.xmlThe Sitemap: line is useful because it identifies the sitemap’s absolute URL. However, robots.txt controls crawler access; it is not a reliable way to prevent a page from appearing in search results. Google’s robots.txt documentation explains this distinction.
How do you create a sitemap with WordPress core?
On WordPress 5.5 or later, “create” generally means verifying and using the automatically generated core sitemap rather than writing an XML file.
- Log in to your WordPress dashboard and confirm that the site is running WordPress 5.5 or newer.
- Open a new browser tab and visit
https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xml. - Confirm that the sitemap index loads publicly without a login prompt or server error.
- Copy the full sitemap URL or remember the relative path
wp-sitemap.xml. - Submit the sitemap to Google Search Console using the steps below.
WordPress core is usually the best option for a beginner who needs basic URL discovery and does not otherwise need an SEO plugin. Core sitemap generation is built in, requires no additional subscription, and normally updates as site content changes.
Core provides fewer editorial controls than a dedicated SEO plugin. If you already use an SEO plugin for redirects, schema, indexability settings, internal-linking tools, or other technical SEO work, that plugin may be the system generating your active sitemap instead.
What should you do if /wp-sitemap.xml returns a 404?
A 404 at /wp-sitemap.xml does not always mean the sitemap itself is broken. Check the following causes in order.
- Confirm the exact domain and protocol. Test the canonical version of the site, such as
https://www.example.com/wp-sitemap.xmlversushttps://example.com/wp-sitemap.xml. The correct URL must use the domain and HTTPS version that actually serves the WordPress site. - Check the WordPress version. WordPress versions before 5.5 do not have the core sitemap system. Update WordPress carefully or use the sitemap supplied by an existing SEO plugin.
- Check the search-visibility setting. In the dashboard, open Settings → Reading and make sure Discourage search engines from indexing this site is not accidentally enabled. This setting is not a sitemap switch, but it can affect whether a sitemap is useful and how the site is treated.
- Refresh rewrite rules. Open Settings → Permalinks and select Save Changes without changing the permalink structure. Saving the settings can refresh WordPress rewrite rules.
- Look for a plugin sitemap. An SEO plugin may use
https://yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xmlor another plugin-specific path. - Check for conflicts. Multiple SEO plugins, separate sitemap plugins, an uploaded static sitemap file, caching rules, security plugins, and server configuration can interfere with sitemap requests.
- Check public access. The sitemap must not require authentication and must not be blocked by maintenance mode, a firewall, bot protection, a staging restriction, or an accidental access rule.
Do not edit a generated XML file directly. Find the system that generates it and correct the relevant WordPress, plugin, cache, security, or server setting.
How do you create or enable a sitemap with Yoast SEO?
If Yoast SEO is already installed and you want Yoast to manage the sitemap, open Yoast SEO → Settings → Site features, find XML sitemaps under Technical SEO, and turn the feature on.
- Log in to WordPress.
- Open Yoast SEO → Settings.
- Open Site features.
- Under Technical SEO, turn XML sitemaps on.
- Select View the XML sitemap.
Yoast commonly exposes its sitemap index at:
https://yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xmlAccording to Yoast’s XML sitemap documentation, the Yoast sitemap index updates as content is added, changed, or removed. Content marked noindex is generally excluded from the Yoast sitemap.
Installing Yoast solely to obtain an XML sitemap is usually unnecessary on a current WordPress site because WordPress core already provides one. Yoast SEO for WordPress becomes more relevant when you also want its broader SEO controls, such as indexability management and other optimization features.
Do not run several SEO plugins with overlapping sitemap systems without understanding which system is active. Yoast notes that a sitemap at /sitemap.xml may have been generated by WordPress core or another plugin rather than Yoast.
| Option | Typical sitemap path | Best fit | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress core | /wp-sitemap.xml |
Beginners and small sites needing basic discovery | Fewer controls over content types and exclusions |
| Yoast SEO | /sitemap_index.xml |
Sites already using Yoast’s wider SEO features | Adds plugin configuration and should not overlap with another SEO sitemap |
| Another SEO plugin | Plugin-specific | Sites committed to that plugin’s broader SEO workflow | Path and settings vary; overlapping plugins can create confusion |
| Manual XML sitemap | Custom | Tiny non-WordPress sites or developer-controlled setups | Becomes tedious and easy to forget as URLs change |
How do you submit a WordPress sitemap to Google Search Console?
To submit a WordPress sitemap to Google Search Console, select the correct verified property, open the Sitemaps report, enter the sitemap path, and submit it.
- Open Google Search Console and select the verified property for the correct domain.
- Open the Sitemaps report. Google’s navigation labels can change slightly by interface version, language, or property type.
- Enter only the relative sitemap path when Search Console already displays the site property, such as
wp-sitemap.xmlorsitemap_index.xml. - Select Submit.
- Review the submitted sitemap’s status and discovered URL information.
Submit the sitemap index that belongs to the active generator:
| Active generator | Path to enter in Search Console | Full example URL |
|---|---|---|
| WordPress core | wp-sitemap.xml |
https://example.com/wp-sitemap.xml |
| Yoast SEO | sitemap_index.xml |
https://example.com/sitemap_index.xml |
Google also allows a sitemap to be declared in robots.txt, submitted through Search Console, or submitted programmatically through the Search Console API. Google explains these options in its instructions for building and submitting sitemaps.
Use the complete absolute URL in robots.txt and inside sitemap files. In the Search Console sitemap field, the relative filename is normally sufficient when the correct property is already selected.
Submission is a discovery and crawling hint, not an indexing request that Google must accept. A successful submission means Google processed the sitemap address; it does not mean that every listed URL will be crawled or indexed.
What belongs in a WordPress sitemap?
A WordPress sitemap should contain preferred, canonical, publicly accessible URLs that deserve consideration for search results. Google recommends including the canonical URLs that a site owner prefers to appear in search.
Good sitemap candidates include:
- Canonical blog posts.
- Canonical pages such as service, contact, or about pages.
- Important product pages.
- Useful category or taxonomy landing pages.
- Other indexable custom post types that provide genuine search value.
Keep the following out of the sitemap:
- WordPress admin URLs and login pages.
- Internal search-result pages.
- Private, draft, staging, or test pages.
- Thin or duplicate archives.
- URLs that redirect to another URL.
- Noncanonical URL variants.
- Pages blocked from indexing or intentionally excluded from search.
If the sitemap contains an unexpected post type or taxonomy, identify which system generated the sitemap, inspect the URL’s canonical and indexability settings, and change the responsible WordPress or SEO-plugin setting. Do not remove entries by hand from generated XML.
How large can a sitemap be?
Google limits one sitemap file to 50,000 URLs or 50 MB uncompressed, whichever limit is reached first. A larger site must split its URLs across multiple sitemap files and use a sitemap index to reference those files. These limits are documented in Google’s sitemap construction guidance.
WordPress core and major SEO plugins can create the necessary child sitemaps and index structure automatically. Submit the index rather than manually submitting every child file unless you are investigating a specific processing problem.
Why does a sitemap load but contain unexpected URLs?
An unexpected sitemap entry usually comes from a publicly queryable post type, taxonomy archive, plugin setting, or a different sitemap generator than the one you expected.
- Open the sitemap and identify the generator from the URL pattern.
- Open one unexpected URL and inspect its canonical and indexability settings.
- Check whether the content type is enabled for search indexing.
- Use the responsible SEO plugin or WordPress setting to exclude content that should not appear in search.
- Clear relevant caches and check the sitemap again.
Include preferred canonical URLs, not every URL WordPress can technically produce. A sitemap is a list of URLs you want Google to consider, not a complete dump of every archive, parameter, redirect, or duplicate page.
How do you fix a blank or incomplete sitemap?
A blank or incomplete sitemap usually means that content is unpublished, unavailable to search engines, excluded by indexability settings, or hidden behind stale cached output.
- Confirm that posts are published rather than drafts, private, scheduled, or trashed.
- Check Settings → Reading for an accidental search-visibility restriction.
- Confirm that the affected post type is publicly queryable.
- Check whether an SEO plugin has marked the content
noindex. - Clear WordPress, plugin, CDN, and server caches.
- Make sure the site is not serving a staging or maintenance-mode response.
- Check whether a security layer is changing or blocking XML responses.
Yoast’s sitemap behavior generally excludes content marked noindex, but behavior can differ between sitemap systems. Check the settings of the plugin that actually generates the sitemap.
How do you fix “Couldn’t fetch” in Google Search Console?
“Couldn’t fetch” can result from a 404 or 5xx response, DNS or SSL problems, a wrong domain version, firewall rules, authentication, invalid XML, or a temporary fetch failure; the message does not by itself prove that the XML is malformed.
- Open the sitemap in an incognito browser window to confirm that it is publicly reachable.
- Confirm that the URL returns the XML sitemap rather than a WordPress 404 page, login screen, maintenance page, or HTML error page.
- Check that the sitemap uses the correct HTTPS and hostname version.
- Review hosting, web-server, DNS, and SSL error logs.
- Review firewall, CDN, bot-protection, and security-plugin rules that could block Google.
- Check that the sitemap is valid XML and that the server returns a successful response.
- Fix the cause and resubmit the sitemap.
- Use URL Inspection for individual important pages if only particular URLs have problems.
If the error persists after the sitemap is publicly accessible, wait and check the report again because fetch processing can be temporary. Do not submit every possible sitemap URL at once; first determine which sitemap index is intended.
Why are URLs discovered but not indexed?
Google can report URLs discovered from a sitemap without indexing those URLs because sitemap submission does not override Google’s separate crawling, quality, canonical, and indexing decisions.
For an important page, use Search Console’s URL Inspection tool and check for duplicate content, a canonical pointing elsewhere, a noindex directive, blocked crawling, weak internal linking, or content that does not provide enough distinct value. Google says recrawling can take several days to several weeks and is not guaranteed in its recrawling guidance.
Improve internal links and page quality rather than repeatedly resubmitting the same sitemap. A sitemap can help Google find a URL, but it cannot make Google index it.
Should you submit wp-sitemap.xml or sitemap_index.xml?
Submit the sitemap index generated by the system you intend to use: submit wp-sitemap.xml for WordPress core or sitemap_index.xml when Yoast SEO is the active generator.
If both URLs load, you may have WordPress core and an SEO plugin generating overlapping sitemap systems. Compare their contents and identify which system is intended. Keep one primary generator and avoid submitting duplicate indexes unless you have a specific diagnostic reason.
Submitting a child sitemap separately is normally unnecessary when the sitemap index already links to it. The index is designed to tell Google where the child files are.
What is the difference between a sitemap and internal linking?
Internal links help users and crawlers navigate the website, while a sitemap provides an additional list of URLs for search-engine discovery; a sitemap does not replace internal links.
Link important pages from relevant navigation, category pages, and related content. Use the sitemap as a second discovery signal, particularly for new, large, complex, frequently updated, or recently migrated sites. A page that appears in a sitemap but has no useful internal context may still be difficult for users to find and may receive less search value.
When is a manual XML sitemap appropriate?
Manual sitemap creation is reasonable for a tiny non-WordPress site, a special developer-controlled setup, or a site where automatic generation is unavailable. Manual XML becomes difficult to maintain as URLs change, so it is usually the wrong choice for a normal WordPress site.
Google’s sitemap-building documentation notes that manually creating a sitemap may be practical for fewer than a few dozen URLs. WordPress owners should generally use core generation or the sitemap system of an existing SEO plugin instead of editing theme files or hand-maintaining XML.
WordPress sitemap checklist
- WordPress is version 5.5 or newer, or an existing SEO plugin provides the sitemap.
https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xmlor the active plugin URL loads publicly.- The canonical domain and HTTPS version are correct.
- Settings → Reading does not contain an accidental search-visibility restriction.
- Only one sitemap-generating system is intended.
- The sitemap contains canonical, indexable URLs that deserve search visibility.
- Private, duplicate, redirecting, blocked, and low-value URLs are excluded.
- The sitemap is submitted to the correct verified Google Search Console property.
- The Search Console sitemap status and discovered URL information are checked after submission.
- Important pages still have useful internal links.
WordPress, SEO-plugin, and Google Search Console labels can differ slightly by WordPress version, plugin version, language, or interface update. If a label is not exactly where described, look for the equivalent sitemap, site-feature, reading-visibility, permalinks, or Sitemaps setting.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the default WordPress sitemap URL?
The default WordPress core sitemap URL is https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xml on WordPress 5.5 and later. Replace yourdomain.com with the site’s real canonical domain.
Does WordPress automatically create a sitemap?
Yes. WordPress core automatically generates XML sitemaps beginning with WordPress 5.5, so most current WordPress sites do not need a separate sitemap plugin just to obtain one.
Is a sitemap plugin necessary for WordPress?
No. WordPress core usually provides a sufficient sitemap for basic URL discovery. An SEO plugin is worthwhile only when the site also needs its broader SEO controls or when the plugin is already the intended sitemap generator.
Should I submit wp-sitemap.xml or sitemap_index.xml?
Submit wp-sitemap.xml when WordPress core generates the sitemap and sitemap_index.xml when Yoast SEO generates it. Check which URL loads and avoid maintaining overlapping sitemap systems.
Can a WordPress sitemap improve rankings?
A sitemap can help search engines discover URLs, but it does not directly improve rankings or guarantee crawling and indexing. Strong content, canonical URLs, internal links, and overall technical accessibility still matter.
The Bottom Line
For most current WordPress sites, creating a sitemap means opening /wp-sitemap.xml, confirming that WordPress core generated it, and submitting that index to Google Search Console. Use a plugin sitemap only when the plugin’s wider SEO features justify it, choose one active generator, and treat sitemap submission as a discovery hint—not a guarantee of indexing.
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