Sitemap Validator
Enter a sitemap URL to check that it's well-formed XML with a valid structure.
Overview
An XML sitemap has to follow the sitemaps.org spec to be usable by search engines: well-formed XML, a <urlset> or <sitemapindex> root element, and a <loc> for every entry, capped at 50,000 URLs per file. This tool fetches a sitemap URL and validates its structure against those rules, flagging entries that are missing required fields or a sitemap that isn't valid XML at all.
It checks structure, not content — it doesn't verify that every listed URL actually exists or returns a 200, only that the sitemap file itself is correctly formed.
Examples
A valid sitemap
https://example.com/sitemap.xml
Valid urlset with 128 URLs.
How It Works
- Enter the full URL of a sitemap file, e.g. https://example.com/sitemap.xml.
- Complete the verification check if shown.
- Click Validate to fetch and parse the sitemap.
- Review whether it's valid, its root element type, URL count, and any issues found.
Use Cases
Confirming a generated sitemap is well-formed
Check a sitemap produced by a CMS or static site generator before submitting it to Search Console.
Diagnosing a sitemap index
Validate a <sitemapindex> file that references multiple child sitemaps, confirming each entry has a location.
Tips
- A sitemap over 50,000 URLs or 50MB uncompressed needs to be split into multiple files referenced from a sitemap index, per the sitemaps.org spec.
- This tool validates structure, not reachability — a sitemap can be structurally valid while still listing URLs that return 404.
FAQ
No, it validates the sitemap's own XML structure — well-formedness, root element, and required fields — not whether each listed URL is reachable.
This tool makes an outbound request to a URL you choose, so a quick bot check helps prevent the tool being used to flood arbitrary sites with automated traffic.