TheSeoSoul
Free tools/Crawl

Free Sitemap Checker

Verify that crawlers can find a usable XML sitemap. We check /sitemap.xml, robots.txt Sitemap: lines, and sample listed URLs — free, no signup.

How it works

  1. 01

    Read robots.txt Sitemap: lines

    We fetch robots.txt and collect every Sitemap: directive so discovery matches what crawlers see.

  2. 02

    Probe candidate sitemap URLs

    Default /sitemap.xml plus declared URLs are fetched and classified as urlset, sitemap index, HTML misfire, or missing.

  3. 03

    Sample <loc> entries

    When XML looks valid, we count locs and show a short sample so you can spot staging hosts or accidental junk URLs.

What this sitemap checker validates

  • Presence and HTTP 200 status of /sitemap.xml
  • Explicit Sitemap: declarations inside robots.txt
  • XML structure compliance (<urlset> vs nested <sitemapindex>)
  • Verification that listed <loc> entries are 100% indexable 200 OK canonical URLs

Scenarios

XML Sitemap Pitfalls & Large Site Architecture

Search engines treat XML sitemaps as discovery roadmaps. Common issues that derail indexing include:

Dirty Sitemaps

Sitemaps Containing 404s or Redirects

The Problem: Listing outdated 404 pages or 301 redirects in your sitemap degrades Googlebot's trust in your sitemap, slowing down crawl discovery.

The Fix: Ensure only 200 OK, self-canonical, indexable URLs are included in XML sitemaps.

Scale Limits

Exceeding 50,000 URLs / 50MB File Limit

The Problem: Large e-commerce or directory sites attempting to output 100,000 URLs into a single monolithic sitemap get rejected by search crawlers.

The Fix: Split large catalogs into nested sitemaps grouped under a master <sitemapindex> file.

Lastmod Signals

Artificial or Stale lastmod Timestamps

The Problem: Updating all <lastmod> timestamps to current time on every build causes Googlebot to ignore the lastmod directive completely.

The Fix: Set <lastmod> to true content modification dates to help search engines prioritize re-crawling updated pages.

XML Sitemap Standards & Next.js Implementation

A clean XML sitemap follows the sitemaps.org schema. For large sites, use a sitemap index file:

Standard XML Sitemap Index Formatxml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<sitemapindex xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9">
  <sitemap>
    <loc>https://example.com/sitemap-posts.xml</loc>
    <lastmod>2026-09-01T12:00:00Z</lastmod>
  </sitemap>
  <sitemap>
    <loc>https://example.com/sitemap-tools.xml</loc>
    <lastmod>2026-09-01T12:00:00Z</lastmod>
  </sitemap>
</sitemapindex>
Next.js App Router (app/sitemap.ts)typescript

Generate dynamic XML sitemaps in Next.js with lastmod dates:

import type { MetadataRoute } from 'next';

export default async function sitemap(): Promise<MetadataRoute.Sitemap> {
  return [
    {
      url: 'https://example.com',
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: 'weekly',
      priority: 1.0,
    },
    {
      url: 'https://example.com/tools',
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: 'daily',
      priority: 0.8,
    },
  ];
}

Frequently asked questions

What does a sitemap checker look for?
It probes /sitemap.xml plus any Sitemap: URLs declared in robots.txt, then checks whether the response looks like a urlset or sitemap index and samples <loc> entries.
Why does robots.txt matter for sitemaps?
Search engines often discover sitemaps from robots.txt. A file that exists only at an obscure path may never be fetched unless you submit it manually in Search Console.
Does this submit my sitemap to Google?
No. We only fetch what you ask us to inspect. Submission still happens in Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools, or IndexNow where supported.
Is this free?
Yes — free, no registration on TheSeoSoul.

Keep going

What to check next

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