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Sitemap checker

Enter your site or sitemap address: files, declared URLs, consistency with robots.txt and 20 tested pages, with the fix to apply.

example.com (the sitemap is looked up in robots.txt, then /sitemap.xml) or the sitemap’s direct address.

Loading the anti-bot check…

What the tool checks

  • Discovery and files

    Sitemap declared in robots.txt or present at /sitemap.xml; HTTP status, content type, size, gzip compression, well-formed XML, <urlset> or <sitemapindex> root and sitemaps.org namespace.

  • Indexes and limits

    Indexes are followed up to two levels (10 files at most); each file is checked against the protocol limits: 50,000 URLs and 50 MiB uncompressed.

  • Declared URLs

    Absolute URLs on the same host, over HTTPS, without duplicates or anchors; <lastmod> dates in W3C format and not in the future; <priority> and <changefreq> flagged as ignored by Google.

  • Consistency

    URLs declared but disallowed by robots.txt, and 20 pages spread over the list tested: status, redirect, noindex, canonical pointing to another page.

How to use it

Just enter the domain: the tool reads robots.txt to find the declared sitemap, then tries /sitemap.xml. You can also give the exact address of a sitemap or an index. Items are ranked by severity; fix critical ones first (sitemap not found, invalid XML, blocked or failing URLs), then important ones. The report can be exported as JSON or printed.

FAQ

Why are <priority> and <changefreq> flagged?

Google has confirmed it ignores both tags. They are not an error, but add nothing: only a reliable <lastmod> date is used.

Are all the URLs in my sitemap tested?

No: 20 pages spread over the whole list (start, middle, end), to stay fast and spare your server. Format checks (duplicates, host, dates, robots.txt) cover every URL read.

My sitemap has more than 10 files: is that a problem?

No. The tool stops at 10 files per check and says so; check the others by entering their address directly.

Should I also submit the sitemap in Search Console?

It is recommended: Search Console shows how many sitemap URLs are actually indexed and why the others are not.

Privacy

The address you enter is sent to grichard.eu, which reads the robots.txt, the sitemap(s) and 20 pages of the site, then returns the report. Nothing is kept: not the address, the files or the report. Only a salted hash of your IP address is kept for an hour to prevent abuse.