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XML Sitemap Validator (100% FREE)

This XML sitemap validator checks the sitemap you paste or upload and shows exactly what's valid, what's broken, and which URLs need another look.

Find sitemap problems before search engines do.

Free, no signup. Runs in your browser, nothing is sent anywhere.

Runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded. This checks the file itself, not whether Google crawls or indexes the pages.

How it works

How to use the XML Sitemap Validator in three steps.

  1. Step 1

    Add your sitemap

    Paste sitemap content or choose a file.

  2. Step 2

    Run validation

    Review the grouped errors and warnings.

  3. Step 3

    Fix and recheck

    Fix the source and regenerate the sitemap, then validate again.

An XML URL tree with valid nodes and one diagnosed error alongside a review report.

Examples

Sitemap checks, and what they find.

Illustrative files only, using example.com. None of the results is a claim about indexing.

  1. Duplicate URL and bad date

    Input: A file lists https://example.com/a twice and has <lastmod>tomorrow</lastmod>. Both are formatting problems the file itself shows, with no fake indexing claims.

    ResultOne duplicate URL warning and one invalid date error.

  2. Relative URL

    Input: A <loc> entry contains /pricing instead of https://example.com/pricing. Sitemap URLs need the full address, including the protocol and host.

    ResultOne error: the URL must be absolute.

  3. Clean sitemap

    Input: Twelve unique absolute URLs with dates like 2026-10-01. Valid syntax only. It doesn't prove each page is live or indexed.

    ResultValid. No errors or warnings.

Good to know

What sitemap validation can and can't tell you.

  1. What a validator can actually test

    It checks whether the document parses and whether fields follow the sitemap structure, and finds duplicate, malformed or badly formatted URLs and dates. It can't prove a page is canonical, crawlable or indexed.

  2. The limits that matter

    Google says one sitemap can hold at most 50,000 URLs and be no more than 50MB uncompressed. Larger sites split into several and use a sitemap index. lastmod should reflect meaningful changes, not the latest build.

  3. Sources

    Limits come from Google's guide to building a sitemap, checked October 2026.

FAQ

Questions, answered.

What is an XML sitemap?

A machine readable list of preferred URLs, optionally with meaningful modification dates.

What's the difference between a sitemap and a sitemap index?

A sitemap lists pages. A sitemap index points to multiple sitemaps.

How many URLs can one sitemap contain?

Up to 50,000, and up to 50MB uncompressed per file.

Can a valid sitemap still contain broken pages?

Yes. Syntax checks don't test server responses, redirects, canonicals or noindex.

Does submitting a sitemap guarantee indexing?

No.

Should I update lastmod every day?

Only for meaningful content changes.

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