Free tool Sitemap generator and XML sitemap checker
Paste one URL per line, optionally with a last-modified date and language alternates, and download a sitemap.xml that follows the sitemaps.org protocol and Google’s rules. Above 50,000 URLs or 50 MB it splits the list and writes a sitemap index. Switch to Check a sitemap to audit one you already have.
- Index file when it gets big
- hreflang alternates
- Runs locally
Generate or check a sitemap
The generator starts with five URLs from an example site, including one with language versions and one with an image. Paste your own list, for example exported from your CMS or a crawler.
Baidu caps files at 10 MB and does not process sitemap index files.
Each line: URL [lastmod] [lang=URL …] [image=URL …], separated by spaces. lastmod as 2026-11-02 or with a time and zone. Lines starting with # are ignored.
Paste the contents of sitemap.xml or a sitemap index.
Used to check that every URL is on the same host, and inside the sitemap’s folder.
URLs
6
In the sitemap
Files
1
Including the index
Largest file (bytes)
1,338
Uncompressed
Entries
—
<url> or <sitemap>
Errors
—
Warnings
—
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9" xmlns:xhtml="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xmlns:image="http://www.google.com/schemas/sitemap-image/1.1">
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/</loc>
<lastmod>2026-11-02</lastmod>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/"/>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.com/de/"/>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/"/>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/pricing</loc>
<lastmod>2026-10-28</lastmod>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/blog/sitemap-guide</loc>
<lastmod>2026-10-15T09:30:00-05:00</lastmod>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/search?q=linen&sort=new</loc>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/products/blue-mug</loc>
<lastmod>2026-09-30</lastmod>
<image:image>
<image:loc>https://example.com/images/blue-mug.jpg</image:loc>
</image:image>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/de/</loc>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/"/>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.com/de/"/>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/"/>
</url>
</urlset>
Upload it to your site root and submit it in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. When the list is split, this is the index file.
All files
Upload every file to the site root, then submit only sitemap.xml (the index).
Checks
- Note1 alternate URL(s) were missing as their own entries and were added with the same language group.
- OKAll 6 URLs are absolute, on one host, without duplicates or date errors.
Version v1.0Updated Update history
What the generator and checker tell you
Both modes end in a list of checks. Errors make search engines skip a URL or the whole file; warnings are things to fix when you can.
URLs and files
Up to 50,000 URLs and 50 MB fit in one sitemap. Above that, the tool writes sitemap-1.xml, sitemap-2.xml… and a sitemap.xml index that lists them, so you still submit a single address. In Baidu mode there is no index, because Baidu ignores index files.
lastmod
The date the page’s main content last changed. Google uses it only if it is consistently accurate; Bing says the same. A sitemap where every URL shows today’s date tells crawlers nothing, so the tool warns when all dates are identical.
Hosts and escaping
All URLs must be absolute and on the same protocol and host as the sitemap. Characters such as & in query strings must be written as & in XML; the generator does this, and the checker flags a raw & as a fatal error.
What cannot be checked offline
Whether each URL returns 200, is not redirected, is not noindex and is the canonical version. Listing redirected or blocked URLs wastes crawl budget. Search Console’s Sitemaps report shows how many submitted URLs were indexed.
Google’s sitemap ping endpoint stopped working at the end of 2023. Submit through Search Console, the Search Console API or a Sitemap: line in robots.txt; Bing also supports IndexNow for instant notifications.
From URL list to submitted sitemap
Four steps; only the last needs a login.
-
1
Collect the URLs
Export the canonical, indexable URLs from your CMS, database or a site crawler. Leave out redirects, 404s, noindex pages and parameter duplicates.
-
2
Add dates and languages
Append the real last-modified date to each line if you have it. For multilingual pages add
en=…,de=…andx-default=…. -
3
Download and upload
Download sitemap.xml (and the parts if it was split) and put the files at your site root, e.g. https://example.com/sitemap.xml.
-
4
Submit
Add
Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap.xmlto robots.txt, then submit it in Google Search Console (Indexing → Sitemaps) and Bing Webmaster Tools. For China, use Baidu Search Resource Platform.
The sitemap protocol in one table
Sitemaps follow the sitemaps.org protocol, supported by Google, Bing, Yandex and others. Google adds a few rules of its own, and Baidu has stricter limits.
- UTF-8 only; escape & < > " ' in URLs
- A sitemap at /blog/sitemap.xml only covers /blog/… unless submitted in Search Console
- Google ignores changefreq and priority; Bing says it ignores them too
- Image sitemaps: only image:loc is still used (caption, title, license, geo_location retired in 2022)
| Rule | Protocol / Google / Bing | Baidu |
|---|---|---|
| URLs per file | 50,000 | 50,000 |
| Size per file (uncompressed) | 50 MB (52,428,800 bytes) | 10 MB (10,485,760 bytes) |
| Sitemap index | Yes, up to 50,000 sitemaps | Not processed |
| Encoding | UTF-8 | UTF-8 or GBK |
| lastmod | W3C datetime, used if accurate | Accepted |
| changefreq / priority | Ignored by Google and Bing | Accepted, effect not documented |
| Where to submit | Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools, robots.txt | Search Resource Platform (普通收录 → sitemap) |
Checking the sample sitemap
Switch to “Check a sitemap” to see this example: five entries written by hand, with four common problems.
| Entry | Problem | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| https://example.com/pricing | lastmod 2026/10/28 uses slashes | 2026-10-28 |
| /blog/sitemap-guide | Relative URL | https://example.com/blog/sitemap-guide |
| http://example.com/about | http while the site is https | List the canonical https URL |
| https://example.com/pricing (2nd) | Duplicate | Remove the second entry |
| https://example.com/ | changefreq and priority | Harmless; Google ignores both |
In the generator example, the & in /search?q=linen&sort=new is escaped automatically, and the German page gets its own entry with the same language group.
Why sitemap URLs do not get indexed
A sitemap is a hint. These mistakes make search engines trust it less.
Listing URLs that redirect
Old http or non-www URLs, or pages you moved. List only the final, canonical address.
Including noindex or blocked pages
A URL in the sitemap but blocked by robots.txt or marked noindex sends mixed signals and shows up as an error in Search Console.
lastmod set to “now”
A generator that stamps every URL with the build date makes lastmod useless. Use the content’s real change date.
One huge file
Above 50,000 URLs or 50 MB the whole file can be rejected. Split by section (products, blog) so you can see indexing per part.
See what search engines actually crawl
A sitemap tells crawlers what you want indexed. TapCub shows what they really fetch and what visitors do afterwards, separating bots from people.
Search engine crawl health
Googlebot, Bingbot, Baiduspider and AI crawlers on their own lines, with fetches, success rate, 404s and 5xx.
Learn moreSearch Console, Bing and Baidu
Clicks, impressions and position from Google and Bing; push new URLs to Baidu after binding your Baidu account.
Learn more404s with their referrers
See broken URLs people still reach, and the page that sent them, so you can redirect or fix the link.
Learn moreSitemap generator questions
Still have a question?
Chat with the team behind TapCub — we usually reply within a few hours on business days.
What is an XML sitemap?
A file, usually /sitemap.xml, that lists the URLs you want search engines to crawl, optionally with the date each page last changed and its language versions. It helps crawlers find pages, especially new ones and ones with few internal links. It does not guarantee indexing.
Does my site need a sitemap?
Google says small sites of about 500 pages or fewer that are well linked internally may not need one. Larger sites, new sites with few backlinks, sites with lots of media or news, and multilingual sites benefit most.
How do I submit a sitemap to Google, Bing and Baidu?
Google: Search Console → Indexing → Sitemaps, enter the URL and submit. Bing: Bing Webmaster Tools → Sitemaps. Baidu: Search Resource Platform → 资源提交 → 普通收录 → sitemap. For all of them, also add a Sitemap: line to robots.txt.
What happens when I have more than 50,000 URLs?
Split them into several sitemap files and list those in a sitemap index, then submit the index. This tool does that automatically and offers all files as a .zip. Baidu is the exception: it does not process index files, so submit each sitemap there.
Should I use changefreq and priority?
You can, but Google ignores both and Bing says it disregards them. An accurate lastmod is the field that matters. This generator leaves the two out.
How do I add hreflang to a sitemap?
Add each language version on the line as lang=URL, including the page itself and optionally x-default. The tool writes the xhtml:link elements and the xhtml namespace, and gives each alternate its own entry with the same group, as Google requires.
Can the checker tell me which URLs are not indexed?
No. Indexing status, HTTP status codes and noindex can only be checked by fetching each page or in Search Console. This checker covers everything that can be judged from the file itself.
Is my URL list uploaded?
No. Generating, splitting, zipping and checking all happen in your browser. Nothing is sent to TapCub, and the tool has no share link.
Update history
New features, fixes and data refreshes for this tool, newest first.
-
· v1.0
LaunchedFirst release.
Missing something or found an error? Tell us — requests that come up often go into the next update. All tool updates
Point crawlers at the sitemap
Reference the sitemap in robots.txt, add hreflang where needed, and redirect the URLs you dropped.