Submitting your sitemap is an important step in helping search engines like Google and Bing crawl and index your WordPress site properly. Here’s a simple guide to check if your sitemap is active and how to submit it.
Submitting sitemap in WordPress
Step 1: Make sure your WordPress sitemap exists
Before submitting anything, you need to make sure your sitemap is available.
To check:
- Open a web browser.
- Enter your site’s URL followed by /sitemap.xml. Example: https://yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml
- If you see a page listing your site’s posts, pages, and content links, your sitemap is working.
- If you see an error like “page not found,” you may need to fix your sitemap settings first.
Fix sitemap issues if needed
Depending on your WordPress setup, there are a few reasons you might not see a sitemap yet.
For WordPress.com sites
- Go to your dashboard.
- Navigate to Tools → Marketing → Traffic.
- Check the Sitemaps section.
- If your site isn’t public, update your Privacy Settings to allow search engines to index it.
For self-hosted WordPress.org sites
- Log into your dashboard.
- Go to Settings → Reading.
- Make sure the box “Discourage search engines from indexing” is unchecked.
- Save changes.
- Refresh [your site URL]/sitemap.xml to check.
If you still can’t find a sitemap
- Check if an SEO plugin is managing it. Popular sitemap plugins in 2025 include:
- Yoast SEO
- Rank Math SEO
- SEOPress
- Jetpack
- Open the plugin settings and ensure the sitemap feature is enabled.
Step 2: Submit your sitemap to Google
Once your sitemap is ready, submit it to Google Search Console.
Here’s how:
- Go to Google Search Console.
- Select your website property.
- In the sidebar, click Sitemaps.
- In the “Add a new sitemap” field, type sitemap.xml (or the correct file name if it’s custom).
- Click Submit.
Final step: Check your sitemap status
After submitting, you can monitor how your sitemap is performing:
- In Google Search Console, the sitemaps section will show when it was last read, how many URLs were discovered, and any sitemap errors.
If there are any errors, the tool will explain the issues so you can fix them quickly.
Why submitting your sitemap matters
While search engines are smart enough to find most websites eventually, manually submitting your sitemap:
- Speeds up how fast your site appears in search results
- Helps new pages get discovered quicker
- Improves indexing accuracy for large or complex sites
It’s a small task that can have a big impact on your SEO.
FAQs
Do I need to submit my sitemap manually?
You don’t always have to, because search engines like Google and Bing can usually find your sitemap automatically. However, manually submitting it through Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools helps speed up the indexing process and ensures your pages are discovered correctly.
What if I don’t see my sitemap at /sitemap.xml?
If you can’t find your sitemap, first check your WordPress privacy settings to make sure your site is visible to search engines. If you’re using SEO plugins like Yoast, Rank Math, or SEOPress, make sure the sitemap feature is enabled in the plugin settings.
Can I submit multiple sitemaps?
Yes, if your site generates different sitemaps (like one for posts, one for pages, and one for images or videos), you can submit them all individually in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
How long does it take for Google to process my sitemap?
After submission, Google may take anywhere from a few hours to several days to crawl and index your sitemap, depending on your site’s size, structure, and crawl budget.
What happens if there’s an error in my sitemap?
Both Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools will notify you if they detect errors. Typical issues include broken URLs, inaccessible pages, or incorrect formatting. Once fixed, you can resubmit your sitemap for reprocessing.
