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Robots.txt Generator
Generate a robots.txt file to control search engine crawler access.
Sitemap Validator
Parse, validate, and analyze XML sitemaps against the official Sitemap Protocol standard (sitemaps.org). Detects malformed XML, missing required elements, invalid dates, duplicate URLs, non-standard namespaces, and sitemap size limit violations — all 100% client-side.
XML Sitemap Input
What is the Sitemap Validator?
The FreeTechLearner Sitemap Validator parses your XML sitemap using the browser's native DOMParser and validates it against the official Sitemap Protocol specification. It checks XML well-formedness, namespace declarations, required and optional elements, URL validity, date formats, and protocol-defined size limits.
How to Use
- Paste your XML sitemap content into the textarea, upload an .xml file, or click "Load Sample" to test with example data.
- Click "Validate Sitemap" to start the validation.
- Review the status banner (Valid / Invalid) and summary statistics.
- Check the Issues Table for detailed error and warning descriptions.
- Browse parsed URLs in the URL Explorer with search filtering.
Common Use Cases
- Validating sitemaps before submitting to Google Search Console
- Debugging sitemap generation scripts and CMS plugins
- Checking for duplicate URLs across large sitemaps
- Verifying lastmod dates and changefreq values are correctly formatted
- Testing sitemap index files that reference multiple sub-sitemaps
Key Benefits
- 100% client-side — no data uploaded or stored
- Validates against the official Sitemap Protocol (sitemaps.org)
- Supports both <urlset> sitemaps and <sitemapindex> files
- Detects duplicate URLs, invalid dates, and malformed XML
- URL Explorer with search filtering for large sitemaps
- Issues table with severity filtering (errors vs warnings)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an XML sitemap?
An XML sitemap is a file that lists all important pages on your website in a structured XML format, helping search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo discover and index your content more efficiently. It follows the Sitemap Protocol standard at sitemaps.org.
What does this validator check?
The validator checks for: valid XML syntax, correct <urlset> or <sitemapindex> root element, proper xmlns namespace, required <loc> elements with valid absolute URLs, valid W3C dates in <lastmod>, correct <changefreq> values, valid <priority> decimals (0.0–1.0), duplicate URLs, and sitemap size limits (50,000 URLs / 50 MB).
Does this tool upload my sitemap to a server?
No. All XML parsing and validation runs 100% client-side inside your browser using the native DOMParser API. Your sitemap content is never transmitted to any server.
Can it validate sitemap index files?
Yes. The validator automatically detects <sitemapindex> root elements and validates each <sitemap> entry within the index, checking for required <loc> URLs and optional <lastmod> dates.
What is the maximum sitemap size allowed?
According to the Sitemap Protocol, a single sitemap file can contain a maximum of 50,000 URLs and must not exceed 50 MB (uncompressed). The validator warns you if either limit is exceeded.
Why is a sitemap important for SEO?
A sitemap acts as a roadmap for search engines. It ensures Google finds all your important pages quickly, especially if your site is very large, brand new, or has poor internal linking.
What does a missing namespace warning mean?
XML sitemaps must include standard xmlns attributes in the root <urlset> tag. Without these, strict parsers (like Google Search Console) may reject the file entirely.
What format should the <lastmod> date be in?
The <lastmod> date must follow the W3C Datetime format. Acceptable formats include YYYY-MM-DD or full timestamps like 2024-03-15T12:00:00+00:00.
What happens if my sitemap has duplicate URLs?
Duplicate URLs confuse search engines, bloat your sitemap size, and waste crawl budget. Our validator instantly flags any duplicates so you can remove them.
Does Google care about the <priority> tag?
No. Google officially stated they ignore the <priority> and <changefreq> tags. However, other search engines might still use them, and they must contain valid values (0.0 to 1.0) if included.
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