In my post, I show you how to create a sitemap in WordPress without a plugin. The latest version of WordPress creates a free sitemap for your blog. To view your sitemap, type ‘wp-sitemap.xml’ after your homepage URL.
If you have an SEO plugin installed on your blog, the WordPress sitemap is disabled. The plugin does this to stop your site from having two sitemaps. I show you how to enable the sitemap after deactivating your SEO plugin.
Let’s get started.
How to create a free WordPress sitemap without a plugin
- Go to your website homepage URL
- Type ‘/wp-sitemap.xml’ after your URL
- Hit enter to view your sitemap
First, go to your site’s homepage.
After your homepage URL, type ‘/wp-sitemap.xml’.
Finally, hit enter to view your sitemap.
How to submit your WordPress sitemap to Google
- Copy your sitemap URL.
- On the Google Search Console dashboard, select ‘Sitemaps’ from the menu.
- Paste your sitemap URL into the ‘Add a new sitemap’ section.
- Click on ‘Submit’.
First, copy your website’s sitemap URL.
On your Google Search Console dashboard, select ‘Sitemaps’ from the menu.
Paste your website’s sitemap URL in the ‘Add a new sitemap’ box, then ‘Submit’.
Under ‘Submitted sitemaps’, you can check when Google last read your sitemap.
How to submit your blog posts and sitemap to Google video tutorial
How to submit your WordPress sitemap to Bing
- Copy your website’s sitemap URL.
- On the Bing Webmaster Tools dashboard, select ‘Sitemaps’ from the menu.
- Select the ‘Submit sitemap’ link.
- Paste your sitemap URL and select ‘Submit’.
First, copy your website’s sitemap URL.
On your Bing Webmaster Tools dashboard, select ‘Sitemaps’ from the menu.
Next, select the ‘Submit sitemap’ link.
In the box, paste your sitemap URL and select ‘Submit’.
Once submitted, you can check when Bing last read your sitemap.
How to submit your blog posts and sitemap to Bing video tutorial
WordPress wp-sitemap.xml not working
If you have installed an SEO plugin on your website, the WordPress generated sitemap won’t work. The SEO plugin deactivates it. They do this to prevent your site from having two sitemaps.
If you have an SEO plugin installed on your website, follow my guide on finding your sitemap when using a plugin.
If you had an SEO plugin and uninstalled it, but the WordPress sitemap isn’t working. Go to the permalinks settings on your WordPress admin dashboard.
Click ‘Save Changes’ once. Your WordPress sitemap should be working now.
Conclusion
The latest version of WordPress generates a sitemap for your website without a plugin.
You can find your website’s sitemap by typing ‘wp-sitemap.xml’ after your homepage URL.
If you have an SEO plugin installed on your site, your WordPress sitemap is disabled. The plugin deactivates the WordPress sitemap so that your website only has one for the search engines to read.
If you have disabled your SEO plugin and want to use the WordPress generated sitemap, go to the ‘Permalinks’ setting on your WordPress admin, and click ‘Save Changes’ once. The WordPress sitemap will start working again.
I recommend you submit your sitemap to Google and Bing to get your site indexed. The faster your site is indexed, the faster it shows in search engine results.
What sitemap are you using for your WordPress blog? Do you use an SEO plugin or the WordPress sitemap?
