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Sitemap Validator
A sitemap validator checks that an XML sitemap is structurally correct before it is submitted to Google Search Console or Bing, catching the parser errors, missing <loc> tags, and protocol-limit breaches that quietly stop a sitemap from being read. A single malformed character or a non-absolute URL is enough for a crawler to reject the whole file, and Search Console often reports only a vague “couldn’t fetch” rather than the line that broke it.
This free, browser-based tool parses the XML you paste, confirms the root is a <urlset> or <sitemapindex>, verifies every entry has a valid absolute <loc>, counts the entries, and warns when the file pushes past the 50,000-URL or 50 MB limits. It runs entirely in your browser, so even an unpublished sitemap stays private.
🔒 Private: everything runs in your browser. Nothing you paste is uploaded.
This validator checks the XML you paste — it does not fetch URLs or crawl your site.
How to validate an XML sitemap
Paste the full contents of your sitemap.xml into the box and press Validate. The tool reports a clear pass or fail, lists every issue with the affected entry positions, and shows the type, entry count, error count, and raw size at a glance.
Well-formed XML and the correct root element
The first thing a crawler does is parse the file, so the validator runs the same step: it loads the XML and reports any well-formedness error, such as an unclosed tag or a stray ampersand, exactly as the browser’s own parser sees it. It then confirms the root element is either <urlset> for a sitemap or <sitemapindex> for an index of sitemaps. Anything else, including an HTML error page accidentally saved as a sitemap, fails here, because a crawler will not look past a wrong or missing root element.
Every entry needs a valid absolute loc
The <loc> tag carries the actual URL, and the protocol requires exactly one inside every <url> or <sitemap> entry. The validator flags any entry that is missing a <loc>, any <loc> that is empty, and any value that is not an absolute http:// or https:// URL, listing the exact entry positions so the fault is quick to find. Relative paths like /page/ are a common mistake that passes a human eye but is silently dropped by crawlers.
Staying inside the 50,000-URL and 50 MB limits
The sitemaps protocol caps a single file at 50,000 URLs and 50 megabytes uncompressed. Exceeding either limit means a crawler may read only part of the file or reject it outright, so the validator counts every entry and measures the raw size of the text you paste, warning before either ceiling is crossed. When a site needs more, the fix is to split the URLs across several sitemaps and list those files in a <sitemapindex>, which itself follows the same 50,000-entry limit.
Sitemap validator frequently asked questions
Q1What makes an XML sitemap invalid?
The most common faults are XML that is not well-formed, such as an unclosed tag or an unescaped ampersand, a root element that is not a urlset or sitemapindex, an entry missing its loc tag, or a loc that is not an absolute http or https URL. A file that exceeds 50,000 URLs or 50 megabytes also breaks the protocol and may be rejected or only partly read.
Q2Does this sitemap validator crawl or fetch my URLs?
No. It only validates the XML text you paste into the box, checking structure, the root element, the loc tags, and the entry count. It never makes a network request, never visits your URLs, and never checks whether a page returns a 200 or a 404. That fetching step is what Search Console does after a sitemap passes structural validation like this.
Q3What is the difference between a urlset and a sitemapindex?
A urlset is a normal sitemap that lists the actual page URLs of a site inside url entries. A sitemapindex is a master file that lists other sitemap files inside sitemap entries, used when a site has more URLs than a single 50,000-entry file can hold. The validator detects which type you pasted and applies the matching rules to each entry automatically.
Q4Can I use relative URLs in a sitemap?
No. Every loc value must be a complete absolute URL beginning with http or https, including the full domain. A relative path such as /products/widget/ is one of the most common silent failures because it looks fine to a person but is ignored by crawlers. The validator flags any non-absolute loc and shows the entry position so it can be corrected quickly.
Q5Is it safe to paste an unpublished sitemap here?
Yes. Every check runs locally in your browser using the built-in XML parser, and nothing you paste is uploaded, logged, or stored anywhere. The tool keeps working even with the network disconnected once the page has loaded, which makes it safe for sitemaps of staging sites or pages that have not yet gone live.
