How do I create a sitemap.xml file manually?

Wrap each page URL in a … block, place them inside a element with the sitemaps.org namespace, and add the XML declaration at the top. This tool does that for you: paste your URLs, pick optional lastmod/changefreq/priority values, then copy or download the finished file. You then upload sitemap.xml to your site root.

What is the maximum number of URLs in a sitemap?

A single sitemap file can hold up to 50,000 URLs and must stay under 50 MB uncompressed, per sitemaps.org and Google. If your list is larger, this tool automatically splits it into numbered files and generates a sitemap index that references them.

What is the correct lastmod date format for a sitemap?

The value uses the W3C Datetime format — either a plain date like 2026-07-03 (YYYY-MM-DD) or a full timestamp with a timezone offset such as 2026-07-03T09:30:00+05:30. This tool emits the YYYY-MM-DD form, which is the format Google shows in its own examples.

Does Google use priority and changefreq in sitemaps?

No. Google Search Central states that Google ignores and entirely, and uses only when it is consistently accurate. They remain valid sitemap elements and other crawlers may read them, so this tool lets you include or omit them as you like.

How do I submit a sitemap to Google Search Console?

Upload the file to your site root (for example https://your-site.lk/sitemap.xml), then open Search Console, select your property, go to Sitemaps in the left menu, enter the sitemap path and click Submit. You can also point Google to it by adding a Sitemap: line to your robots.txt.

Do I need a sitemap if my site is small?

It still helps. Google can crawl small sites without one, but a sitemap lists every page you care about in one place, carries lastmod dates, and surfaces pages that have few internal links. For a new site with no backlinks yet, it speeds up discovery of your pages.

Why were some of my URLs skipped?

Each line must be an absolute http:// or https:// URL under 2,048 characters (the limit). Relative paths, other schemes, and over-length URLs are flagged and left out. Exact duplicate lines are removed automatically and reported so your sitemap has no repeated entries.

Does this tool crawl my website to find pages?

No. It takes the URL list you paste and never fetches your site — browser security (CORS) blocks reading arbitrary pages, and crawling would need a server. You supply the URLs (from your CMS, a spreadsheet, or your own list) and the tool serialises them into valid XML locally.

Developer · Utility

XML Sitemap Generator

Paste your page URLs and get a valid sitemap.xml in seconds — with optional lastmod, changefreq and priority. It follows the sitemaps.org protocol, runs entirely in your browser, and needs no signup. Copy it or download it, ready for Google Search Console.

By Induwara Ashinsana— Executive Director, Ryzera TechnologiesUpdated Jul 3, 2026

Generate sitemap.xmlsitemaps.org 0.9

Runs in your browser

Page URLs (one per line)

Absolute http(s):// URLs only. Duplicates and invalid lines are flagged and skipped automatically.

Last modified (<lastmod>)

Uses 2026-07-08 for every URL.

Change frequency (<changefreq>)

A hint only — Google ignores this field.

Priority (<priority>)

Range 0.0–1.0. Google ignores it too.

Formatting

Pretty is indented and readable; minified is smaller.

Paste your page URLs to build a sitemap

Add one absolute URL per line, choose your options, and a valid sitemap.xml appears here — ready to copy or download.

Sources cited: sitemaps.org protocol v0.9 & Google Search Central. Nothing you paste leaves your device — the file is built locally.

How it works

A sitemap is a plain XML file that lists the pages you want search engines to know about. This generator serialises your URL list exactly as the sitemaps.org XML Sitemap protocol v0.9 specifies — no crawling, no estimation, no data leaving your device. The build runs in five deterministic steps:

Parse & clean. Your input is split on new lines and trimmed. Blank lines are dropped; each remaining line must be an absolute http:// or https:// URL of at most 2,048 characters (the protocol's <loc> limit). Exact duplicates are removed and reported so no page appears twice.
Escape XML entities. Each URL is passed through the five entity escapes the protocol mandates — & → &, plus the escapes for ', ", > and <. The ampersand is escaped first so nothing is double-escaped.
Assemble each entry. Every URL becomes a <url> block with a required <loc>. When enabled, a <lastmod> is added in W3C Datetime YYYY-MM-DD form, an optional <changefreq> from the enum (always/hourly/daily/weekly/monthly/yearly/never), and a <priority> clamped to the 0.0–1.0 range and formatted to one decimal.
Wrap the document. The entries are enclosed in a <urlset> element carrying the sitemaps.org 0.9 namespace, prefixed with the <?xml?> declaration.
Enforce the limits. The file is capped at 50,000 URLs and 50 MB uncompressed. If your list is bigger, it is chunked into sitemap-1.xml, sitemap-2.xml, … and a sitemap_index.xml is generated that references each child file — the exact split-and-index remedy both sitemaps.org and Google document.

One note on the optional fields: Google Search Central states that Google ignores <priority> and <changefreq>, and uses <lastmod>only when it is consistently accurate. They are still valid protocol elements — other crawlers may use them — so the tool lets you include or omit each one. Given the same URL list and options, the output is byte-for-byte identical every time (aside from a "today" date), which is what makes it safe to commit to a repository or diff between builds.

Worked examples

Small blog — 3 URLs, entity escaping

Input line 3 is https://example.lk/about?ref=nav&x=1
Parse: 3 absolute URLs, 0 duplicates, 0 rejected
Escape: the & in URL 3 becomes & → …/about?ref=nav&x=1
Assemble: 3 <url> blocks, each with <loc>, <lastmod>2026-07-03, <changefreq>weekly, <priority>0.8
Wrap in <urlset> → one sitemap.xml, no split (3 ≤ 50,000)

Oversize store — 120,000 URLs, split + index

Input: 120,000 valid URLs on https://shop.example.lk
120,000 > 50,000 → ceil(120,000 ÷ 50,000) = 3 files
sitemap-1.xml = 50,000, sitemap-2.xml = 50,000, sitemap-3.xml = 20,000
50,000 + 50,000 + 20,000 = 120,000 (checks out)
Emit sitemap_index.xml listing exactly 3 child <sitemap> entries

Edge values — clamping & validation

Priority typed as 1.7 → clamped to 1.0; -0.4 → clamped to 0.0
Priority 0.55 → formatted to one decimal → 0.6
Line ftp://x.lk → rejected (scheme not http/https)
Line /relative/path → rejected (not an absolute URL)
https://a.lk/x pasted twice → second removed as a duplicate

Frequently asked questions

Sources & references

The schema, limits, and formatting rules used here were last cross-checked against these sources on 2026-07-03. Need to tell crawlers where the file lives? Add a Sitemap: line with the robots.txt generator.

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Comments & feedback

Spotted a bug or want an improvement? Tell us — our team reviews every comment, and good ideas get built. Comments are public and anonymous.

Found a bug, edge case, or want to suggest an improvement?

Email me at [email protected] — most fixes ship within 24 hours.