When launching a website, search engine ranking is critical for success, and many overlook key details like web optimization. One important tool for SEO is the sitemap.
What are sitemaps?
Sitemaps are files that include all relevant information about a website’s content—pages, videos, and other files—and show how they’re related. They’re usually created in XML format (sitemap.xml), or compressed as GZIP (sitemap.xml.gz) for large sites. If a sitemap exceeds 50,000 URLs or 50MB, it can be split into smaller files.
Web crawlers usually detect most active web pages, especially if your site is well-structured. But sitemaps help ensure all your content is found and indexed.
Why do you need a sitemap for your website?
Sitemaps are especially useful for large sites, but there are more reasons to use one:
- Pages that are isolated or not well linked—adding them to a sitemap increases the chance they’ll be crawled.
- Low-traffic sites or those with few recognized links—sitemaps help reinforce indexing and can change link hierarchy.
- Sites with videos or images—include their URLs in the sitemap for better indexing.
If your site is multilingual, create a separate sitemap for each language.
Where should you upload the sitemap?
The recommended location is your website’s root directory, though it’s sometimes found in subdirectories.
Conclusion
A sitemap helps improve your website’s SEO by telling search engines how your site is organized, making it easier to rank higher if you also have quality content and good performance. Creating a sitemap is simple but essential to ensure your site isn’t overlooked. If you’re unsure how to create one, many hosting providers offer tools to help.
