Submitting your blogger and WordPress website’s sitemap to Google Search Console is one of the most important steps you can take to improve your SEO and ensure that search engines can crawl and index your content properly.
Whether you’re using Blogger (Google’s free blogging platform) or WordPress (the most popular content management system), this guide will walk you through everything you need to know. I’ll show you how to generate, locate, and submit your sitemap to Google Search Console, as well as how to troubleshoot common errors and optimize your sitemap for better SEO results.
Why Sitemaps Are So Important for SEO
A sitemap is essentially a roadmap for search engines, telling them which pages, posts, and media files to crawl and index on your site. It helps search engines:
- Discover new or updated content quickly.
- Understand your website’s structure and organization.
- Prioritize the pages they should index.
Without a sitemap, search engines might overlook important pages, especially if your website has a lot of content. For Blogger and WordPress users, submitting a sitemap ensures that Google knows exactly what to index, which can help improve your website’s rankings in search results.
Part 1: How to Add a Blogger Sitemap to Google Search Console
Step 1: Generate Your Blogger Sitemap URL
Blogger automatically generates a sitemap for your blog, but you just need to know where to find it. Here’s how:
- Go to your Blogger dashboard and open the blog you want to work on.
- Your sitemap URL will follow this format:
https://[YOUR-BLOG-NAME].blogspot.com/sitemap.xmlJust replace
[YOUR-BLOG-NAME]with your actual blog’s URL.Example:
If your blog ismyfoodblog.blogspot.com, your sitemap URL will be:https://myfoodblog.blogspot.com/sitemap.xml
Note: Blogger generates separate sitemaps for posts, pages, and labels (categories). For a more comprehensive sitemap, submit:
- Posts:
/atom.xml?redirect=false&start-index=1&max-results=500OR/sitemap.xml - Pages:
/sitemap-pages.xml
Go to search console and click on sitemap the copy 1 of the links above and paste in the sitemap field, check the screenshot below.
Step 2: Verify Your Blogger Site in Google Search Console
Before you can submit your sitemap, you need to verify that you own the blog in Google Search Console:
- Go to Google Search Console.
- Click “Add Property” and enter your blog’s URL.
- Choose “HTML tag” as the verification method.
- Copy the meta tag code that’s provided.
- In Blogger, go to Theme → Edit HTML, and paste the code just after the
<head>tag. - Save the changes and return to Search Console to finish the verification process.
Step 3: Submit Your Blogger Sitemap
- In Google Search Console, go to the “Sitemaps” section under “Indexing”.
- Under “Add a new sitemap”, enter the sitemap URL (e.g.,
/atom.xml?redirect=false&start-index=1&max-results=500). - Click “Submit”.
- If you have other sitemaps (pages, labels), submit those as well.
Pro Tip:
Blogger automatically updates your sitemap when you publish new content, so there’s no need to resubmit it every time.
Part 2: How to Add a WordPress Sitemap to Google Search Console
Step 1: Generate Your WordPress Sitemap
Most WordPress SEO plugins automatically generate sitemaps. If you’re using Yoast SEO (great for beginners), here’s how you can generate your sitemap:
- Install and activate the Yoast SEO plugin.
- Go to Yoast SEO → Settings → General → Features.
- Make sure the “XML Sitemaps” feature is turned on.
- Save your changes.
Your sitemap will now be available at:
https://[YOUR-SITE-URL]/sitemap_index.xml
Alternative Plugins:
- Rank Math
- All in One SEO (AIOSEO)
Step 2: Verify Your WordPress Site in Google Search Console
- Follow the same initial steps as for Blogger—add your WordPress site to Google Search Console.
- Choose “HTML tag” as the verification method and paste the meta tag into your WordPress site’s
<head>section.- If using Yoast SEO, go to Yoast SEO → Settings → General → Webmaster Tools and paste the code into the “Google Search Console” field.
Step 3: Submit Your WordPress Sitemap
- In Google Search Console, navigate to “Sitemaps”.
- Enter your sitemap URL (e.g.,
sitemap_index.xml). - Click “Submit”.
Note:
Yoast SEO and other WordPress plugins often divide the sitemap into categories like posts, pages, and authors. The sitemap_index.xml file includes all of them, so submitting that will cover everything.
Part 3: Troubleshooting Common Sitemap Errors
Even after submitting your sitemap, you might run into a few errors. Here’s how to fix them:
1. “Sitemap Could Not Be Read” Error
- Cause: There may be an issue with the XML formatting or a broken URL.
- Fix:
- Use a tool like XML Sitemap Validator to check for issues.
- Double-check that your sitemap URL is correct and has no typos.
2. “Submitted URL Not Indexed”
- Cause: Google may not have crawled your website yet.
- Fix:
- You can manually request indexing in the “URL Inspection” tool in Search Console.
- Also, improve internal linking to ensure important pages are prioritized.
3. “Sitemap Contains No URLs”
- Cause: Your sitemap might be empty due to a plugin configuration issue.
- Fix:
- Regenerate the sitemap in your SEO plugin.
- Ensure that your plugin is set to include all post types.
Part 4: Advanced Tips for Sitemap Optimization
- Exclude Low-Value Pages:
Use your SEO plugin to exclude pages that don’t need indexing, like “Thank You” or “Privacy Policy” pages. - Prioritize Key Pages:
In your sitemap, you can use<priority>tags to signal to search engines which pages are most important. - Update Your Sitemap Regularly:
If your sitemap isn’t auto-generated, be sure to update it regularly—at least once a month.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q1: How do I check if my sitemap is indexed?
- Go to Google Search Console → Sitemaps. Look at the “Discovered URLs” count.
Q2: Do I need a sitemap for a small website?
- Yes! Even small sites benefit from faster indexing, which helps boost SEO.
Q3: Can I submit multiple sitemaps?
- Yes. For WordPress, you should submit
sitemap_index.xml. For Blogger, submit sitemaps for posts, pages, and labels separately.
Q4: What’s the difference between XML and HTML sitemaps?
- XML sitemaps are for search engines, while HTML sitemaps are designed for human visitors.
Conclusion
Submitting your Blogger or WordPress sitemap to Google Search Console is a simple yet powerful way to boost your SEO. By following the steps in this guide, you’ll help search engines crawl and index your site more effectively, which can lead to better rankings and more organic traffic.
Need more help? Drop a comment below, and I’ll help you troubleshoot any sitemap issues!
Related Posts:
- How to Fix Crawl Errors in Google Search Console
- Best SEO Plugins for WordPress in 2025
- Beginner’s Guide to Google Analytics for Bloggers
Keywords Used: Add sitemap to Google Search Console, Submit sitemap for Blogger, Submit sitemap for WordPress, XML sitemap for Blogger, Verify WordPress site in Search Console, Fixing sitemap errors, Google Search Console sitemap troubleshooting.
This guide is optimized for SEO and crafted to help users easily understand how to submit their sitemaps. Let me know if you’d like any adjustments! 🚀
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