Sitemap issues
Every Sitemap finding Crawl Cove's crawler checks for, each with an example finding and a step-by-step fix.
Sitemap findings compare your XML sitemap with what the crawl actually found. A sitemap is the list of URLs you want indexed, so it only helps while it agrees with the site.
It can disagree in two directions. It can list URLs that should not be there: non-indexable URLs in the sitemap covers entries that redirect, return errors, carry noindex or were never reached, each of which spends crawl budget on a page you do not want shown. Or it can leave out pages that should be there: real, indexable pages that the crawl reached through links but the sitemap never names, so search engines learn about them more slowly.
The third finding is a hostname mismatch. When every URL in the sitemap names a different host from the one you crawled, and that host serves the site too, you have two live copies competing for the same signals. The page explains how to pick one host and redirect the other.
The dates can be wrong too. When every <lastmod> in the file is the same, or the time the sitemap was built, search engines cannot tell which pages changed and stop trusting the field: see sitemap lastmod dates Google cannot trust.
Last, crawlers need to find the file. A sitemap that robots.txt never names is found only by engines you submitted it to, or by guessing its address: add your sitemap to robots.txt is a one-line fix. The opposite mistake is worse: robots.txt pointing at a sitemap that 404s sends every crawler that follows it to a file that is not there.
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Medium severity
robots.txt Points at a Sitemap That 404s
Your robots.txt names a sitemap that answers 404 or 410. Why it happens after a plugin switch or migration, and how to point the line at the real file.
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Low severity
Sitemap lastmod Dates Google Cannot Trust
When every sitemap lastmod is the same date, or the time the file was built, search engines stop using it. How to spot it and fix it at the source.
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Low severity
How to Add Your Sitemap to robots.txt
Your site has an XML sitemap but robots.txt never names it. The one line to add, where it goes, and what changes for crawlers that have not been told.
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Medium severity
Sitemap Lists a Different Hostname: How to Fix It
Every sitemap URL names a different hostname, and that host also serves the site. Why two live copies split your rankings and how to pick one host.
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Low severity
Pages Missing From Your XML Sitemap
A real, indexable page that a crawl found but the XML sitemap never mentions. Why that slows discovery, and how to add it back safely.
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Medium severity
XML Sitemap Contains Non-Indexable URLs
A URL listed in your XML sitemap that redirects, errors, is noindexed, or was never crawled costs you crawl budget and trust. How to clean the file up.
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