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How to submit a sitemap to Google
Submitting takes a minute in Search Console. Reading the report afterwards is where the value is. Here are the steps, what each status means, and what changed when Google retired the ping endpoint.
Step by step
- Check the file first. Run it through the validator. Search Console reports some errors only after a delay.
- Publish it on your site, usually at the root:
https://example.com/sitemap.xml. Load it in a private browser window; it must return HTTP 200 and XML, not a login page. - Open Google Search Console and pick the property that covers the sitemap's location. A Domain property covers all subdomains and both protocols.
- Go to Indexing → Sitemaps. Under “Add a new sitemap”, enter the path after your domain (for example
sitemap-index.xml) and press Submit. - Add it to robots.txt too, so Bing and others find it:
Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap-index.xml. How. - Come back in a few days. Open the sitemap row and click See page indexing to see which submitted URLs are indexed and why the others aren't.
No more pinging
For years, tools pinged google.com/ping?sitemap=… after every update. Google deprecated that endpoint in 2023 and it no longer does anything. If a plugin or build script still pings, you can remove it. Google says it will pick up changes through its normal sitemap recrawls, guided by accurate lastmod values.
What the status column means
| Success | Fetched and parsed. Not a promise that every URL is indexed. |
|---|---|
| Has errors | Parsed, but some entries were invalid. Open it to see which and where. |
| Couldn't fetch | Google didn't get the file. Often temporary after submitting; if it persists, see the fixer. |
| Sitemap could not be read | Fetched, but not recognised as a sitemap: malformed XML, HTML or the wrong format. |
Questions people ask
How do I submit a sitemap to Google?
Open Google Search Console, select your property, go to Indexing → Sitemaps, type the sitemap path (for example
sitemap.xml) under “Add a new sitemap” and press Submit. You need a verified property for the site.Can I still ping Google with my sitemap URL?
No. Google deprecated the sitemap ping endpoint in 2023 and it no longer works. Use Search Console, the Search Console API, or a
Sitemap: line in robots.txt.How long does Google take to process a sitemap?
Usually minutes to a few days. Status “Couldn’t fetch” right after submitting often just means Google hasn’t fetched it yet; check again later before troubleshooting.
Do I need to resubmit after every change?
No. Google recrawls known sitemaps on its own schedule. Resubmitting is only useful after a big change such as a new sitemap location or a site migration.
Why is “Discovered URLs” higher than indexed pages?
A sitemap says a URL exists; Google still decides whether to crawl and index it. Low-quality, duplicate or non-canonical URLs are commonly discovered but not indexed. Use the Pages report filtered by sitemap to see the reasons.
How do I submit a sitemap to Bing?
Use Bing Webmaster Tools → Sitemaps, or rely on your robots.txt
Sitemap: line. Bing also supports IndexNow for pushing individual URL changes.