Complete guide to creating XML sitemaps with Yoast SEO and submitting to Google Search Console 2025

What is an XML sitemap and why do you need one?

Think of an XML sitemap as a roadmap for search engines like Google. It's a file that lists all the important pages on your website, tells search engines when each page was last updated, and helps them understand your site's structure.

For small businesses, having a proper sitemap is crucial because:

• It helps Google find your pages faster - especially important for new content or pages that might not have many internal links
• It tells search engines what's important - you can control which pages appear in search results
• It speeds up indexing - Google can discover and include your content in search results more quickly
• It saves your crawl budget - Google doesn't waste time crawling unimportant pages

WordPress core sitemaps vs Yoast SEO sitemaps: which is better?

Since WordPress 5.5 (released in 2020), every WordPress site automatically gets a basic XML sitemap. However, there's a significant difference between WordPress's built-in sitemap and the one created by Yoast SEO.

WordPress core sitemap limitations

• Very basic functionality with limited customisation options
• No control over what content gets included or excluded
• Pages marked as "noindex" still appear in the sitemap (which confuses search engines)
• Limited support for different content types
• No automatic updates when you change SEO settings

Why Yoast SEO sitemaps are superior

• Intelligent content filtering: Automatically excludes pages you've marked as "noindex"
• Better organisation: Creates separate sitemaps for posts, pages, categories, and other content types
• Smaller, faster files: Breaks large sitemaps into manageable chunks of 1,000 URLs each
• Automatic updates: Refreshes whenever you publish, edit, or delete content
• Advanced customisation: Control exactly what appears in your sitemap

New Yoast SEO sitemap features for 2025

Yoast SEO has introduced several exciting features in 2025 that make sitemaps even more effective:

llms.txt file generation

This is a brand new feature launched in June 2025. Yoast now automatically creates an "llms.txt" file that helps AI tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini better understand your website content. This file is updated weekly and works alongside your XML sitemap to improve your site's visibility in AI-powered search.

Enhanced crawl optimisation

The 2025 version includes improved crawl optimisation settings in Yoast SEO Premium, helping search engines crawl your site more efficiently by removing unnecessary URLs from the sitemap.

Better schema markup integration

Sitemaps now work more closely with Yoast's schema markup features, providing richer information to search engines about your content types and structure.

How to enable XML sitemaps in Yoast SEO

Enabling sitemaps in Yoast SEO is straightforward. Here's exactly what to do:

Step 1: Access your WordPress dashboard

Log into your WordPress admin area using your username and password.

Step 2: Navigate to Yoast SEO settings

1. In the left sidebar, click on "SEO"
2. Click on "Settings" (this expands the Yoast SEO menu)
3. You'll see several tabs at the top - click on "Site features"

Step 3: Enable XML sitemaps

1. Scroll down to the "APIs" section
2. Find "XML sitemaps"
3. Toggle the switch to "On" (you'll see a purple checkmark when enabled)
4. Click "Save changes" at the bottom of the page

Step 4: View your sitemap

Once enabled, you can view your sitemap by clicking "View the XML sitemap" next to the toggle. This opens your sitemap in a new tab, typically at: yourwebsite.com/sitemap_index.xml

That's it! Your XML sitemap is now active and will automatically update whenever you add, edit, or delete content on your website.

Customising your sitemap: what to include and exclude

One of Yoast SEO's biggest advantages is the control it gives you over what appears in your sitemap. Here's how to optimise it for your business:

Content types to include

By default, Yoast includes the content types that matter most:

• Posts: Your blog articles and news updates
• Pages: Important static pages like About, Services, Contact
• Categories: Helps search engines understand your content organisation
• Tags: Additional topic organisation (use sparingly)

What Yoast automatically excludes

Yoast is smart about excluding content that shouldn't be in search results:

• Pages marked as "noindex"
• Password-protected content
• Draft posts and private pages
• Attachment pages (unless specifically needed)
• Author pages (for single-author sites)

Customising content inclusion

To control what appears in your sitemap:

1. Go to SEO → Settings
2. Click the "Content types" tab
3. For each content type, you'll see "Show [content type] in search results"
4. Toggle this off to remove that content type from your sitemap

Best practices for small businesses

• Include: Posts, Pages, main product categories
• Consider excluding: Tag pages (unless you have a content-heavy blog), Author pages (if you're the only author), Date archives
• Always exclude: Thank you pages, internal search results, admin pages

Submitting your sitemap to Google Search Console

Having a sitemap is only half the battle - you need to tell Google where to find it. Google Search Console is the free tool that lets you do this.

Step 1: Set up Google Search Console (if you haven't already)

1. Go to search.google.com/search-console
2. Sign in with your Google account
3. Click "Add Property"
4. Choose "URL prefix" and enter your website URL
5. Follow the verification steps (Yoast SEO can help with this)

Step 2: Submit your sitemap

1. In Google Search Console, select your verified website
2. In the left sidebar, click "Sitemaps" (under the "Indexing" section)
3. You'll see a box labelled "Add a new sitemap"
4. Enter: sitemap_index.xml (this is Yoast's main sitemap file)
5. Click "Submit"

Step 3: Verify successful submission

After submission, you should see your sitemap listed with a status of "Success". It might take a few hours or days for Google to fully process it.

What if you see errors?

If the status shows "Couldn't fetch" or "Has errors":

• Check that your sitemap URL is correct
• Ensure your website is accessible to Google
• Verify that Yoast SEO's XML sitemaps are enabled
• Wait 24 hours and try resubmitting

Monitoring your sitemap's performance

Submitting your sitemap isn't a "set it and forget it" task. Regular monitoring helps ensure Google is finding and indexing your content effectively.

Key metrics to watch in Google Search Console

Sitemaps report

• Status: Should show "Success"
• Discovered URLs: How many pages Google found in your sitemap
• Last read: When Google last checked your sitemap

Coverage report

This shows which of your sitemap URLs are actually indexed:

• Valid pages: Successfully indexed
• Valid with warnings: Indexed but with minor issues
• Errors: Pages Google couldn't index
• Excluded: Pages Google chose not to index

How often to check

• Weekly: Quick check of sitemap status
• Monthly: Detailed review of coverage and any new errors
• After major site changes: Immediately check if Google has picked up your updates

Signs your sitemap is working well

• Status shows "Success" consistently
• Google discovers new content within days of publishing
• Most of your important pages show as "Valid" in coverage
• Errors are minimal and relate to genuinely problematic pages

Common sitemap issues and how to fix them

Even with Yoast SEO handling most of the technical details, you might occasionally encounter sitemap issues. Here are the most common problems and their solutions:

Issue 1: "Couldn't fetch" error

What it means: Google can't access your sitemap file.

How to fix it:

• Check that your website is online and accessible
• Verify XML sitemaps are enabled in Yoast SEO
• Test the sitemap URL directly in your browser: yoursite.com/sitemap_index.xml
• Check if your hosting provider is blocking Google's crawlers

Issue 2: Sitemap contains "noindex" pages

What it means: Pages marked as "noindex" are still appearing in your sitemap.

How to fix it:

• This typically happens if you're using WordPress core sitemaps instead of Yoast's
• Ensure Yoast SEO's XML sitemaps are enabled (this disables WordPress core sitemaps)
• Check individual pages to confirm their SEO settings

Issue 3: Sitemap too large

What it means: Your sitemap exceeds Google's limits (50MB or 50,000 URLs).

How to fix it:

• Yoast automatically handles this by creating multiple sitemaps
• If you still have issues, exclude unnecessary content types
• Consider whether you really need all tag and category pages indexed

Issue 4: New content not appearing in sitemap

What it means: Recently published content isn't showing up.

How to fix it:

• Check that the content is published (not draft)
• Verify it's not marked as "noindex"
• Clear any caching plugins
• Wait a few minutes - sitemaps update automatically but may have a slight delay

Sitemap best practices

To get the most from your XML sitemap, follow these proven best practices:

Keep it clean and focused

• Only include indexable content: Don't waste Google's time with pages you don't want in search results
• Prioritise quality over quantity: 100 great pages beat 1,000 mediocre ones
• Regular maintenance: Review and clean up your sitemap quarterly

Optimise for mobile-first indexing

• Ensure all pages in your sitemap are mobile-friendly
• Test page loading speeds on mobile devices
• Check that mobile and desktop versions have the same content

Leverage new features

• Enable llms.txt generation in Yoast SEO for better AI discoverability
• Use crawl optimisation features in Yoast SEO Premium
• Monitor Core Web Vitals for pages in your sitemap

Content freshness matters

• Regularly update existing content to keep it relevant
• Publish new content consistently
• Remove or redirect outdated pages

Monitor algorithm changes

Google's algorithms continue evolving in 2025. Stay informed about:

• Core algorithm updates that might affect indexing priorities
• New structured data requirements
• Changes in how Google handles AI-generated content

Summary and next steps

Creating and maintaining an effective XML sitemap doesn't have to be complicated. With Yoast SEO handling the technical details, you can focus on what matters most: creating valuable content for your audience.

Key takeaways

• Yoast SEO sitemaps are superior to WordPress core sitemaps - they're smarter, more organised, and automatically maintained
• Setup is simple: Enable XML sitemaps in Yoast SEO, then submit to Google Search Console
• Regular monitoring helps catch issues early and ensures optimal performance
• Quality content matters more than technical perfection - focus on creating pages people actually want to find

Your next steps

1. Enable XML sitemaps in Yoast SEO if you haven't already
2. Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console
3. Set a monthly reminder to check your sitemap performance
4. Focus on content quality - create pages that genuinely help your customers
5. Consider Yoast SEO Premium if you need advanced features like crawl optimisation

Remember, SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. Having a properly configured sitemap is just one piece of the puzzle, but it's an important foundation that helps search engines understand and rank your content effectively.

Your website's success ultimately depends on creating content that serves your audience's needs. A good sitemap simply ensures that valuable content gets found and indexed by search engines, bringing more potential customers to your business.