# Sitemap.xml — SEO for Developers

Source: https://www.geekswithgeeks.com/en/seo-developers/seo-sitemap

> Create and submit a sitemap to tell search engines about all your pages and their importance.

## What is a sitemap?

A **sitemap.xml** is an XML file that lists every page on your site, along with metadata like last modified date and priority. It's not for users; it's for search engines. It helps crawlers discover pages they might otherwise miss.

## Sitemap structure

Each URL in the sitemap includes the location, last modified date, change frequency, and priority (0.0–1.0). Simple format, big impact.

```xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9">
  <url>
    <loc>https://example.com/</loc>
    <lastmod>2025-10-15</lastmod>
    <changefreq>weekly</changefreq>
    <priority>1.0</priority>
  </url>
  <url>
    <loc>https://example.com/blog</loc>
    <lastmod>2025-10-14</lastmod>
    <changefreq>weekly</changefreq>
    <priority>0.9</priority>
  </url>
  <url>
    <loc>https://example.com/blog/seo-guide</loc>
    <lastmod>2025-10-01</lastmod>
    <changefreq>monthly</changefreq>
    <priority>0.8</priority>
  </url>
  <url>
    <loc>https://example.com/about</loc>
    <lastmod>2025-09-20</lastmod>
    <changefreq>yearly</changefreq>
    <priority>0.7</priority>
  </url>
</urlset>
```

## Submit to Search Console

After creating your sitemap, submit it via Google Search Console (and Bing Webmaster Tools). This speeds up crawling and indexing.