Why your website needs a sitemap
A sitemap.xml file is a list of URLs you want search engines to know about. For a business in Tashkent, Samarkand or Namangan, it speeds up the moment Google notices a new service page, a promotion or a blog post. It matters most for new sites that few other websites link to yet.
One caveat: a sitemap does not guarantee indexing. A thin page, a duplicate, or a page with no internal links will not be rescued by being listed. Treat the sitemap as a helper for good site structure, not a substitute for it.
The built-in WordPress sitemap
Since version 5.5, WordPress core generates a sitemap automatically. You will find it at yourdomain.uz/wp-sitemap.xml. It covers posts, pages, categories, tags and author pages, and it updates without any action from you.
The upside is obvious: nothing to install. The downside is limited control. Removing tags or a single page needs code or a plugin. For a small brochure site that is usually enough; for an online shop or an active blog it quickly feels cramped.
How to create a sitemap in WordPress with an SEO plugin
If the site runs Yoast SEO, Rank Math or a similar plugin, use its sitemap. The plugin builds an index that links to separate sitemaps for each content type, and it normally switches off the core version so you do not end up with two. The exact index address is shown in the plugin settings, often something like /sitemap_index.xml.
A typical setup looks like this:
- Turn on the sitemap feature in the plugin settings
- Choose content types: pages, posts, products, categories
- Switch off what should not be indexed: tags, author archives, attachments
- Exclude individual service pages
- Save, then open the sitemap URL in your browser
What to keep in the sitemap and what to remove
The rule is simple: list only pages that should appear in search, return a 200 status and are the canonical version. A redirect, a noindex page or a duplicate sends mixed signals, because you ask for the URL to be indexed and hint that it is not wanted.
- Keep: the home page, service pages and key sections
- Keep: blog posts and categories with useful content
- Keep: WooCommerce products and product categories
- Remove: tags that are not developed as real pages
- Remove: author archives on a single-author site
- Remove: media attachment pages
- Remove: cart, checkout, account and thank-you pages
Submitting the sitemap to Google and Yandex
In Google Search Console, open the Sitemaps section and add your sitemap URL, whether it is the built-in one or the plugin one. If you submit an index, Google reads every sitemap inside it. In Yandex Webmaster, add it under indexing settings; it is worth doing if part of your audience searches in Yandex.
Then add a Sitemap line to robots.txt, which SEO plugins often do for you. After a few days, check the report for processing status, the number of discovered pages and errors. Open a handful of listed URLs to confirm they load without redirects.
Common sitemap mistakes
Most problems appear after changes to the site, not when the sitemap is first created:
- Two sitemaps at once, core and plugin, both submitted
- HTTP URLs or the wrong domain variant, such as www versus non-www
- Thousands of tags and archives that add no value
- A caching plugin serving an outdated or broken sitemap
- An old sitemap left in the search consoles after switching SEO plugins
Online shops, two languages and getting help
For a WooCommerce shop, SEO plugins usually add separate sitemaps for products and categories. Check that products hidden from the catalogue and shop utility pages are not listed. If your Russian and Uzbek versions run through a multilingual plugin, confirm that both language versions appear in the sitemap, not only the default one. On large sites the sitemap splits into several files, so make sure your hosting serves each of them without errors.
If you need more than a sitemap and want the whole indexing setup in order, markdev handles SEO optimisation for websites in Uzbekistan, from technical audit to page structure. Send us your site address and we can talk through the task.
FAQ
Do I need to create a WordPress sitemap manually?
No. WordPress core or your SEO plugin generates it automatically and updates it when you publish or delete pages.
Can I use the built-in sitemap together with Yoast or Rank Math?
Keep just one. The plugin usually disables the core sitemap itself, and you should submit only the current address to search engines.
Does a sitemap guarantee my pages get indexed?
No. It helps search engines discover pages, but indexing depends on page quality, uniqueness and internal links.
What should I do after switching plugins or moving the site?
Check the new sitemap, update its address in Search Console and Webmaster, and remove old sitemap URLs that no longer exist.
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