Best SEO Checklist
ONE FOCUSED ACTION

Reference sitemap index file in robots.txt and submit to search engines.

XML sitemap optimization

1 checklist items

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    Why this matters

    Proper submission of sitemap index files via robots.txt and Search Console ensures timely discovery and crawling by major search engines.

    A STARTING-POINT EXAMPLE

    Hypothetical standard operating procedure

    Adapt this example to your site, access, tools, and change process. It is our suggested procedure, informed by the sources below.

    1. Add Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap-index.xml line to robots.txt at site root.
    2. Confirm robots.txt is accessible and properly discloses sitemap location.
    3. Submit sitemap index URL via Google Search Console Sitemaps tool.
    4. Submit sitemap index to Bing Webmaster Tools.
    5. Regularly verify sitemap submission status and resolve reported errors.

    Watch for

    Failing to submit or reference sitemaps limits search engines’ knowledge of site URLs, delaying indexing.

    Definition of done

    Sitemap index URL is declared in robots.txt and listed in Google and Bing Webmaster Tools.

    Sources & attribution

    1. XML Sitemap Best Practices: Limits, lastmod and Submission | Crawl Budget Snapshot ↗

    Original checklist wording and example SOP by Best SEO Checklist, using source-grounded AI assistance. Editorial contact: Ted Kubaitis, @tedkubaitis on Teams. Check current source guidance before implementation.