Choose appropriate sitemap URLs and check for redirects, errors, drafts and outdated domains before publishing your sitemap.
An XML sitemap lists important site URLs. Keep it aligned with the actual website as services and articles are added. A file that opens successfully can still contain incorrect addresses.
List the intended live URLs
Use working, preferred addresses. Exclude drafts, administration pages, deleted content and unnecessary parameter copies. Check the actual address of each language version separately.
Test representative pages
Open the home page, a service and several article URLs from the file. They should not return errors or redirect elsewhere. For larger sites, automate this check across the complete list and remove deleted content promptly.
Discovery is not indexing
Submitting a sitemap to Google can support URL discovery but does not guarantee crawling or indexing. Accessibility, indexing settings and content still matter. Submitting the file is only one part of maintaining the site.
Recheck after a domain move
Make sure the sitemap no longer generates temporary-domain URLs. Canonical and language links should also point to the intended production environment. Run the final check against the real published domain.