# Sitemap existence

> Sitemap existence is whether a website publishes an XML sitemap, or a sitemap index, at a standard address where search engines can find it.

- **Check ID:** SM1
- **Area:** [Tech Stack](https://be1st.ai/glossary/fingerprint)
- **Tool:** [Tech Stack](https://be1st.ai/tools/tech-stack)
- **Page:** https://be1st.ai/glossary/fingerprint/sitemap-existence

## Why it matters

A sitemap is a map of the website for search engines and AI crawlers. Without a sitemap, crawlers must discover pages through links, which is slower and less reliable. Both Google and AI bots use sitemaps for efficient indexing.

## In practice

An e-shop with 10,000 products without a sitemap risks Google not discovering 30-50% of product pages. An up-to-date sitemap helps search engines discover new pages much sooner.

## How be1st checks it

Checks whether the site has an accessible sitemap (sitemap.xml or a sitemap index) at standard URLs (/sitemap.xml, /sitemap_index.xml) or listed in robots.txt. Verification of HTTP status and XML format validity.

[Tech Stack](https://be1st.ai/tools/tech-stack), Site files tab.

## Sources

- [Sitemaps - Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/overview) (Google)

## Related terms

- [robots.txt](https://be1st.ai/glossary/seo/robots-txt): robots.txt is a plain text file at the root of a website that tells crawlers which parts of the site they may and may not visit.
- [sitemap.xml](https://be1st.ai/glossary/seo/sitemap-xml): An XML sitemap is a file that lists the important URLs of a website, so search engines can find them without relying on links alone.
- [URL count in sitemap](https://be1st.ai/glossary/fingerprint/url-count-in-sitemap): URL count in the sitemap is the number of addresses a sitemap lists and how they are spread across the subdomains and sections of a website.
- [Sitemap validity](https://be1st.ai/glossary/fingerprint/sitemap-validity): Sitemap validity is whether a sitemap is well-formed XML with correct URLs that actually load.
- [SSL certificate existence](https://be1st.ai/glossary/fingerprint/ssl-certificate-existence): An SSL/TLS certificate is the digital certificate that lets a website use HTTPS and proves to browsers that the domain is genuine.
- [SSL certificate issuer](https://be1st.ai/glossary/fingerprint/ssl-certificate-issuer): The certificate issuer is the certificate authority that signed a website's SSL certificate, such as Let's Encrypt, DigiCert or Sectigo.