GSC showing “Your Sitemap appears to be an HTML page.”

#879187
  • Resolved Md Sakil Ansari
    Rank Math free

    I installed Rank Math recently. It’s showing the error that “Your Sitemap appears to be an HTML page.” what should I do?

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)
  • Hello, we apologize for the issue you are facing with your sitemap. The error "Your Sitemap appears to be an HTML page" typically occurs when the wrong URL is submitted to Google Search Console (GSC). Here are some steps you can take to resolve this issue:

    1. Check the Submitted URL: Ensure that you have submitted the correct XML sitemap URL to GSC. The correct URL should be in the format: `https://rankmath.com/kb/fix-sitemap-issues/#sitemap-blocked-robots-txt.

    2. Check for Plugin Conflicts: If you are sure that the correct URL is submitted, check for any plugin conflicts that might be causing this issue. You can use the Health Check plugin to identify any conflicts.

    3. Caching Issues: If you are using caching plugins, make sure to flush the cache and exclude the sitemap from being cached. This can help ensure that GSC receives the correct XML response instead of an HTML page.

    4. Custom User Agent: If you are using W3 Total Cache, create another user agent group and add the ‘_googlebot’ user agent to it, as this can sometimes resolve issues with sitemap accessibility.

    5. Disable Caching for Sitemaps: If the above solutions do not work, you can add the following filter in your theme’s rank-math.php file to disable caching for sitemaps:

      add_filter( 'rank_math/sitemap/enable_caching', '__return_false');

    If these steps do not resolve the issue, please reply to this ticket, and a human agent from the Rank Math Support team will assist you further. Thank you for raising this concern!

    Sources:
    Rank Math Sitemap Issues and Their Fixes » Rank Math

    Md Sakil Ansari
    Rank Math free

    Check the screenshot of error

    Md Sakil Ansari
    Rank Math free

    I have already tried editing the rankmath.php file to disable caching but the same issue.

    Hello,

    Thank you for contacting us. We apologize for any inconvenience this issue may have caused.

    Kindly ensure you have submitted the correct sitemap to GSC (yourdomain/sitemap_index.xml): https://rankmath.com/kb/submit-sitemap-to-google/

    If the issue persists please follow the steps below for initial troubleshooting:

    1. Flush the Sitemap cache by following this video screencast:
    https://i.rankmath.com/pipRDp

    2. Exclude the Sitemap files of the Rank Math plugin in your caching plugin. The cache could be via a plugin or from the server. For plugins or Cloudflare, please follow this article: https://rankmath.com/kb/exclude-sitemaps-from-caching/

    If the issue persists then try disabling the transient cache for the sitemap. This will make sure that your XML sitemap always reflects the latest changes on your site. Kindly add this code snippet to your site:

    
    /** 
     * Filter if XML sitemap transient cache is enabled.
     *
     * @param boolean $unsigned Enable cache or not, defaults to true
     */
    add_filter( 'rank_math/sitemap/enable_caching', '__return_false');

    If you’re not sure how to add this code, you can follow this guide: https://rankmath.com/kb/wordpress-hooks-actions-filters/.

    After you add the code, please clear any cache on your site or server and check your XML sitemap again. If you’re still facing issues with the sitemap, please let us know – we are happy to investigate further.

    I have done many of the following things but still the issue not resolved. Tried changing the plugin also but the same issue. Showing sitemap is HTML

    Hello,

    Please share your sitemap URL so we can check and verify it. You can add it to the sensitive data section by editing your first post

    Sensitive Data Section

    It is completely secure, and only our support staff has access to that section.

    Looking forward to helping you.

    Hello,

    I have updated the sensitive data as requested. Can you please check further?

    Thank you.

    Hello,

    Your sitemap URL is redirected to https://infobolatv.com/ when you visit it as Googlebot. If you don’t recognize that site, then you should check with your host to check if there is a malware or server rule in your site that is causing the redirect.

    Hope that helps and please do not hesitate to let us know if you need our assistance with anything else.

    Yes. But can you help me fixing this issue. I’m not aware of this site. That’s why sometimes favicon is search console changing.

    Hello,

    We won’t be able to help you fix this, as the issue isn’t related to our plugin. Your host will be in a better position to help you figure out why the sitemap URL is redirected to another site. If it is due to a malware, they can help you scan the site and get rid of it.

    Please do not hesitate to let us know if you need our assistance with anything else.

    The host has fixed the problem. Can you check that sitemap again to see if it’s redirecting to that site when visiting as Googlebot.

    Hello,

    We’ve checked this and can confirm that your sitemap is working fine now. Here’s a screenshot:

    We hope this helps. Let us know if you need help with anything else.

    Ok thanks.

    Ok thanks issue resolved.

    Hello,

    We are super happy that this resolved your issue. If you have any other questions in the future, know that we are here to help you.

    If you don’t mind me asking, could you please leave us a review (if you haven’t already) on https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/seo-by-rank-math/reviews/#new-post about your overall experience with Rank Math? We appreciate your time and patience.

    If you do have another question in the future, please feel free to create a new forum topic, and it will be our pleasure to assist you again.

    Thank you.

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)

The ticket ‘GSC showing “Your Sitemap appears to be an HTML page.”’ is closed to new replies.