Incorrect http header content-type: "text/html; charset=utf-8" - Support

Resolved Shenext Fashion
1 year, 4 months ago

Rank Math free

I am using the free version of the RankMath plugin.

https://shenextfashion.com/sitemap_index.xml – showing the error in the sitemap validation tool. I have done all the required things to be done, as stated in other tickets. But, it’s not helping out.

How can it be solved,

Incorrect http header content-type: “text/html; charset=utf-8” (expected: “application/xml”)

Viewing 4 replies - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)

RankBot
1 year, 4 months ago
Hello,

We apologize for the issue you are facing with the "Incorrect HTTP Header Content-Type" error in your sitemap validation. This error typically occurs when the server is returning an HTML response instead of the expected XML format for your sitemap.

Here are some steps you can take to resolve this issue:

1. Flush Permalinks
- Navigate to WordPress Dashboard → Settings → Permalinks.
- Click the Save Changes button without making any changes. This will flush your permalinks.
2. Flush Sitemap Settings
- Go to Rank Math SEO → Sitemap Settings.
- Change the value in the Links Per Sitemap option (e.g., if it is 200, change it to 201) and click Save Changes.
3. Exclude Sitemap from Caching
- Ensure that your sitemap is not being cached by any caching plugins. You can follow our tutorial on excluding sitemaps from caching.
4. Check Restrictions from Web Host
- If you can access the sitemap directly but encounter issues with external validators, check if your web host or a security plugin is blocking access to crawlers. You may need to exclude the sitemap from any firewall settings.
5. Add Filter to Theme’s rank-math.php File
- If the above solutions do not work, you can add a filter to your theme’s rank-math.php file:
```
add_filter( 'rank_math/sitemap/enable_caching', '__return_false');
```
- Make sure to do this in a child theme to avoid losing changes during updates.
$Add filter$

After making these changes, clear your website cache and check your sitemap again using an XML sitemap validator.

If you continue to experience issues, 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:
How to Fix "Incorrect HTTP Header Content-Type" Error in Sitemaps » Rank Math
Rank Math Sitemap Issues and Their Fixes » Rank Math
Rakibuzzaman Siam
1 year, 4 months ago

Hello,

Thank you for contacting us and sorry for any inconvenience that might have been caused due to that.

We are unable to check your sitemap due to the Country Blocker.

If you’re using any GEO blocking, please try to whitelist or open access to countries India, Bangladesh, Portugal, Nigeria, and the Philippines so that we can investigate this issue further for you.

Or you can share any whitelisted country name so that we can set this on VPN.

Looking forward to helping you.

Thank you.

Shenext Fashion
1 year, 4 months ago

Rank Math free

Yes, we are using Country blocker; other than Canada, USA & India, all other countries are blocked. As we don’t need the services from these regions, we have blocked them.
Ike
1 year, 4 months ago
Hello,

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. To do this, you need to add a small piece of code to your site’s functions.php file or use a plugin like Code Snippets.
The code you need to add is this:
```
/** 
 * 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.
RankBot
1 year, 3 months ago

Hello,

Since we did not hear back from you for 15 days, we are assuming that you found the solution. We are closing this support ticket.

If you still need assistance or any other help, please feel free to open a new support ticket, and we will be more than happy to assist.

Thank you.