sitemap_index.xml couldn’t fetch error even after multiple submissions

#1120078
  • B Dutta

    2 days, 2 hours ago

    Rank Math free

    Hi Team,

    I am facing this issue – sitemap_index.xml couldn’t fetch error even after multiple submissions in google search console.

    What to do? Facing this with multiple domains. And it’s not feasible to check everyday whether fetched or not? Can you please check? Now I’ve resubmitted so mayn’t be able to see, but again it will show couldn’t fetch. Using RM plugin only.

    Please help. Just because of this pages are not indexed and ranking is going down. Thanks.

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)
  • RankBot

    2 days, 2 hours ago

    Hello,

    We apologize for the issue you are facing with the "couldn’t fetch" error for your sitemap in Google Search Console. This can be frustrating, especially when it affects your site’s indexing and ranking.

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

    1. Validate Your Sitemap

    Make sure your sitemap is correctly configured. You can use the Validate XML Sitemap tool to check for any issues. If your sitemap is valid, it should return a success message.

    An example displaying how to validate a sitemap

    2. Ensure the Sitemap is Located in the Root Folder

    Check that your sitemap is located in the root folder of your WordPress installation. The URL should look like this:
    https://yourdomainname.com/sitemap_index.xml

    3. Check if Your Posts Are Set to Index

    Ensure that your posts are set to index. Go to Rank Math SEO → Titles & Meta and make sure the Index checkbox is enabled in the Robots Meta settings.

    Index Titles and Meta settings

    4. Add the Sitemap to Google Search Console

    After ensuring everything is set up correctly, navigate to Indexing → Sitemaps in Google Search Console. Paste the correct sitemap URL and click SUBMIT. Make sure there are no spaces in the URL.

    Add the sitemap to Google Search Console

    5. Wait for Google to Fetch the Sitemap

    If you have done all of the above and still see the "couldn’t fetch" error, it may be that Google has not yet fetched your sitemap. Sometimes, it takes time for Google to crawl and index new sitemaps.

    If the problem persists, please reply to this ticket with your site URLs so that we can assist you further. Additionally, if you would like a more comprehensive setup or troubleshooting, consider our professional setup service, which requires a PRO subscription.

    Thank you for raising this concern, and we hope these steps help resolve the issue!

    This is an automated reply from Rank Math Support Bot. Your ticket has been assigned to a human agent and we will get back to you shortly.

    Adetayo

    1 day, 9 hours ago

    Hello,

    Thank you for contacting Rank Math support. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

    Please try to follow the steps below and see if that works for you.

    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/

    3. If the above steps don’t seem to work, kindly apply the following filter to your site.

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

    Here’s how you can add a filter/hook to your WordPress site:
    https://rankmath.com/kb/wordpress-hooks-actions-filters/

    Once done, clear your website cache, remove all the submitted sitemaps, and resubmit only the index sitemap in the Search Console.

    Let us know how it goes. Looking forward to helping you.

    Thank you.

    B Dutta

    16 hours, 55 minutes ago

    Rank Math free

    Thanks for your response and the detailed steps.

    Just to confirm—am I supposed to follow steps 1 and 2 first, and only proceed to step 3 if the issue persists? I want to make sure I’m approaching this in the right order.

    Also, I’m curious about the technical aspect: how exactly does caching cause this issue? Even if the sitemap is cached somewhere, shouldn’t it still be accessible on the internet? I’m not using any caching plugin apart from Cloudflare, so I’d appreciate any guidance specific to that setup.

    Note: I am not using Cloudflare for the site I already shared. So, would Step 1 alone be sufficient?

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)

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