In order to be able to generate results, your website needs the right tools to guide visitors and web crawlers to it. Thankfully, you can optimize this job by using the best sitemap plugins for WordPress.
A map is a highly useful tool for getting around. This applies to navigation in the real world as well as the internet. After all, exploring a website’s multiple sections is very similar to picking the right streets and roads on a road trip.
That is why your website needs a sitemap. By offering appropriate navigation tools, not only will your visitors have a good experience but it will also contribute to your overall SEO.
Having greater relevance and navigation quality is essential to reach your goals.
In this article, you will learn more about the importance of the sitemap and which WordPress plugins can help you work with it. Read on!
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Why do you need a sitemap?
As the name implies, a sitemap is a file that provides information on all pages of your website. It acts as an actual map by detailing all of your individual pages and sections with their hierarchies highlighted.
It can also include additional information such as your RSS feed and each page’s update frequency.
Having a sitemap on your website is also essential for your SEO. It is a tool that helps web crawlers such as Google to learn about all your pages and their relationships.
This increases your content’s relevance, which contributes to your search engine results page ranking.
Such an important job does not need to be done manually. You can use quality sitemap plugins for WordPress to automate this task and get even better results on our SEO strategy. This works by allowing these third-party solutions to edit your sitemaps file directly based on your configurations.
What are the 6 best sitemap plugins for WordPress?
Depending on how much content you have on your website and how often it is updated, maintaining a sitemap might require a lot of work.
Fortunately, you can automate this task by using good sitemap plugins for WordPress. Now that you know why a sitemap is so important for your WordPress site, the next step is learning about the best plugins.
Below, you will find a list of the 6 best sitemap plugins for WordPress.
1. Google XML Sitemap
Sometimes, you just need a simple solution that does one job well. That is the case with Google XML Sitemap, which is focused on creating and maintaining your website’s sitemaps file.
This plugin is free and allows your pages to be crawled not only by Google but also by other search engine sites such as Bing and Yahoo. It is able to scan your website’s structure and build reliable and accurate sitemaps.
Google XML Sitemap is also easy to use. Its default settings work just fine and, in case you need to change any, you can find useful descriptions in the configurations section.
2. Jetpack
Jetpack is a plugin suite for WordPress that acts as a Swiss Army knife for your website. Among its various functions is one focused on SEO that includes automatic XML sitemap creation and updates.
In case you are interested in using the full extent of Jetpack’s features, you can count on its sitemap functionality to satisfy your needs. Additionally, you can manage Jetpack’s features by using its official mobile app.
Jetpack has a free plan and paid options that include various other features for your website’s security and growth.
3. Premium SEO Pack
Are you looking for a fully-featured plugin suite focused on SEO? Then, you should work with Premium SEO Pack.
It has all the features you need to make sure all your pages are optimized properly and Google can crawl them correctly. As such, it also helps you maintain a working sitemap for your website.
With it, you can also configure meta tags, edit social media share cards, and even integrate it with plugins such as WooCommerce.
Premium SEO Pack is available for free for WordPress websites.
4. Yoast
Another option in terms of sitemap plugins for WordPress that improve your overall SEO is Yoast. Among its options, you can enable the XML sitemap and view all your entries within a single interface.
The plugin is very intuitive and offers useful descriptions for each entry in its settings. It also offers several under-the-hood configurations to fix SEO problems and maintain your website’s optimization.
Yoast also adds a new box to your post compose page that helps you set meta tags and offers contextual recommendations to optimize your content further based on the keywords you provide. This is useful to improve your SEO and learn more about how to work with it.
You can use Yoast for free on your WordPress website. However, there is an additional premium plan with extra features.
5. Sitemap by BestWebSoft
This sitemap plugin for WordPress combines simplicity with a wide array of features that allow you to improve your SEO in the correct ways. With it, you can stay at the surface with basic settings or go deeper with specific configurations.
Sitemap by BestWebSoft allows you to add canonical URLs, connect to Google Webmaster Tools, and work with robots.txt.
It is free, however, it has a premium version with extra features such as support for external sitemap files, filters, and tech support.
6. Simple Sitemap
Simple Sitemap is another option for those who wish for a sitemap plugin for WordPress that is straightforward without any bells and whistles.
With it, you can create a sitemap in seconds with a system that is easy to use and does not require coding to work.
Simple Sitemap is free, however, you are able to upgrade to Simple Sitemap Pro for additional features like custom post type support, filters, and style customization.
As you can see above, there are multiple options of sitemap plugins for WordPress with varying levels of features. Having a sitemap is essential for your online presence but it needs the proper support to work correctly.
Now is the time to consider your needs and pick the best solution for your website.
What other SEO techniques are you using on your blog? Leave a comment with your personal experiences!
