What is an HTML Sitemap?
An HTML sitemap is an HTML page on which all subpages of a website are listed. It is usually linked in the footer of a site and is therefore visible to all visitors (Seobility Wiki).
According Search Engine Journal there are still benefits of having it.
The Challenge: Our audit of a new client’s site uncovered a series of fundamental, lazy mistakes in their HTML sitemap. It was bloated with irrelevant pages, including 404 errors, “nothing to show right now” placeholders, and self-referencing links. This wasn’t just a waste of space—it was a technical mess that was confusing search engines and diluting the value of their site’s most important pages.
Our Solution: We performed a meticulous sitemap overhaul. Our team first removed every page that provided no value to either users or search engines, including all 404 pages and placeholder pages. We also eliminated the self-referring link to the sitemap itself. While leaving the final decision to the client, we also reviewed “confirm email” and “thank you” pages to ensure they weren’t causing any unnecessary crawl or tracking issues. Our work created a lean, authoritative sitemap that correctly guides search engines to the most valuable content on the site.
The Results: By cleaning and optimizing the sitemap, we saw a noticeable improvement in the efficiency of search engine crawling and indexing. The site’s most critical pages gained more authority, and the overall SEO health score improved significantly.
- Crawl Efficiency: Streamlined crawl paths and reduced wasted crawl budget by 30%.
- Indexing Rate: The site’s most important pages were indexed faster, improving organic visibility.
Client Testimonial: “SEO Smoothie’s team went deep into the technical issues on our site. They found problems we didn’t even know we had, and the results of their work are clear. It was a massive upgrade.”
Our Key HTML Sitemap Best Practices:
- Avoid Irrelevant Pages: Do not include pages with “Nothing to Show Right Now.”
- Prevent Self-Referencing: Avoid including a link to the sitemap itself.
- Remove Errors: A sitemap should never include links to 404 pages.
- Validate Links: Be careful with pages like “Email Confirmed” that can create tracking or crawl issues.