Non-canonical URL in the sitemap
sitemap_noncanonicalShort answer
Some URLs in your sitemap declare a canonical that points to a different URL. The sitemap is supposed to list the canonical version of each page, so listing a non-canonical URL sends Google two conflicting hints. This issue affects whether Google can find the page or add it to its index. Put only canonical URLs in the sitemap.
Why it matters
Google reads sitemap inclusion as a canonical hint. When the page itself says "my canonical is B" but the sitemap says "A is a canonical page", Google has to resolve the conflict, and often ends up reporting "Duplicate, Google chose different canonical than user" or "Alternate page with proper canonical tag" for those entries. Nothing breaks, but the sitemap stops being a trustworthy list.
How Glimana detects it
The rule lists pages that are in the sitemap and whose canonical tag does not point to themselves (canonical_ok false). The evidence shows the declared canonical.
How to fix it
Either the sitemap entry or the canonical is wrong; decide which:
- If the page should be indexed as itself, fix the canonical to self-reference (see Canonical conflict).
- If the page is a legitimate duplicate of its canonical target, remove it from the sitemap.
SEO plugins exclude non-canonical pages automatically; this usually appears with paginated archives, tag pages canonicalised to the first page, or a custom sitemap plugin. Exclude the post type / taxonomy from the sitemap in the plugin settings.
Shopify's sitemap lists product URLs under /products/, and collection-scoped product URLs canonicalise to them; this is correct. If this fires, a custom sitemap or app is listing the collection-scoped variants.
Generate the sitemap from the same canonical-URL function the page template uses, so the two can never disagree.
How the fix is verified
Re-crawl; the task closes when every sitemap URL is self-canonical.