Sitemap URL returns an error (4xx/5xx)
sitemap_url_errorShort answer
Your sitemap says "this page exists" and the server says 404, 410 or 5xx. Remove URLs that are gone (or 301 them to a replacement), and fix the server for pages that should work. A sitemap should contain only URLs that return 200.
Why it matters
Google reads sitemaps to discover and prioritise URLs. Every entry that errors costs a fetch and tells Google the file is stale. A few errors are harmless; a sitemap full of them lowers how much Google trusts the file, which slows discovery of the pages you actually want crawled. A 5xx is worse than a 4xx: persistent server errors make Google reduce its crawl rate for the whole host.
How Glimana detects it
The crawler fetches every URL found in your sitemap files. The rule fires for a sitemap URL whose final status is 400 or above; the evidence records the status code. A URL that redirects before erroring is reported under the redirect rule instead.
How to fix it
Pages that were deleted on purpose: remove them from the sitemap. If a replacement exists, add a 301 to it and list the destination instead.
Pages that should work: fix the error. A 5xx from a single page usually means a template or data problem; many 5xx at once means hosting or a deploy.
- If the sitemap comes from Yoast or Rank Math, errors usually mean a stale cache — open SEO → Tools and clear it, or save permalinks once.
- For deleted posts, the plugin removes them automatically; check for a second sitemap plugin or a static
sitemap.xmlfile in the web root that overrides it. - Fix 5xx pages by deactivating the plugin or theme feature that broke them; the server error log names the file.
Shopify generates sitemap.xml automatically and removes unpublished resources. A 404 in the Shopify sitemap is almost always a URL that was manually redirected or a product variant deleted minutes before the crawl — recrawl before acting. For 5xx, check Shopify status and any app that proxies requests.
- Build the sitemap from the same source of truth as routing: a page should be listed only if the application can serve it.
- Return 410 for permanently removed content; it is removed from the index faster than 404.
- Alert on 5xx in your application logs so the sitemap is not how you find out.
How the fix is verified
After you mark the task done, the affected URLs are re-fetched. The task closes when every URL returns 200 or is no longer listed in the sitemap.
FAQ
Should I return 404 or 410 for removed pages?
Both work. 410 ("gone") is a stronger signal and Google drops the URL a little faster. Use 410 when you are sure the content will not return.