Squarespace Sitemap Guide: Fix, Submit & Resubmit Fast

Hey there! I’m Sitab, your friendly Squarespace SEO Expert. If your site isn’t showing up on Google—or your sitemap isn’t behaving—I’ve got you. In this guide, I’ll walk you through what your Squarespace sitemap actually includes (and excludes), common hiccups, and exactly how to resubmit it so Google takes notice—fast.

TL;DR: Quick Resubmit Checklist

1. Confirm your site is Published (not in trial or password-protected).
2. Visit https://yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml—make sure it loads without error.
3. Open Google Search Console → Sitemaps → submit your sitemap URL.
4. For key pages (home, services, blog), use URL Inspection → “Request Indexing.”
5. If errors block you, head down to the Troubleshooting section below.

Why Your Sitemap Matters (But Isn’t Everything)

First off, your sitemap is a roadmap for search engines. It tells Google, “Hey, here are all the pages you should look at.” But it doesn’t guarantee they will index or rank. That depends on page quality, internal links, crawl budget, and freshness.

With Squarespace, the sitemap is automatic and includes key pages like blog posts, product pages, and regular site pages. That’s awesome. But if something doesn’t show up on Google, your sitemap might be the first place to check—if it’s structured correctly and submitted properly.

What Squarespace Includes—and Doesn’t Included in Your Squarespace Sitemap

Here’s what you’ll typically find in yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml:

• Main pages — your About, Services, Home, Contact, and other “standard” site pages (as long as they’re published and not hidden).
• Blog posts — every live post appears in the sitemap.
• Product pages — if you’re running an online store, each listed product shows up.
• Image metadata — not the images themselves, but data like Alt text or file names (makes it easier for Google to index media).
• This is all handled automatically—no need to edit or manage the file yourself. Everything happens when you publish, modify, or delete content.

What Doesn’t Make the Cut

Here’s what Squarespace does not include:

• Drafts, password-protected, or hidden pages—if you’re hiding things from search engines, Squarespace respects that.
• Tag and category pages—unlike WordPress, Squarespace typically omits tag/category archives.
• Search results, system pages, and private areas like member dashboards or gated content.
• PDFs or file uploads—these need separate handling if you want them indexed.
• Redirect URLs—even though they exist, they don’t show up; redirects are a separate configuration, not content pages.
• If you’ve published your site on a custom domain, the .squarespace.com URL won’t be included. That’s good—it means your public, correct version is the one that matters.

Why That Understanding Matters

When something isn’t appearing on Google, knowing what’s included helps you ask smart questions:

• If a page isn’t in your sitemap—is it private or hidden?
• If it’s in the sitemap—is your GSC showing errors or blocked pages?
• If changes don’t show—has Google refreshed the sitemap?

Understanding that your sitemap is not a magic bullet—but a signal—makes you more patient and strategic. It’s like setting a flag instead of waving a red marker—Google sees it and responds when it can.

Finding the Right Sitemap URL

Let’s make sure you’re pointing Google to the right place.

1. Open your browser and type https://yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml. Make sure it loads without errors—no “404 not found,” no “server error.” Just clean XML.
2. If your domain isn’t yet SSL-enabled, that might break the sitemap. Wait until HTTPS is fully settled.
3. If you’re still on a trial version of Squarespace, your site needs to be fully launched—with a paid plan—before your sitemap will work.

Submit (or Re-Submit) to Google Search Console

Here’s your step-by-step blueprint to get your sitemap working for you:

Step 1: Verify Your Site in GSC

Choose either:

• Domain property (covers everything under that domain).
• Or URL-prefix, like https://www.yourdomain.com/. Either is fine—just know domain properties are more inclusive if you later add subdomains.

Step 2: Submit the sitemap

• In the left sidebar, click Sitemaps.
• Under “Add a new sitemap”, type in sitemap.xml (or paste the full URL).
• Click Submit.
• Google will queue it. That step just starts the process.

Step 3: Check submission status

• Refresh the page after a few minutes.
• Ideally, you’ll see “Success” and a number of “Discovered URLs”.

Step 4: For key pages, push them manually

• Go to URL Inspection.
• Enter a URL like your homepage or latest blog post.
• Click Request Indexing.
• This jump-starts Google’s crawl on that specific page—useful for urgent cases.

Troubleshooting Common Sitemap Errors

Below is a table that breaks everything down clearly. Use it as a reference or cheat sheet.

Issue	What It Means	What to Do
“Couldn’t fetch” / 404	Sitemap not accessible	Check domain SSL/DNS. Wait until HTTPS is live; resubmit.
Redirecting or wrong domain	You submitted HTTP or .squarespace.com variant	Submit only the correct https://yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml.
Missing pages	Page is hidden, draft, or noindexed	Publish or unhide page, resubmit sitemap, and Request Indexing.
Not updated	Possibly caching	Make a minor change on the page and re-publish. Resubmit sitemap.
Still not indexed	Could be content quality or internal linking issues	Add internal links, improve content, re-Request Indexing.

After You Submit—What to Check Next

Don’t just submit and walk away. Here’s what to do over the next 24-72 hours:

1. GSC Sitemaps page—check status and count of discovered URLs.
2. URL Inspection—pick 3–5 key pages and ensure they show as “Indexed” or “Submitted and indexed.”
3. Coverage report—look at “Excluded” and “Error” types—helpful hints there.
4. Site search—just type site:yourdomain.com into Google and see how many pages show up. That’s a rough gauge of indexing.
5. Be patient—sometimes, Google needs time, especially for new sites or fresh content.

Special Scenarios That Trip People Up

Rebuilding or Redesign

If you switch templates or restructure pages:

• Make a URL mapping sheet.
• Use redirects for changed URLs.
• Resubmit sitemap after redirect setup.

Manual Multilingual Sites

If you’ve duplicated pages for different languages:

• Each language page must be visible and indexable.
• Use clear navigation so Google can crawl all versions.

Big Blogs or Stores

Squarespace handles fairly large sitemaps. If your site is very large:

• Consider consolidating low-value posts.
• Use internal links to boost crawl depth.

Frequently Asked Questions

Your Quick Action Plan (with My Help)

Let me guide you live. I offer a Free 30-Minute Sitemap & GSC Triage Call. We’ll troubleshoot your sitemap, get it submitted correctly, and address blocking errors—fast. Just book your audit and let’s fix this together. No fluff, just results.

Final Thoughts

Your Squarespace sitemap is like your site’s waving flag saying “Hey Google, look at me!” But waving doesn’t mean you’ll get noticed—you also need to be visible, have clean structure, and publish good content. Use the steps above, push key pages, handle errors, and monitor actively.

Stick with this process:

1. Confirm sitemap loads and is correct.
2. Submit it to GSC and request indexing for key pages.
3. Fix errors quickly.
4. Monitor indexing growth and coverage.

And remember—you don’t have to go through this alone. I’ve helped tons of Squarespace site owners fix this exact problem in one call. Let me help you, too.

Write clearly, publish confidently, and get your site seen where it belongs.

— Sitab