Google News sitemap
A /news-sitemap.xml file formatted to Google News requirements, separate from the standard sitemap. Only includes articles published within the last 48 hours.
The Google News sitemap is a specialized XML file that tells Google News which articles were published recently and should be eligible for inclusion in News results. It is separate from the standard /sitemap.xml — a different format, with different rules, for a different purpose.
How it differs from the standard sitemap
| Standard sitemap | News sitemap | |
|---|---|---|
| URL | /sitemap.xml | /news-sitemap.xml |
| Contents | All pages | Articles from the last 48 hours only |
| Format | Standard <urlset> | <news:news> namespace |
| Update frequency | Each deploy | Each deploy |
| Purpose | General crawling | Google News indexing |
Google News ignores articles older than 48 hours in a News sitemap — they are expected to appear in the standard sitemap instead.
Template
The news sitemap is generated by src/news-sitemap.njk. It filters all articles to those published within the last 2 days:
---
permalink: /news-sitemap.xml
eleventyExcludeFromCollections: true
---
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9"
xmlns:news="http://www.google.com/schemas/sitemap-news/0.9">
</urlset>
Front matter fields used
Google News pulls the following from each article via the sitemap:
| Field | Source |
|---|---|
| Publication name | meta.title in meta.js |
| Language | meta.language in meta.js |
| Publication date | date in article front matter |
| Article title | title in article front matter |
| Article URL | Eleventy item.url (derived from file path and permalink) |
Ensure date is an accurate ISO date in every article's front matter.
Submit to Google Search Console
After deploying:
- Open Google Search Console for your property.
- Go to Sitemaps in the left nav.
- Enter
https://yoursite.com/news-sitemap.xmland click Submit. - Google will show the submission status and any errors.
Re-submitting is not required after every deploy — Google re-fetches submitted sitemaps on its own schedule. Submitting once registers the URL; Google handles the rest.
Eligibility for Google News
Appearing in the News sitemap does not guarantee inclusion in Google News results. Google applies additional editorial criteria, including:
- Original reporting (not aggregation or reprinting)
- Clear authorship and publication dates
- A publication that has been manually reviewed by Google
The News sitemap improves your chances of rapid indexing for eligible content; it does not substitute for editorial quality.
What to do next
- XML sitemap for the standard sitemap covering all pages.
- Structured data for the
NewsArticleJSON-LD schema that further signals article type to Google. - RSS feeds for distribution to readers directly rather than through search.
Browse Support for community channels and paid support options, or book a call if you'd like me to set it up for you.