Simple Sitemap is a free WordPress plugin that makes it simple to add an HTML sitemap to your site.
The Simple Sitemap plugin should be installed and activated first. See our beginner’s guide to installing a WordPress plugin for more information.
After activating the plugin, go to Pages » Add New to open an existing page or create a new HTML sitemap page.
This plugin now includes Gutenberg blocks that can be used to quickly and easily create an HTML sitemap page.
Simply select the ‘Simple Sitemap’ option after clicking the ‘Plus’ symbol.
The ‘Simple Sitemap Group,’ which provides a branching visual sitemap, is another block provided with this plugin. However, for this example, we’ll utilize the ‘Simple Sitemap’ block.
When you add the block, it will generate an HTML sitemap for you.
You can select to display ‘Posts’ or ‘Pages’, or both, from the customization choices on the right-hand menu.
Simply write ‘Post’ or ‘Page’ in the box under ‘Select post types to display’ to choose what you want to see.
Then, using the ‘Orderby’ and ‘Order’ drop-downs, you may customize how the list appears.
You can also activate or disable links, as well as show or hide the excerpts for the pages or posts listed. To make our HTML sitemap simple and easy to navigate, we’ll keep the default plugin settings.
Click ‘Publish’ or ‘Save’ if you’re updating an older page once you’ve completed configuring your HTML sitemap page.
Your visitors will get a navigation page similar to the one below when they visit your HTML sitemap.
Using WordPress Shortcodes to create an HTML Sitemap
Using a shortcode is another technique to add an HTML sitemap to WordPress. This provides you more flexibility over where your HTML sitemap appears and is compatible with the traditional editor.
Create a new page by going to Pages » New Page. Add a new page, then give it a name.
Then, to add a new block to your page, click the ‘Plus’ icon.
Then, in the search box, type “shortcode” and choose the ‘Shortcode’ block.
Then, in the text editor, simply copy and paste one of the following shortcodes.
[simple-sitemap-group][simple-sitemap]
After that, save your changes by clicking ‘Publish’ or ‘Update.’
See our guide on how to add a shortcode to WordPress for more information.
The first shortcode will display a list of your posts by category, while the second will display a list of your pages.
This is how your sitemap will be displayed to your website visitors by the plugin.
Using WordPress to Create an HTML Sitemap for Top Pages Only.
Many website owners use WordPress as their content management system, with their major content published as pages rather than posts. See the distinction between posts and pages in WordPress for additional information.
In this situation, your HTML sitemap should display pages in the correct hierarchical sequence.
Here’s how to create an HTML Sitemap that simply contains pages.
Simply use this shortcode on the page where you want your HTML sitemap to appear. To add the shortcode to a new WordPress page, repeat the steps above.
[simple-sitemap]
This is how your HTML sitemap will look, with all of your WordPress pages presented in a hierarchical order.
It also contains a hierarchical list of your parent and child pages. See our article on how to build a child page in WordPress for more information.
We hope that this post has shown you how to create an HTML sitemap page for your WordPress site. You might also be interested in our expert recommendations for the best virtual business phone number apps and our guide to choosing the right blogging platform.
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