← DictionarySitemap
also called XML sitemap, site map
A list of a site's pages, either for visitors or for search engines.
A list of every page, for people or for Google.
What It Is
Sitemap is a Website item, filed under Structure. The working definition is simple: a list of a site's pages, either for visitors or for search engines.
It is a label with a settled working definition, so the value is in using it the same way every time. That definition is deliberately narrow — the narrowness is what makes it usable.
How It's Used
Sitemap comes up in site builds, page structure and the technical decisions underneath them. It rarely travels alone — expect it next to Information Architecture and Robots.txt. The practical test is whether everyone in the room means the same thing by it.
Why It Matters
Getting Sitemap wrong is expensive in a quiet way. When it is unclear, the site still launches — it just quietly underperforms. The businesses that treat it seriously spend less time redoing work.
It is a label people agree on so they stop describing the same thing five different ways. A list of every page, for people or for Google.
Termshift™
How the meaning shifts depending on who is using it, and where.
In agency and in-house rooms, Sitemap means exactly a list of a site's pages, either for visitors or for search engines.
In plain conversation it comes out as a list of every page, for people or for Google.
The Bottom Line
Sitemap pays off when it is specific and costs you when it is not. A list of every page, for people or for Google.