Hey guys my name is Ajeet and sharing my 6 years experience and expertise in Digital Marketing- another blog on Technical SEO, hope it will help you out. If you are new here so learn from here Technical SEO Checklist in 2025. Let's start.
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If you're serious about improving your website's performance on Google, then you must understand the basics of Technical SEO. While most people focus on keywords and backlinks, they often forget about two simple but powerful tools: robots.txt and XML sitemap. These two can make a huge difference in how search engines understand and index your website.
In this blog, I'll explain what these are, why they matter, and how to use them in a smart and simple way. I'll also share a few real-life tips from my personal SEO experience. Let's get started.
What is Robots.txt?
Robots.txt is a small text file placed in the root folder of your website. It gives instructions to search engine crawlers (like Googlebot) on which pages or sections of your website should be crawled or ignored.
Imagine a security guard standing at your website's gate - robots.txt tells this guard where bots can go and where they can't.
Why is it important in Technical SEO?
From my personal experience, when working with a news portal site, we had multiple archive pages and author links that didn't add SEO value. So, we disallowed them in robots.txt. This helped us focus Google's attention on the actual content pages — improving crawl efficiency and rankings.
Here's an example:
- makefile
- Copy
- Edit
- User-agent: *
- Disallow: /wp-admin/
- Allow: /
This tells all search engines not to crawl the admin pages but allows everything else.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
X Blocking the whole website by mistake with Disallow: /
X Disallowing the homepage or blog
X Forgetting to test the file in Google Search Console
X Writing incorrect syntax
✅ Always test your robots.txt with tools like Google's Robots.txt Tester
What is an XML Sitemap?
Imagine handing Google a shortcut map to your website's best pages — that's what a sitemap does.
Why is Sitemap Important in Technical SEO?
Especially for new websites, or those with lots of pages, search engines can miss some content. With a sitemap, you ensure that nothing important gets skipped.
From my experience managing a blog network, we once had over 100 new articles that weren't being indexed. After submitting the sitemap in Google Search Console, most of them were indexed within 5–7 days.
How to Create and Submit an XML Sitemap?
Simple Steps:
- Use tools like Yoast SEO, Rank Math, or Screaming Frog to generate the sitemap.
- The file is usually named sitemap.xml.
- Upload it to the root folder of your website (e.g., example.com/sitemap.xml)
- Go to Google Search Console → Sitemaps → Submit your sitemap URL.
You can also use free generators like:
- https://www.xml-sitemaps.com/
- https://technicalseo.com/tools/
How Robots.txt and Sitemap Work Together?
While robots.txt tells Google what not to crawl, the sitemap tells it what to crawl and index. They work like teammates — one sets boundaries, and the other offers guidance.
Example: You might disallow /thank-you pages but include product or blog pages in your sitemap.
Blogger/Blogspot SEO Tip (Real Use Case)
If you're using Blogger like I did once for a personal project, here's how you set this up:
- Go to Blogger > Settings > Crawlers & Indexing
- Enable Custom robots.txt
- Paste a clean robots.txt structure
- Enable Custom robots header tags for better indexing control
A well-optimized Blogger site helped me get 300+ organic visits/day on a niche keyword set- all thanks to sitemap submission + clean robots.txt.
Advanced Sitemap Tips
- Keep the sitemap under 50,000 URLs or 50MB
- Don't include noindex, blocked, or duplicate URLs
- Update the sitemap when new pages are added
- Add image and video sitemaps if relevant
Supports Google EEAT: Here's Why?
Google's EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) requires clear structure, accessibility, and helpful content. A correct sitemap and robots.txt show search engines that your site is well-maintained and trustworthy - a key factor in Technical SEO success.
Real-World SEO Tip
On one client's e-commerce site, we noticed several product pages were not getting indexed. After submitting a proper XML sitemap and cleaning the robots.txt file, we saw a 25% increase in indexed pages within two weeks.
FAQs
Q1. Should I block login or cart pages using robots.txt?
Yes, they offer no SEO value and just consume crawl budget.
Q2. Can I have more than one sitemap?
Yes. Big websites often use sitemap index files that link to multiple sitemaps (e.g., for blogs, products, etc.).
Q3. Does robots.txt improve SEO ranking?
Indirectly. It improves crawl efficiency and helps Google focus on important pages.
Q4. Where can I see if Google is crawling my site?
Use Google Search Console > Coverage Report to monitor crawling and indexing status.
Conclusion
Using robots.txt and XML sitemaps the right way can transform your site's crawlability and visibility. These are not just optional files - they are powerful weapons in your Technical SEO toolkit.
Focus on proper structure, avoid silly mistakes, and keep them updated. Whether you run a small blog or a large e-commerce store, this simple optimization can make a massive difference in search performance.
So don't wait - audit your robots.txt and sitemap today, and give your SEO a solid technical foundation.
Also read: How to Fix Core Web Vitals in 2025? - Step-by-Step Guide
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