Does your site give search engines a sitemap?
This search visibility check looks for a sitemap where search engines expect one, either named in robots.txt or at the usual address. Without one, new or deep pages may take longer to appear in search.
What does this check look at?
It looks at whether your site publishes a sitemap where search engines look for one. A Pulse also reads your sitemap, the list of pages you give search engines. Sitemap cards are not security issues and never change your grade.
Pulse and Deep scans both run it.
What does a result mean?
| What the report shows | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Info finding | No sitemap was found. | Publish one and name it in robots.txt. |
It is about search visibility only and never affects your grade. A clean result means nothing was found in what the scan read. It does not prove the problem is absent from parts the scan never sees.
How serious is a finding?
This is information only. It claims no weakness, so it carries no verdict, and you decide whether anything should change. Confidence starts high, because a response from your site shows the thing itself. The report lists what to fix by how directly someone could use it, not by the severity label.
Fix it with your AI
Most frameworks and site builders can generate one for you.
My site has no sitemap. Add one using my framework's built-in support (for example app/sitemap.ts in Next.js, a sitemap plugin for Astro or Vite, or my site builder's setting) that lists every public page with its full https address, and add a Sitemap line to robots.txt with the full sitemap address. Do not list admin, account or API pages.How to check
Say Atlas, our example app at atlas.example, launched without a sitemap. A Pulse adds an information card about it, and the security grade stays the same.
Run a Pulse scan from your Lockpick account to see it for your site. Pulse or Deep explains what each scan reads, and the full list of checks shows the rest.
Questions people ask
Will a sitemap make my site rank higher?
Not directly. It helps search engines find pages, which matters most for new sites and pages with few links to them.
Does a missing sitemap affect my Lockpick grade?
No. Sitemap cards are about search visibility only and never change the grade.
See what your site shows from outside
A quick check reads your homepage the way a visitor would and gives you a score. No account needed.
Check your siteSources
- How we rate findings Lockpick docs, read on October 7, 2026
- Read your report Lockpick docs, read on October 7, 2026