SimpleSitemap
Generates a simple sitemap for your site.
Consider an alternative
SimpleSitemap shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 100+ sites and was last updated 2 years ago, and scores 25/100 on our health check.
- Small user base (100+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
- No update in 2 years
- Only tested up to WordPress 6.6 (latest is 7.1)
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where SimpleSitemap stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| pages | >100 |
| posts | >100 |
| sitemap | >100 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
About SimpleSitemap
From the official readme · v1.4.5Description
Generates a simple sitemap, listing the page and posts on your site. You can set which page will become your sitemap, and the sitemap will be automatically inserted with your regular page content.
This plugin is useful in helping your visitors find their way around the site, and is beneficial for search engines crawling your site.
July 2024 – Plugin now comes with a Gutenberg compatible block, allowing you to choose which post-types to show sitemap links for. The earlier functionality & shortcodes continue to work unchanged.
Installation
- Upload plugin to your wordpress installation plugin directory
- Activate plugin through the
Pluginsmenu in WordPress - Look at the configuration screen (found under
Settingsin the WordPress menu) - Choose which page to show the sitemap on, and tick which pages or post-categories you wish to exclude from the sitemap.
Frequently asked questions
Can I change the order in which Pages are listed?
Pages are listed according to ‘menu order’. When you edit pages, you can set the Order. There are plugins available which let you drag/drop pages to set your preferred order.
Are pages displayed hierarchically?
Yes – if you have pages & subpages, they will be listed as an indented list.
Can I change the order in which Posts are listed?
No. Posts are listed from newest to oldest, and are not grouped by category.
Can I display my blog posts grouped by category?
No, I haven’t build that feature yet.
How do I use the shortcode to show my custom post-type?
[simplesitemap view=”POST_TYPE”]
Changelog
1.4.5
- Realised that renaming plugin to index.php will disable existing installs when updating
- Go back to old filename for that compatibility.
1.4.4
- Adding a Gutenberg block, and the build tools that go along with it
1.4.3
- Adding /assets/ folder for use on plugin repository
- Fix an error in my build/deploy script
1.4.1
- Release using github build tools
1.4.0
- Refactor plugin, and set up a git repo with SVN deployment
1.3.1
- Code formatting changes to bring inline with WordPress PHP Code Standards
- Convert class to singleton model
For developers
Is this your plugin? Show off the numbers.
Add a live badge to your site, docs or GitHub README. It updates on its own — no account needed.
Best SimpleSitemap alternatives
All pages plugins →
FAQ
SimpleSitemap: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Oct 6, 2026
Is SimpleSitemap free?
Yes. SimpleSitemap is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is SimpleSitemap safe to use in 2026?
SimpleSitemap shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 100+ sites and was last updated 2 years ago, and scores 25/100 on our health check.
How many websites use SimpleSitemap?
SimpleSitemap is active on 100+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 6,442 times since it launched in August 2010. It was downloaded 84 times in the last 30 days.
Does SimpleSitemap work with WordPress 7.1?
SimpleSitemap is officially tested up to WordPress 6.6.10, while the latest release is 7.1.3. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
What PHP version does SimpleSitemap need?
SimpleSitemap requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was SimpleSitemap last updated?
The latest version, 1.4.5, was released on July 22, 2024 (2 years ago).
Who makes SimpleSitemap?
SimpleSitemap is developed and maintained by Anthony.
What are the best alternatives to SimpleSitemap?
The most popular alternatives to SimpleSitemap are WP-PageNavi (500K+ installs), Nested Pages (90K+ installs) and Display Posts (80K+ installs).
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