Complete Guide to Image Sitemaps for Better Google Image SEO
When running a website rich with images, whether a portfolio, e-commerce store, or educational resource—ensuring your visuals are visible in Google Image Search is essential. One of the most effective tools in your SEO arsenal is the image sitemap. In this post, we will walk you through what image sitemaps are, why they’re important, how to set them up, and the best practices for Google indexing.
What Are Image Sitemaps?
Image sitemaps are special files that help Google and other search engines discover images on your site, especially those that may be hard to find through regular crawling (like images loaded via JavaScript). You can choose to:
1. Create a dedicated image sitemap
2. Or, add image information to your existing standard sitemap
Why Use an Image Sitemap?
Google’s crawlers sometimes miss images—especially those not immediately visible in the HTML source. By creating an image sitemap, you:
1. Guide Google to images that may otherwise be overlooked
2. Increase your chances of image discovery, indexing, and ranking
3. Support rich image results on search, especially for dynamic sites
Anatomy of an Image Sitemap
<?xml version=”1.0″ encoding=”UTF-8″?>
<urlset xmlns=”http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9″
xmlns:image=”http://www.google.com/schemas/sitemap-image/1.1″>
<url>
<loc>https://yourdomain.com/page1.html</loc>
<image:image>
<image:loc>https://yourdomain.com/images/image1.jpg</image:loc>
</image:image>
<image:image>
<image:loc>https://yourdomain.com/images/image2.jpg</image:loc>
</image:image>
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://yourdomain.com/page2.html</loc>
<image:image>
<image:loc>https://yourdomain.com/images/image3.jpg</image:loc>
</image:image>
</url>
</urlset>
Required Tags
<image:image>: Wraps the metadata for a single image. You can include up to 1,000 images per page.<image:loc>: Specifies the direct URL of your image.
Recently, Google sunset the following tags from its image sitemap documentation:
<image:caption><image:geo_location><image:title><image:license>
Best Practices for Image Sitemaps
1. Follow general sitemap guidelines:
Use valid XML, submit via Google Search Console, and update your sitemap as content changes.
2. Avoid blocking images in robots.txt:
If you want Google to index your images, ensure your robots.txt does not block them (learn more).
3. Ensure fast image loading:
Host images on a reliable CDN and compress them for speed. Google prioritizes fast, high-quality content.
4. Use descriptive filenames and alt text:
Optimize for both users and search engines. Alt text helps with accessibility and SEO.
5. Keep your sitemap current:
Update your image sitemap regularly, especially when adding new image-rich pages or migrating content.
How to Submit Your Image Sitemap
Generate your image sitemap (see example above).
Upload it to your site’s root directory.
Submit the sitemap file through Google Search Console.
Common Issues
1. Missed images: If images aren’t indexed, check robots.txt, verify domains in Search Console, and ensure sitemap XML is correct.
2. Overly large sitemaps: If you have more than 50,000 URLs or the file exceeds 50MB, split your sitemaps for better crawling.
Image sitemaps are a straightforward yet powerful way to improve the discoverability of your website’s images. By following the latest best practices and submitting your image sitemap to Google, you ensure your visual content gets the visibility it deserves in search results.
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I’m Aman Jain, a Digital Marketing professional focused on SEO and online marketing strategies to boost brand visibility and growth.