# Sitemap link returns 404 **URL:** \ **Category:** Blog, Website & Page Publishing\ **Tags:** free\ **Created:** [June 13, 2024, 11:27pm UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360 "2024-06-13T23:27:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ChuckS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/db5fbb/32.png) [@ChuckS](https://community.hubspot.com/u/ChuckS)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2024, 11:27pm UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/1 "2024-06-13T23:27:12Z")
Hi! I am an instructor and students create their own Free HubSpot CMS builder site to implement what they are learning in the HubSpot SEO courses. We are using the HubSpot free domains and are getting a 404 when selecting the sitemap “View XML file”. I have followed the instructions and it should work on the Free CMS. [Sitemaps: What They Are, How to Create One & Submit it to Google](https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/build-sitemap-website#:~:text=Build%20a%20Sitemap%20With%20HubSpot%27s%20Free%20CMS) . Here’s my sitemap link: [https://ensign-college-45924036.hubspotpagebuilder.com/sitemap.xml](https://ensign-college-45924036.hubspotpagebuilder.com/sitemap.xml) Any ideas? Thanks!! ---
**Author:** ![jnix284](https://d10pqhm3lwygmk.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/community.hubspot.com/jnix284/32/29_2.png) [@jnix284](https://community.hubspot.com/u/jnix284)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 12:26am UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/2 "2024-06-14T00:26:21Z")
Hi @ChuckS you’re correct that a sitemap is included with a free account, however it can’t be published to the [hubspotpagebuilder.com](http://hubspotpagebuilder.com) domain, this is only a temporary/preview domain, so you would either need to switch to the [hs-sites.com](http://hs-sites.com) domain if that’s available in your account or connect a domain to publish on (you also need to have at least one page published before it would be accessible, whether that’s a blog or website page). Here’s an example of a sitemap from my test website using HubSpot free with a connected domain: [https://www.jennifernixon.website/sitemap.xml](https://www.jennifernixon.website/sitemap.xml) Here’s an example of a sitemap from a cms dev account with free tools and no domain connected using hs-sites: [https://45706807.hs-sites.com/sitemap.xml](https://45706807.hs-sites.com/sitemap.xml) I don’t have a non-sandbox free account to confirm whether you’ll have the option to switch from the [hubspotpagebuilder.com](http://hubspotpagebuilder.com) domain to the [hs-sites.com](http://hs-sites.com) domain - you can start by checking under settings \> content \> domains & URLs, if you’re unsure you can send a screenshot of your settings and I can guide you through how to change it. ---
**Author:** ![ChuckS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/db5fbb/32.png) [@ChuckS](https://community.hubspot.com/u/ChuckS)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 3:28am UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/3 "2024-06-14T03:28:01Z")
Thank you for the great information. No, I don’t believe we have access to the [hs-sites.com](http://hs-sites.com) domain. It’s not listed as one of the domain, but I can ask. Is there a way to upload a xml file? I don’t see that file extension as one of the approved. Thank you, Chuck S. ---
**Author:** ![jnix284](https://d10pqhm3lwygmk.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/community.hubspot.com/jnix284/32/29_2.png) [@jnix284](https://community.hubspot.com/u/jnix284)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 11:18am UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/4 "2024-06-14T11:18:06Z")
you’re welcome @ChuckS, since you’re using HubSpot for learning it might be better to look into developer sandbox accounts than using the “customer” free accounts. Not only would it resolve this sitemap issue, but you could also gain access to paid tools. Before I share more about that, to answer your question, no, it’s not possible to load an XML file or generate a sitemap manually. You could look at getting a free domain or one that costs a penny for a year, connect that, and then your sitemap would work. Depending on how you’re using HubSpot for learning, [this article breaks down the different type of developer sandboxes](https://developers.hubspot.com/docs/api/account-types). TLDR; a CMS dev sandbox will have all the free tools with additional capabilities including the sitemap functionality you need and an APP dev sandbox would give you enterprise level tools within a 90 day trial (some exceptions, like you couldn’t send mass marketing emails). The cool thing about an APP dev sandbox, as the instructor you could create a single sandbox, then create a test account for each of your students where they would be centrally managed - you could individually invite them to their own test account and you would retain access to each of their accounts as the sandbox owner. Here’s a snapshot of one of my app dev accounts to show you how it works: ![Jnix284_0-1718363783464.png](https://d2qpr2jzcazej7.cloudfront.net/original/3X/b/f/bf8bdbbacb93ed92f6ec040076745e9d07cbb015.png) Since you wouldn’t be viewed as a “customer” by HubSpot, you also wouldn’t be marketed to or have sales contact you about upgrading 😉 I know there are HubSpot for learning programs and I’m not sure how those accounts are structured, but that might also be worth exploring. ---
**Author:** ![ChuckS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/db5fbb/32.png) [@ChuckS](https://community.hubspot.com/u/ChuckS)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 3:14pm UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/5 "2024-06-14T15:14:01Z")
What an awesome idea! Would the developer account student websites be live? Would they be able to do A/B testing, use Google Search Console/Analytics, MOZ, ahref, etc for SEO audits, etc? ---
**Author:** ![jnix284](https://d10pqhm3lwygmk.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/community.hubspot.com/jnix284/32/29_2.png) [@jnix284](https://community.hubspot.com/u/jnix284)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 3:24pm UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/6 "2024-06-14T15:24:46Z")
@ChuckS Yes, the website could be live - here’s one I built with AI and published to one of my test accounts: > **[facebook-f icon](https://jens-app-dev-test-acct-1-45887871.hubspotpagebuilder.com/)** > > Meg's Mentors's blog for sharing content related to consulting advisory A/B testing = yes ![Jnix284_0-1718378381391.jpg](https://d2qpr2jzcazej7.cloudfront.net/original/3X/3/c/3ca3a69a301b96c0d5422b491fa7541ed895adfc.jpeg) ![Jnix284_1-1718378423442.png](https://d2qpr2jzcazej7.cloudfront.net/original/3X/7/b/7bb4c23bcf13d905237fe79defbc2ba6ac4c11c8.png) GSC = yes, any integrations from the marketplace can be installed, I clicked through to verify but didn’t fully connect to my GSC account GA4 = yes ![Jnix284_2-1718378538703.png](https://d2qpr2jzcazej7.cloudfront.net/original/3X/f/6/f6e6a2f43dd0c05d8b27726e12d5e84ae3ae1a65.png) And Moz/Ahrefs are all external based on connecting to the URL so you should be all set there, but you’d also have access to HubSpot’s internal SEO tools with the paid trial: ![Jnix284_3-1718378583993.png](https://d2qpr2jzcazej7.cloudfront.net/original/3X/d/1/d18d9c1284c8213074064000ca63e100e4a5784c.png) All of these were verified in the App Dev account, but I did a quick check on A/B tests and SEO to confirm those HS tools are also available in the CMS Dev account. ---
**Author:** ![ChuckS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/db5fbb/32.png) [@ChuckS](https://community.hubspot.com/u/ChuckS)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2024, 12:21am UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/7 "2024-06-16T00:21:35Z")
@Jnix284 Thank you for everything! You have gone way above and beyond! I have reviewed the links you provided, created a CMS Dev account and reviewed the CMS Dev website Builder. It appears to be the same as the consumer Builder. I does create a usable sitemap and link, and it is accepted by Google Search Console! Our semesters exceed the 90 day free trial period and it is not clear what happens if you renew manuallly or show evidence of API calls, or what features are still available (sitemaps?). ([HubSpot Account Types - HubSpot docs](https://developers.hubspot.com/docs/api/account-types)) We are not creating apps, only testing/auditing our website SEO content/keywords/ranking, so not sure how we would generate regular API calls. I wrongly assumed that the consumer CMS Builder setting for sitemap creation worked. And, unfortunately, the students have already built their sites/blogs and are ready for testing. So changing them all now over to a CMS Dev Builder would create extra work in the recreation. I didn’t see a way to migrate/sync a site from the consumer Builder to the Dev Builder. Fortunately, they are small sites and students can request Google indexing, page by page, in the Google Search Console. They will just need to be careful not to exceed Google’s manual request parameters. I am still looking for a good solution for next semester and going forward. If you have any other tidbits of information, I would be most grateful! Thank you, again! Chuck S. ---
**Author:** ![jnix284](https://d10pqhm3lwygmk.cloudfront.net/user_avatar/community.hubspot.com/jnix284/32/29_2.png) [@jnix284](https://community.hubspot.com/u/jnix284)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2024, 11:45am UTC](https://community.hubspot.com/t/sitemap-link-returns-404/109360/8 "2024-06-17T11:45:33Z")
Hi @ChuckS happy this was helpful for you, I’m glad that you’re exploring the sandbox account options available. The CMS for devs sandbox has all of the enterprise tools (it’ll show free tools in the account/billing area), but you’ll see there are some limits with what you can do because a CMS developer and an App developer need to test different functionalities (why there’s a limit on timeframe for an App test account, otherwise someone could use it for free indefinitely). Since you need it for more than 90 days, individual CMS dev sandboxes would still meet all of your criteria, they would just function like separate accounts without the hierarchy I mentioned of having them all centralized. I know this doesn’t solve what you need this semester, hopefully you can find a good solution for next semester.