Yoast SEO works with public custom post types which is the default option when creating a custom post type.
If the custom post type is defined with no public statement or 'public' => true, then Yoast SEO functionality will also be available.
If the custom post type is defined with 'public' => false, the Yoast SEO functionality will not be available.
The Yoast plugins create sitemaps on the fly. This means sitemaps are updated automatically when you add, edit, or delete content. Therefore, there is no need to generate or rebuild the sitemaps in most cases. However, if you have modified content or added developer filters, you may need to force an update.
Sometimes the cache functionality on your site prevents the sitemaps from updating automatically. Cache can be handled through a lot of methods so you may not have intentionally added a cache feature but it』s there nonetheless.
WordPress integrated cache
Firstly, this problem could be caused by WordPress integrated cache. If you have installed a cache plugin like W3 Total Cache or WP Super Cache, please check your settings and exclude the sitemaps from being cached. Not sure how to do that? Please contact the support team for your cache plugin or visit our guide here for common caching plugins.
Look in your WordPress admin dashboard. Do you see a flush cache button? Some non-cache plugins or WordPress themes include a cache feature. Run a conflict check to locate what plugin or theme feature adds the cache button. If a plugin or theme is not adding cache, some web hosts like GoDaddy and WP Engine include caching on their hosting plans. Please contact the support team for the plugin, theme, or web host that includes the cache feature.
Server-level cache
Secondly, the problem could be caused by server-level cache. Check your HTTP headers for cache-related output. Here is a great free tool and below are examples of cached and non-cache domains. If you see the term cache, it is enabled somewhere. If you have not specifically set this up, please contact your web host for assistance tracking it down.
As of Yoast SEO version 9.0, cache is disabled by default. If you are using an older version and need to disable the sitemap cache, please use the code snippet below.
/* Disable Yoast SEO sitemap caching
* Credit: Yoast development team
*********
* Please note that changes will be applied upon next sitemap update.
* To manually flush sitemap cache, please disable and enable the sitemap feature afterwards.
*/
add_filter('wpseo_enable_xml_sitemap_transient_caching', '__return_false');
To enable sitemap caching, please use the code snippet below.
/* Enable Yoast SEO sitemap caching
* Last Tested: Mar 27 2019 using Yoast SEO 10.0.1 on WordPress 5.1.1
* Credit: Yoast development team
*********
* Please note that changes will be applied upon next sitemap update.
* To manually create the cached sitemap, please disable and enable the sitemaps then load each sitemap.
* Once cached, Yoast SEO will update sitemap cache as needed.
*/
add_filter('wpseo_enable_xml_sitemap_transient_caching', '__return_true');
Manual sitemap update
If you want to do a manual sitemap update, please disable the sitemap feature, clear cache, and enable the sitemap feature to force the sitemap to rebuild.
Having an XML sitemap can be beneficial for SEO. It allows Google to understand your site structure, and retrieve essential pages of a website very fast, even if the internal linking of a site isn』t flawless.
You can significantly improve your site structure with the internal linking tool and the content filter features in Yoast SEO Premium!
The sitemap index and individual sitemaps are updated automatically as you add or remove content. What is more, they include the post types you want search engines to index. For example, Post Types marked as 『noindex』 will not appear in the sitemap. To learn more about how to noindex see: How do I noindex URLs?
Read more: What is an XML sitemap and why should you have one?
Related articles
What is in the sitemaps: How to configure and customize itSubmit to search engines
The XML sitemap feature
Follow these steps to enable the XML sitemaps feature: Log in to your WordPress website. When you』re logged in, you will be in your 『Dashboard』. Click on 『SEO』 On the left-hand side, you will see a menu. In that menu, click on 『SEO』 Click on 『General』. The 『SEO』 settings will expand providing you additional options. Click on 『General』. Click on the 『Features』 tab. Toggle the 『XML Sitemaps』 switch. To enable the feature, toggle the switch to 『On』.To disable the feature, toggle the switch to 『Off』. Click 『Save Changes』
View the sitemap
Log in to your WordPress website.When you』re logged in, you will be in your 『Dashboard』.Click on 『SEO』.On the left-hand side, you will see a menu. In that menu, click on 『SEO』Then, click on 『General』.Clicking on General will open the General – Yoast SEO settings. In the Yoast SEO General settings, click on the 『Features』 tab.Click the question mark for the XML Sitemap feature.Then, click 『See the XML sitemap.』
Limit the number of sitemap entries
You can limit the number of sitemap entries by using the filter wpseo_sitemap_entries_per_page. Here follows example code to limit the max entries to 100. If you are not sure where it would go or how to add this code, we suggest working with a Yoast Partner here who can help.
/* Limit the number of sitemap entries for Yoast SEO */
function max_entries_per_sitemap() {
return 100;
}
add_filter( 'wpseo_sitemap_entries_per_page', 'max_entries_per_sitemap' );
Add an external sitemap
Want to add an external sitemap? Use this guide.
Can I change the sitemap priority?
We』ve decided to remove the priority variables from our XML sitemaps in the 3.5 version of Yoast SEO, as Google has said publicly that they don』t use them on most sites.
Are you having issues with your sitemap?
Maybe you need a different guide after enabling the sitemap. Is your sitemap not updating? Do you wonder why it shows grey links? Is your sitemap a blank page? Or are you looking for common XML sitemap errors? You can also use our search bar at the top to search for your specific issue.
If you have a sitemap that is located on example.com/sitemap.xml, your sitemap is not being generated by our Yoast SEO plugin. It is probably generated by another plugin or WordPress core itself. Please disable other sitemap plugins and remove any physical sitemap files via FTP before enabling the sitemaps in our plugin.
XML sitemaps do not need to be indexed by search engines in order to be read or parsed. Therefore, we add a x-robots-tag HTTP header (with a value of noindex, follow) to all XML sitemap responses.
The Yoast SEO AMP plugin is no longer needed. Through good collaboration with Google the functionality of this plugin is now part of both Yoast SEO and the official AMP plugin. If you still have this plugin running we』d suggest updating both the Yoast SEO and AMP plugin and removing the glue plugin.
If you have access to your admin dashboard, follow the steps in this article to check for plugin conflicts.
When a plugin and/or theme conflicts with other plugins and/or themes, a white screen may appear. If you cannot access the admin dashboard, renaming the plugin folder will reinstate admin access.
To rename the plugin folder, you must have:
Your FTP or SFTP login informationIf you do not have this information, please contact your host provider and obtain your host (or IP address), Username, Password, and Port number.An FTP or SFTP programWe use and recommend FileZilla but any FTP or SFTP program should work, including file managers provided by most web hosts.
Now that you have the required stuff, we recommend backing up your site before renaming the plugin folder.
How to rename the WordPress plugins folder
Use the FTP or SFTP program to connect to your website. Navigate to /Path_to_WordPress/wp-content/ Rename the plugins folder to plugins_old. Log into your WordPress admin dashboard. This automatically deactivates all plugins since the folder was renamed. In FTP, rename the plugins_old folder back to plugins. This allows you to see the deactivated plugins in your admin dashboard. Follow the steps in this article to check for plugin conflicts.
One of the most important functions of Yoast SEO (free or premium) is the ability to automatically add SEO title and meta description templates to the homepage, all (custom) post types, all (custom) taxonomies, and other pages. We include default templates that are SEO-friendly but you can also modify the default templates.
If you want to know more about what snippet variables are and how Yoast SEO uses snippet variables, you could read this article. Or, to read about how to modify the default snippet template, check out this guide.
Do you know about social previews in Yoast SEO Premium? They work much like the snippet preview, and they allow you to control what your posts look like when shared on social media!
In this article:
Available variable types
Deprecated variables
Default variables
Developer filters
Creating custom template variables
Available variable types
We distinguish four available variable types:
Basic variables
Advanced variables
Custom variables
WooCommerce variables
Basic variables
LabelVariableDescriptionDate%%date%%Replaced with the date of the post/pageTitle%%title%%Replaced with the title of the post/pageParent title%%parent_title%%Replaced with the title of the parent page of the current pageArchive title%%archive_title%%Replaced with the normal title for an archive generated by WordPressSite title%%sitename%%The site』s nameTagline%%sitedesc%%The site』s taglineExcerpt%%excerpt%%Replaced with the post/page excerpt (or auto-generated if it does not exist)Excerpt only%%excerpt_only%%Replaced with the post/page excerpt (without auto-generation)Tag%%tag%%Replaced with the current tag/tagsCategory%%category%%Replaced with the post categories (comma separated)Primary category%%primary_category%%Replaced with the primary category of the post/pageCategory description%%category_description%%Replaced with the category descriptionTag description%%tag_description%%Replaced with the tag descriptionTerm description%%term_description%%Replaced with the term descriptionTerm title%%term_title%%Replaced with the term nameSearch phrase%%searchphrase%%Replaced with the current search phraseSeparator%%sep%%The separator defined in your theme』s wp_title() tag.
Term template variables are used with custom taxonomies. If you do not have a custom taxonomy use either the tag or category template variables.
Advanced variables
The following sample of variables requires a better understanding of SEO. If you』re unsure how to use these advanced variables, we advise you not to use them. You can learn more about SEO, in our online Yoast SEO academy courses.
LabelVariableDescriptionPost type (singular)%%pt_single%%Replaced with the content type single labelPost type (plural)%%pt_plural%%Replaced with the content type plural labelModified%%modified%%Replaced with the post/page modified timeID%%id%%Replaced with the post/page IDName%%name%%Replaced with the post/page author』s 『nicename』User description%%user_description%%Replaced with the post/page author』s 『Biographical Info』Page number%%page%%Replaced with the current page number with context (i.e. page 2 of 4)Pagetotal%%pagetotal%%Replaced with the current page totalPagenumber%%pagenumber%%Replaced with the current page numberCaption%%caption%%Attachment captionFocus keyword%%focuskw%%Replaced with the posts focus keyphraseTerm404%%term404%%Replaced with the slug which caused the 404 (custom field)%%cf_%%Replaced with a posts custom field value. Remove the (custom taxonomy)%%ct_%%Replaced with a posts custom taxonomies, comma separated. Remove the description (custom taxonomy)%%ct_desc_%%Replaced with a custom taxonomies description. Remove the
Custom variables
The last three advanced variables can be used to output data from non-standard WordPress elements, such as WooCommerce products. But, how do you find the name of the correct field or taxonomy to use these variables?
Custom fields
Custom field names can be found using the steps here. Once you have the custom field name, you will replace . If my custom field was calledmyfield, the custom variable would be %%cf_myfield%%. Or, if the custom field begins with an underscore, for example _anotherfield, the custom variable should include the underscore like so: %%cf__anotherfield%%.
Note: Custom fields that contain arrays (a list of related information) will not work with the custom field variable. Instead, you or your developer should create your own custom template variables.
Custom taxonomies
Custom taxonomy names can be found in the browser bar on the backend when viewing or editing an item.
Example: edit-tags.php?taxonomy=mycategory&post_type=myposttype
In the example above, we are editing a custom taxonomy called mycategory under a custom post type called myposttype. If I wanted to output a list of categories assigned to a myposttype page, I would use %%ct_mycategory%%. Alternatively, if I wanted to output the description of an individual mycategory on the category archive page, I would use %%ct_desc_mycategory%% .
WooCommerce variables
The following variables are some that you can use with WooCommerce. If the specific variable you are looking for is not listed below, please use the custom variable information above to find the variable you need.
%%ct_product_cat%%Product category (comma separated)%%ct_product_tag%%Product tag (comma separated)%%ct_pa_%%Product attribute (comma separated). Be sure to remove the as they are not needed.
Yoast WooCommerce SEO variables
When you are using our Yoast WooCommerce SEO plugin, these additional variables are available:
%%wc_shortdesc%%Replaced with the short description of the product. (Available as of Yoast WooCommerce SEO 6.2)%%wc_sku%%Replaced with the inventory stock-keeping unit (sku) of the product. (Available as of Yoast WooCommerce SEO 6.2)%%wc_brand%%Replaced with the brand name. This variable only works with 『WooCommerce Brands『 and 『Perfect WooCommerce Brands『 plugins. (Available as of Yoast WooCommerce SEO 6.2)%%wc_price%%Replaced with price of the product. (Available as of Yoast WooCommerce SEO 6.2)
Deprecated variables
Starting in v7.7 of Yoast, we』ve deprecated these variables as we see no valid use-case for them. If they are used in the snippet editor, they won』t appear in the snippet preview. However, they will show up in your source code to maintain backward compatibility. We recommend not using them.
%%userid%%Replaced with the post/page author』s userid%%currenttime%%Replaced with the current time%%currentdate%%Replaced with the current date%%currentday%%Replaced with the current day%%currentmonth%%Replaced with the current month%%currentyear%%Replaced with the current year
Default variables
If you want to reset the SEO title template variables back to the defaults use the following below. For meta descriptions the default is blank. You can enter these default titles in the SEO-Search Appearance section. This will then assign the defaults as the global template variable for that section.
%%title%% %%page%% %%sep%% %%sitename%%%Posts, Pages, Products, Media, and Custom Post Types%%pt_plural%% Archive %%page%% %%sep%% %%sitename%%
Posts, Products, and other Custom Post Type Archive Pages%%term_title%% Archives %%page%% %%sep%% %%sitename%%TaxonomiesYou searched for %%searchphrase%% %%page%% %%sep%% %%sitename%%Special Pages: Search PagePage Not Found %%sep%% %%sitename%%Special Pages: 404 Pages%%name%%, Author at %%sitename%% %%page%%Author Archive Pages%%date%% %%page%% %%sep%% %%sitename%%Date Archive PagesThe post %%POSTLINK%% appeared first on %%BLOGLINK%%.RSS Feed %%sitename%% %%page%% %%sep%% %%sitedesc%%Homepage Template
There are a number of filters documented in the plugin code for developers to programmatically change the template variables. Here are some examples.
Creating custom template variables
Adding your own template variables can be done using the wpseo_register_extra_replacements filter in your functions.php file. An example of how to use the filter can be viewed here.
You might not want Yoast to show these Yoast-created titles. In that case, you can use these filters here. If you are not sure how to add or use filters, consider working with a Yoast partner.
Looking to uninstall a plugin by Yoast? This guide will tell you how!
Uninstalling the plugin does not remove Yoast SEO data from your database so you can safely remove and reinstall the plugin without losing any of your hard work.
For the health and safety of your site, we recommend making a complete backup of your website, including the database file, before removing a plugin.
Table of Contents
Using WordPress Dashboard
Complete Data Removal
Manually Using FTP
Using the WordPress Dashboard
Log in to your WordPress website. When you』re logged in, you will be in your 『Dashboard』. Click on 『Plugins』. On the left-hand side, you will see a menu. In that menu, click on 『Plugins』. Click 『Deactivate』. 『Plugins』 will be highlighted in the menu and you will be shown the plugins you have installed. Locate the plugin you want to uninstall and click deactivate. If the plugin is not active, you can skip this step. The page will reload after the deactivation process completes. If you plan to use the plugin at a later time, you can stop here! Click 『Delete』. (optional) If you do not plan on using the plugin again, you can delete it. Click 『Yes, Delete these files』. After clicking delete, you will see a confirmation screen. You must click 『Yes, Delete these files』 or the plugin will not be deleted. If you would like to see the list of files to be deleted, click the link below titled 『Click to view entire list of files which will be deleted』
Manually using FTP
In some situations you may need to use File Transfer Protocol (FTP) to log into your site and manually delete the plugin and the files. You would need to delete the plugin folder(s) for the specific plugin you want to remove in /wp-content/plugins/ from your site using an FTP program such as FileZilla and your FTP details.
If you are not sure about how to use FTP, where the plugin directory exists, or your FTP details, please speak with your host provider.
PluginFolderYoast SEO for WordPresswordpress-seoYoast SEO for WordPress Premiumwordpress-seo-premiumYoast SEO: Localwpseo-localYoast SEO: Local SEO for WooCommercewpseo-local-woocommerceYoast SEO: Newswpseo-newsYoast SEO: Videowpseo-videoYoast SEO: WooCommercewpseo-woocommerce
Complete data removal
If you want to remove all traces of our plugins, you』ll need to do the following:
Please search the database for entries containing wpseo and manually remove the data.Please search the database for entries containing wp_yoast and manually remove the data. Those entries are:
wp_yoast_indexablewp_yoast_indexable_hierarchywp_yoast_migrationswp_yoast_primary_termwp_yoast_prominent_words (note: only available in Yoast SEO Premium)wp_yoast_seo_linkswp_yoast_seo_meta
If you are not sure how to remove these terms, we suggest contacting your host provider for more information.
If you have an ecommerce website, one of the most important things for you is for your products to be found. So, it can be frustrating if you open Google Search Console and see that you have some missing schema properties. In this article, we explain how you can fix some of the most commonly found errors.
Table of contentsEither offers, review, or aggregateRating should be specifiedNo global identifier provided (e.g. gtin mpn isbn)Missing field brandMissing field priceValidUntilMissing field skuMissing field image
Use the WooCommerce SEO plugin to solve these issues
Get best practice technical SEO for ecommerce, automatically! And make your products stand out in the search results.
Get WooCommerce SEO »Only $69 USD / per year (ex VAT) for 1 site – incl. 1 year free updates and support
These Google Search Console missing schema properties issues may seem daunting, but the Yoast WooCommerce SEO plugin for WordPress can help you solve these errors quickly! The plugin helps you configure all sorts of metadata for your product. For instance, it adds the manufacturer, brand, color, and GTIN/ISBN/MPN information. These fields get automatically merged into your structured data, which can help search engines understand your products and services better. Make sure to check it out!
Either offers, review, or aggregateRating should be specified
Since March 2020, all products are required to have some of these properties in their markup. If you are using WooCommerce, the markup should automatically be added to your product pages. For an even better Schema implementation that Google will easily pick up, you can use our WooCommerce SEO plugin. To learn more, read our articles on:
How to fix missing Schema properties: 『offers』 should be specifiedHow to fix missing Schema property: either review or aggregateRating should be specified
No global identifier provided (e.g. gtin mpn isbn)
You can fix the no global identifier provided (e.g., GTIN, MPN, ISBN) warning in Google Search Console by adding the relevant data to the products on your site. That』s easy to do if you use WooCommerce SEO. When you add or edit a product, go to the Yoast SEO tab of the WooCommerce meta box. There, you will see the options to add product identifiers. Add the product identifiers that your products contain in the appropriate boxes.
Read more: How to fix the missing Schema property: no global identifier provided (e.g. gtin mpn isbn)
Missing field brand
The warning missing field brand schema property occurs in Google Search Console when the product brand and manufacturer option hasn』t been configured in the WooCommerce SEO plugin settings. To solve this issue, you』ll need to configure the product』s brand and manufacturer in WooCommerce SEO.
Missing field priceValidUntil
The priceValidUntil property only makes sense for products on sale. The warning missing field priceValidUntil occurs in Google Search Console when a product has no sale price set. If necessary, you can configure the sale price and the duration of your products』 sale in the General tab of the WooCommerce meta box.
This value is optional, and not adding it will not harm your product』s appearance in the search results.
Read more: How to fix missing Schema property: missing field 「priceValidUntil」
Missing field sku
The warning missing field sku occurs in Google Search Console when a product has no SKU (stock keeping unit) defined. Usually, SKUs are required for products with variations, for example, wallets in different colors.
To add an SKU, go to the WooCommerce meta box located in your product pages editor. Then, select either a Grouped product or a Variable product from the Product data menu, depending on which option fits your product.
Read more: How to fix missing Schema property: missing field 「sku」
Missing field image
To fix this error, you will need to either add a featured image or an image in the product gallery.
Conclusion
To sum up, we』ve discussed how to fix the most common issues for missing Schema properties in Google Search Console. The Yoast WooCommerce SEO plugin can help you solve these issues quickly. The plugin helps you configure all kinds of metadata for your products and automatically produces the right Schema.org structured data for it!
There are many reasons why your videos might not show up in the search results. This article explores some of the common causes and provides some suggestions.
You』re not using Yoast SEO』s Video Plugin
Our Video SEO for WordPress plugin takes care of all of the technical heavy lifting required to help get your videos into Google. From video XML sitemaps, to configuration options, to responsive embeds and more. If you want to use video to attract more searchers and wow your audience, then this is a must-have.
It』s too soon
It can take time for Google to crawl, evaluable, and index your content. For popular websites with many links from other reputable websites, the process can happen within hours. If you have a smaller or less popular site, you might need to wait days – or even weeks – for Google to index your video content. You might just need to wait for a while.
The page isn』t indexable
If your page is hidden from search engines or is set to noindex, then Google probably won』t show your videos. You should check your Yoast SEO advanced settings for the page, and view the source code to check for any rogue meta tags.
The site or page isn』t high quality
The content around the video is an important clue to Google as to the value of the page, and of the video. If you』ve not put the work in to prove that Google should show your video to their users, then they』re unlikely to show it.
The video isn』t the main focus of the page
If the page is really long and has loads of content, then your video might get lost in the noise. Google needs to understand that the video is the main focus of the page, not just an 『extra』.
Something else?
There are many reasons why Google might not feature a video, ranging from technical problems, to quality issues, and beyond. If you』re still struggling to diagnose why yours aren』t showing, we recommend exploring Google』s Video Best Practices documentation.
Sometimes you can』t see the changes you』ve made to your WordPress site immediately. This could be caused by outdated cache. To help you solve this, we』ll show you how to clear your WordPress cache. In this article, we』ll cover browser cache, WordPress caching plugins, and server cache. But first, let』s dive into what cache is and how it works.
Related articles
How to clear my browser』s cacheDIY: Optimize your browser cacheImproving site speed: tools and suggestions
What is cache and how does it work?
The cache is the place where pages, files, images, and other elements of your site are stored in memory so they can be retrieved quickly. There are different kinds of cache. For example, there』s browser cache (the elements stored in your browser), site cache (also called page cache or HTTP cache), but also server cache (the elements stored on the server hosting your website or on your CDN『s server).
Every time you visit a website, your browser will download some of the site』s elements and store them as cache files in your local storage. Because of that, when you visit that website again, it will load much faster as you already have parts of the content stored.
However, this also means that when you try to make changes to your website, you might not be able to see them immediately. In that case, you』ll need to clear the cache to see your changes live.
How to clear your WordPress cache
If you have a WordPress site, follow the steps below to clear the cache. Clear your browser cache. Firstly, follow the steps described in this article about clearing your browser』s cache. Clear cache using a WordPress caching plugin. Secondly, if you』re using a WordPress plugin caching plugin on your site, you need to clear your plugin cache. Examples of WordPress plugin caching plugins are WP Rocket, WP Super Cache or W3 Total Cache. We』ve described how to go about this for each of these plugins. Find out how to clear cache with:– WP Rocket– WP Super Cache– W3 Total Cache Clear the server cache. Some hosts use cache plugins on their server. The control you have over server-side caching depends on your host. Check your host』s options settings to see if there is an option to clear cache. If you can』t find it, contact your host to ask how to clear the server cache. To illustrate this, we』ll explain how to go about this with the WordPress host SiteGround.Example: SiteGroundIf your site is hosted by SiteGround, you can clear cache from your hosting account control panel as well as the WordPress admin area. 1. Hosting dashboardThe first option is to log in to your hosting account dashboard and go to Speed > Caching under site tools. From here, switch to the 『Dynamic cache』 tab. Click on the menu icon next to your domain name and then select 『Flush cache』.2. WordPress DashboardThe second option is to install and activate the SG Optimizer plugin. Then, on the 『Super cacher settings』 tab, click 『Purge cache』 under 『Dynamic caching』.
Clearing your cache with WordPress plugins
Below, we』ve described how to clear your cache for some of the most used caching WordPress plugins in more detail. We cover WP Rocket, WP Super Cache, and W3 Total Cache. If you use another caching plugin, please check out their plugin documentation.
Clearing your cache with WP Rocket
Make sure you have the WP Rocket plugin installed and activated. Go to Settings > WP Rocket > Dashboard tab and click the 『Clear cache』 button. All cached files will be removed.
Image by WP Rocket
Clearing your cache with WP Super Cache
Make sure you have the WP Super Cache plugin installed and activated. Then, head over to Settings > WP Super Cache and click 『Delete cache』. This will remove all cached files on your WordPress site.
Clearing your cache with W3 Total Cache
Make sure you have the W3 Total Cache plugin installed and activated. Go to Performance > Dashboard and hit the 『Empty all caches』 button. This will delete all cached content from your WordPress site.
