Dave

Simple News XML Sitemap Generator creates an XML sitemap optimized for news services like Google News, making it easier for your content to be indexed by news search engines.
The plugin is easy to use: once activated, the sitemap is automatically generated and updated every time you publish a new post.
<h4>Features</h4>
<ul>
<li>Generates an XML sitemap compliant with news service specifications </li>
<li>Automatically updates when new posts are published </li>
<li>Full support for standard WordPress posts </li>
<li>Automatically includes articles from the past 2 days </li>
<li>Automatically pings Google and Bing when new content is published </li>
<li>Optimized for performance and security </li>
</ul>
<h4>How to use the plugin</h4>
<ol>
<li>Activate the plugin </li>
<li>Go to the “News XML Sitemap” page in the dashboard menu </li>
<li>Copy the sitemap URL </li>
<li>Add the URL to your Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools panel </li>
</ol>
<h4>Pro Tip</h4>
After updating the plugin, it’s recommended to go to Settings > Permalinks and click “Save Changes” to ensure the sitemap works correctly.
<h3>External Services</h3>
This plugin automatically notifies Google and Bing whenever a new News XML sitemap is generated or updated.
<ul>
<li>Data sent: the URL of the News XML sitemap. </li>
<li>Data is sent via HTTP GET requests to the following addresses:
<ul>
<li>https://www.google.com/ping?sitemap= </li>
<li>https://www.bing.com/ping?sitemap= </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>This helps search engines discover newly published news content more quickly.</li>
</ul>
Service policies: 
– Google: https://policies.google.com/terms, https://policies.google.com/privacy 
– Microsoft Bing: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/servicesagreement/, https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/privacystatement

Simple News XML Sitemap Generator

Generates an XML sitemap optimized for news services following official guidelines for advanced indexing.

Freemius

Matt Pramschufer

emoxie

RSS Control is a powerful WordPress plugin that allows you to control and customize your RSS feeds through URL query parameters. These work on all feed types including the main feed, category feeds, tag feeds, and more.
Free features include filtering by category, tag, post type, date range, post IDs, and offset. You can also control excerpts, display featured images with custom styling, and include post titles in descriptions.
Premium features add support for custom taxonomy filtering, specialized feed formats (Google Publisher Center, Google News Showcase, NextDoor, Meta Commerce), call-to-action buttons, primary category output control, custom sort ordering, and a visual Feed URL Generator in the admin.
<h3>Example</h3>
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?cat=89&days_past=7&show_images=true&image_styles=border:4px; border-color:#000; float:left;
</blockquote>
The example above will show posts from category 89 from the past 7 days. It will show featured images with a 4px black border floated to the left.
<h3>Free Options</h3>
<h4>cat</h4>
Filter by category ID. Can be a single ID or comma-separated list. Prefix with <code>-</code> to exclude. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#category-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?cat=-3,10,22 
 The use of the NEGATIVE in front of the category ID says DO NOT INCLUDE posts from category 3.
</blockquote>
<h4>category_name</h4>
Filter by category slug. Can be a single slug or comma-separated list. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#category-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?category_name=apples,bananas
</blockquote>
<h4>category_not_in</h4>
Exclude posts from specified category IDs. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#category-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?category_not_in=3,10 
 Display posts that are not in category ids 3 and 10.
</blockquote>
<h4>tag</h4>
Filter by tag ID. Can be a single ID or comma-separated list. Prefix with <code>-</code> to exclude. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#tag-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?tag=-3,10,22 
 The use of the NEGATIVE in front of the tag ID says DO NOT INCLUDE posts from tag 3.
</blockquote>
<h4>tag_not_in</h4>
Exclude posts with specified tag IDs. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#tag-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?tag_not_in=3,10 
 Display posts that do not have any of the two tag ids 3 and 10.
</blockquote>
<h4>post_in</h4>
Display specific posts by ID in the order specified. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#post-page-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?post_in=3,10,22 
 The order in which you add posts is the order in which they will appear in the feed.
</blockquote>
<h4>post_type</h4>
Filter by post type. Can be a single post type or comma-separated list. Common types include post, page, attachment, or any custom post type slug. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#post-type-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?post_type=page 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/?post_type=post,page 
 Default is “post”.
</blockquote>
<h4>offset</h4>
Skip a number of posts from the beginning of the feed. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#pagination-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?offset=3 
 This will skip the 3 latest posts and start the feed with post 4.
</blockquote>
<h4>days_past</h4>
Show posts from the past X number of days only.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?days_past=7 
 This will display the posts from the last 7 days in a feed.
</blockquote>
<h4>show_images</h4>
Display the featured image in the content of the RSS feed.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?show_images=true 
 This will display featured image in the content of the RSS feed. The default image size is 696×385.
</blockquote>
<h4>image_width</h4>
Set the width for the featured image. Requires <code>show_images=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?show_images=true&image_width=300 
 This will set the inline style of the image to have width: 300px.
</blockquote>
<h4>image_height</h4>
Set the height for the featured image. Requires <code>show_images=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?show_images=true&image_height=300 
 This will set the inline style of the image to have height: 300px.
</blockquote>
<h4>image_size_unit</h4>
Set the image size unit for the featured image (px, em, %, fr, etc). Requires <code>show_images=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?show_images=true&image_width=100&image_size_unit=% 
 This will set the inline style of the image to have a width of 100%.
</blockquote>
<h4>image_styles</h4>
Set additional inline CSS styles on the featured image. These come before the width & height. Requires <code>show_images=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?show_images=true&image_styles=border:4px; border-color:#000; float:left; 
 This will set the inline style of the image to have a black border of 4px and float the image to the left.
</blockquote>
<h4>excerpt_length</h4>
Control the length of the excerpt in number of WORDS.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?excerpt_length=20 
 This will return all feed items with the content of only 20 words.
</blockquote>
<h4>excerpt_more_text</h4>
Set the text that appears when content is truncated. Normally it is either […] or …
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?excerpt_length=20&excerpt_more_text=%5B…Read%20More%5D 
 This will return all feed items with the content of only 20 words ending with […Read More].
</blockquote>
<h4>include_title_in_description</h4>
Include the post title in the feed description/content, wrapped in an HTML tag.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_title_in_description=true 
 This will return all feed items with the title present in the description.
</blockquote>
<h4>title_tag</h4>
Change the HTML tag that wraps the title. Requires <code>include_title_in_description=true</code>. DO NOT include the < or >, just the tag name.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_title_in_description=true&title_tag=div 
 This will wrap the title in a div tag instead of the default h1.
</blockquote>
<h4>title_styles</h4>
Apply inline CSS styles to the title tag. Requires <code>include_title_in_description=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_title_in_description=true&title_tag=div&title_styles=float:left;%20margin-right:30px;%20border:1px%20solid%20red; 
 This will apply the styles inline to the title tag.
</blockquote>
<h3>Premium Options</h3>
<h4>orderby</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Sort feed posts by a specified field. Common values: title, date, menu_order, ID, author. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#order-orderby-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?orderby=title 
 Default is “date” (by publish date).
</blockquote>
<h4>order</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Set the sort order to ascending or descending. See https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_query/#order-orderby-parameters
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?order=ASC 
 Default is “DESC”.
</blockquote>
<h4>current_month</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Show only posts from the current month.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?current_month=true 
 This will display only posts from the current month in the feed.
</blockquote>
<h4>disable_excerpt</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Remove all content/excerpt from feed items entirely.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?disable_excerpt=true 
 This will remove the excerpt/content from all feed items.
</blockquote>
<h4>td_primary_cat</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Filter posts by TagDiv Primary Category. This queries posts where the primary category (set by TagDiv themes/plugins) matches the specified category ID.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?td_primary_cat=53 
 Only works with posts that have the TagDiv primary category meta data set. Accepts a single category ID.
</blockquote>
<h4>only_primary_category</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Show only the primary category in the feed’s category nodes instead of all categories. Supports TagDiv, Yoast SEO, and RankMath primary category plugins. If no primary category is set, falls back to the first category.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?only_primary_category=tagdiv 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/?only_primary_category=yoast 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/?only_primary_category=rankmath 
 This modifies the category output in the feed, not the post query.
</blockquote>
<h4>taxonomy</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Filter by custom taxonomy slug. Must be used with <code>taxonomy_term</code> or <code>taxonomy_term_not_in</code>. You can NOT use negative IDs in taxonomy filtering.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?taxonomy=genres&taxonomy_term=2
</blockquote>
For filtering by multiple taxonomies simultaneously, use indexed parameters (1 through 10):
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?taxonomy_1=position&taxonomy_term_1=3350&taxonomy_2=region&taxonomy_term_2=2702
</blockquote>
<h4>taxonomy_term</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Specify term IDs to include. Can be a single ID or comma-separated list. Must be used with the <code>taxonomy</code> parameter. For multiple taxonomies, use indexed parameters (taxonomy_term_1, taxonomy_term_2, etc.).
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?taxonomy=genres&taxonomy_term=2
</blockquote>
<h4>taxonomy_term_not_in</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Exclude posts with specified taxonomy terms. Can be a single ID or comma-separated list. Must be used with the <code>taxonomy</code> parameter. For multiple taxonomies, use indexed parameters (taxonomy_term_not_in_1, taxonomy_term_not_in_2, etc.).
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?taxonomy=genres&taxonomy_term=2&taxonomy_term_not_in=1 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/?taxonomy_1=position&taxonomy_term_not_in_1=3350,3347&taxonomy_2=region&taxonomy_term_not_in_2=2702
</blockquote>
<h4>image_thumbnail_size</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Use a specific WordPress image size instead of manually setting width and height. Adds the image as a <code>media:content</code> element in the feed.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?show_images=true&image_thumbnail_size=medium 
 This will use the medium size image for all featured images. Only valid WordPress thumbnail sizes are supported (thumbnail, medium, large, or custom registered sizes). If the size is not found, the full size image will be used.
</blockquote>
<h4>include_button</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Add a call-to-action button below the excerpt that links to the post.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_button=true 
 This will output a button that says “Read More”.
</blockquote>
<h4>button_text</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Change the button text from “Read More” to whatever you would like. Requires <code>include_button=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_button=true&button_text=Click%20Me
</blockquote>
<h4>button_styles</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Apply inline CSS styles to the button container. Requires <code>include_button=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_button=true&button_styles=border-radius:200px;%20background-color:%23e1005f;%20margin-top:20px; 
 Please note that if you are using colors like #000 then you will need to encode the # symbol as %23.
</blockquote>
<h4>button_text_styles</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Apply inline CSS styles to the button text. Requires <code>include_button=true</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?include_button=true&button_text_styles=font-size:%2018px; 
 Please note that if you are using colors like #000 then you will need to encode the # symbol as %23.
</blockquote>
<h4>type</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Specify a specialized RSS feed format for different platforms. Supported types: gpc, gns, nextdoor, meta-commerce.
Google Publisher Center (gpc):
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?type=gpc 
 Adds the Media RSS namespace, creates full content in the content:encoded section, and adds featured image as a media:content element.
</blockquote>
Google News Showcase (gns):
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?type=gns 
 Adds the required Google News Showcase namespace and elements.
</blockquote>
NextDoor Newsroom (nextdoor):
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?type=nextdoor 
 Formats the feed for NextDoor News with media elements and featured image support.
</blockquote>
Meta Commerce (meta-commerce):
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?type=meta-commerce 
 Uses Google Shopping feed format for Meta Shopping campaigns. Articles are formatted as “products” with static values (availability=”in stock”, condition=”new”). Use <code>meta_price</code> and <code>meta_currency</code> to set the price (defaults to “0.00 USD”). Works with all other RSS Control parameters.
</blockquote>
<h4>meta_price</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Set the price value for Meta Commerce feed items. Used in the <code>g:price</code> element. Must be used with <code>type=meta-commerce</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?type=meta-commerce&meta_price=9.99 
 Default is “0.00”.
</blockquote>
<h4>meta_currency</h4>
INCLUDED IN PREMIUM VERSION
Set the currency code for Meta Commerce feed items (e.g. USD, CAD, EUR, GBP). Used in the <code>g:price</code> element. Must be used with <code>type=meta-commerce</code>.
Example:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/?type=meta-commerce&meta_price=9.99&meta_currency=CAD 
 Default is “USD”.
</blockquote>
All feed types can also be accessed via direct URL:
<blockquote>
https://yourdomain.com/feed/gpc/ 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/gns/ 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/nextdoor/ 
 https://yourdomain.com/feed/meta-commerce/
</blockquote>
<h3>Premium Admin Features</h3>
The premium version includes the following admin tools, found under Tools > RSS Control:
<ul>
<li>Feed URL Generator – Visual form to build feed URLs by selecting parameters from dropdowns and inputs. Features AJAX-powered search for posts, categories, tags, and post types. Generates a ready-to-use URL with copy and open buttons.</li>
<li>Feed Preview – Live preview of any feed URL showing the title, first 5 items, detected namespaces, media elements, and images.</li>
<li>Parameter Documentation – Filterable reference for all query parameters with examples, grouped by category.</li>
</ul>

RSS Control

Control your sites RSS feeds with additional query param options.

Simple News XML Sitemap Generator vs RSS Control