Validate RSS

Check an RSS feed for well-formed XML and required channel and item fields.

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ToolRSS Validator
Input
Output
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Preview

How it works

The XML feed is parsed and checked for channel title, link, description, item structure, dates, GUIDs, and namespace rules; XML well-formedness is reported separately from RSS semantics. Linked pages are not fetched.

  • Required channel fields are checked before item advice.
  • URL reachability remains outside feed validation.

Worked example

Validate a minimal RSS 2.0 feed
Check an RSS feed for required channel elements and item structure
Input
											<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0">
  <channel>
    <title>My Blog</title>
    <link>https://example.com</link>
    <description>A blog</description>
    <item>
      <title>Post 1</title>
    </item>
  </channel>
</rss>
Output
												Valid: yes
Version: 1.0
Errors: none
Warnings: Missing recommended <language> in <channel>, Missing recommended date element in <channel>

STATS
Item count: 1
Has enclosures: no
Has categories: no

When to use this

Blog, podcast, and release feeds validate before readers consume them.

Edge cases

  • Well-formed XML can still lack required RSS elements.
  • Invalid pubDate timezones parse differently across readers.
  • GUID with isPermaLink=false is an identifier, not necessarily a URL.

References