1. Verify Your Blog’s Feed URL Structure
Introduction:
The most common mistake is choosing the improper feed URL. Blogger generates feeds in many formats including Atom and RSS. Your default feed URL should be http://yourblogname.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default. If you use a custom domain, replace the blogspot address accordingly. Always check for mistakes like missing slashes or excessive spaces. Testing this URL in a browser immediately determines if your feed is accessible or broken.
2. Disable Special Characters in Post Titles
Blogger feeds malfunction when post names contain unescaped special characters such as ampersands (&), less than (<), or greater than (>). These characters confound XML parsers and produce validation issues. Go through your previous posts and change & with and or &. Also avoid emojis or unusual Unicode symbols in titles. After cleaning, republish the posts to refresh the feed cache.
3. Remove Faulty Third-Party Widgets
Certain HTML/JavaScript widgets introduce faulty code into your blog’s <head> section, distorting the feed output. Popular culprits include poorly programmed hit counters, old social share buttons, or malfunctioning RSS-to-Email services. Temporarily deactivate widgets one by one from Blogger’s Layout section. After each removal, check your feed URL. Once the feed returns, permanently delete the faulty widget.
4. Check Your robots.txt Settings
An poorly set robots.txt file can prohibit search engines and feed readers from viewing your feed. Look for lines like Disallow: /feeds/ in your file. If present, this directive specifically forbids feed access. You may edit robots.txt by heading to Settings > Search Preferences > Custom robots.txt. Remove any disallow rules targeting the feeds directory. Save the file and wait 10–15 minutes for the changes to propagate.
5. Reduce Post Excerpt Length Dynamically
Blogger truncates large entries in feeds, but severe shortening can damage XML tags. Go to Settings > Other > Site Feed and set “Allow Blog Feed” to “Full” instead of “Until Break.” Then set “Post Feed Footer” to a brief static message without HTML tags. Avoid using <!-- more --> tags excessively in posts. This guarantees your feed remains well-formed while still loading quickly.
6. Fix Date and Time Formatting Issues
Posts with invalid or future-published dates typically vanish from the feed. Check each post’s timestamp under Post Settings > Schedule. Ensure the date is not set to a year beyond 2038 (Unix timestamp limit) or before 1970. Also verify your blog’s time zone under Settings > Language and Formatting. Mismatched time zones cause feed readers to misinterpret post order. Correct any outliers and republish affected posts.
7. Clear Blogger’s Built-In Feed Cache
Blogger aggressively caches feeds for up to 25 minutes, thus even after rectifying an error, the old broken version may remain show. Force a cache refresh by inserting ?alt=json&max-results=1 to your feed URL. Then append ?reset=1 to bypass cache altogether. You can also use Google’s FeedBurner to ping your feed manually. If utilizing a custom domain, flush your CDN or hosting cache via your DNS provider’s dashboard.
8. Validate Feed with W3C Feed Checker
Use the official W3C Feed Validation Service to determine the line numbers of problems. Copy your feed URL into the validator at validator.w3.org/feed. The tool highlights specific XML errors including unclosed tags or invalid character elements. Each error notice provides a line reference; cross-check that line in your blog’s raw feed XML. Fix the related post or template code. Revalidate after every fix until no errors remain.
9. Revert to Blogger’s Default Template Temporarily
Custom or substantially changed templates often override feed-related <link> tags. To test, switch to a default theme (Contempo, Simple, etc.) from Theme > Restore Default. Do not customize anything yet. Check if your feed works. If true, the fault lies in your custom template’s code—specifically the <b:include> tags or missing data:blog.feedLinks. Compare your template’s <head> section with the default one and restore only the feed-related lines.
10. Disable Post Footers and Related Posts
Many “Related Posts” widgets and custom post footers inject HTML directly into feed summaries. This breaks feed readers who anticipate plain text or simple markup. Go to Theme > Edit HTML and search for data:post.body or post.body. Remove any JavaScript or iframe tags inside the feed conditional section (<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'>). Alternatively, utilize a lightweight related posts gadget from Blogger’s official add-ons. After removal, the feed will output clean, legible material.
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)
Q1: Why does my Blogger feed indicate “Page not found”?
A: Your feed URL is incorrect or your blog is private. Change visibility to “Public” under Settings > Basic > Blog Readers.
Q2: How long does it take for feed fixes to reflect?
A: Blogger caches feeds for 15–25 minutes. Use ?reset=1 at the end of your feed URL to bypass cache instantaneously.
Q3: Will deleting posts restore a corrupted feed?
A: Only if the corrupted post is the latest one. Temporarily unpublish your newest 3–5 posts to isolate the incorrect entry.
Q4: Does using a custom domain cause feed errors?
A: Yes, if DNS settings are inadequate. Ensure your CNAME for feeds points to ghs.google.com or use your blogspot feed URL.
Q5: Can too many posts damage the feed?
A: No, but a single post with faulty HTML can. Limit feed to 25 posts under Settings > Other > Site Feed for easier troubleshooting.
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