RSS basics
How to Find a Website’s RSS Feed
Find official RSS feeds using publisher directories, page metadata, and reader discovery, then check that the feed covers the right section.
Begin with the publisher
Look in the website footer, help pages, or a section called RSS, feeds, or subscriptions. Large publications sometimes provide separate feeds for business, technology, regions, or individual writers. Prefer the publisher’s own directory when it exists: it explains the intended coverage and avoids guessing URLs. A newsletter signup is not necessarily an RSS subscription, even when both deliver the same headlines.
Check the page metadata
On a desktop browser, viewing the page source and searching for application/rss+xml or application/atom+xml can reveal an advertised feed. The relevant link element usually contains an href attribute with the feed address. This is different from searching only the visible page text. A section page may advertise a section feed while the homepage advertises a general one. Not all sites publish this metadata, so its absence is not proof that no feed exists.
Try discovery, then verify
Many readers can look for feeds when you paste a website address. Treat their results as candidates. Preview the items and compare two or three titles with the current publisher page. Confirm that article links go to the expected domain and that the subjects match your goal. If you wanted local economic news but the preview is mainly sports, look for a narrower section feed instead of accepting the first result.
Troubleshoot a feed that looks empty
Open the feed URL directly. Raw XML is normal; a browser does not have to display a polished reading interface. A login screen, consent page, or unrelated HTML suggests the address is not a usable public feed for your reader. A valid feed with old items may simply be inactive. Keep a note of the last publication date and check the publisher website before deciding the reader is broken. Avoid repeatedly requesting a site that is returning access errors.
Keep a small source record
Save the website name, feed address, section covered, and the date you checked it. If a publisher redesigns its site, this record helps you identify which subscription stopped updating. Do not enter passwords into an unofficial feed-conversion service just to obtain a URL. Some sites do not offer a public feed; use an official newsletter or bookmark rather than assuming there is a hidden endpoint you must find.