RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is the backbone of the independent web. It allows loyal readers to subscribe to your blog without relying on social media algorithms to show them your latest posts. It also enables automatic syndication to other platforms and newsletters.
WordPress generates an RSS feed automatically at /feed/. When you migrate to a ZeroPress static site, you don’t lose this capability, but it is generated securely via an XML file at build time.
Included by Default in ZeroPress
The standard ZeroPress setup includes the official jekyll-feed plugin. This plugin automatically generates an Atom (RSS) feed for your site at the /feed.xml endpoint.
How It Works
Instead of hitting a database query to gather your latest 10 posts, the jekyll-feed plugin hook runs during the bundle exec jekyll build command.
It iterates through your _posts folder, formats the content, dates, and author information into valid XML syntax, and outputs a static feed.xml file into your _site directory.
When your site deploys to Cloudflare Pages, that XML file is cached on the global edge network. When an RSS reader (like Feedly or NewsBlur) checks for updates, it instantly downloads the static XML file without waking up a server.
Validating Your Setup
If you want to ensure your feed is working properly:
- Navigate to
https://yourdomain.com/feed.xml. You should see a wall of XML code containing the content of your latest posts. - To ensure the format is strictly valid according to W3C standards, you can paste your URL into the W3C Feed Validator.
Customizing Your Feed Output
Sometimes, you might not want every single post to go into your main RSS feed (for example, if you publish minor updates or changelogs alongside full articles).
You can control this behavior using categories and tags. In your _config.yml, you can specify exactly which category should generate a feed.
# In _config.yml
feed:
categories:
- articles
- news
Alternatively, you can exclude specific posts from the feed entirely by adding a flag to their individual Markdown front matter:
---
layout: post
title: "A Minor Update"
hide_from_feed: true
---
(Note: Custom logic based on hide_from_feed requires modifying the default feed template, which Pro users can easily do by overriding the feed.xml layout).
The SEO Benefit
While RSS feeds are primarily for human readers, having a fast, valid feed helps search engine crawlers discover your newest content almost instantly. It’s an indispensable tool for a growing static blog.