How to Find RSS Feeds on Sites That Don't Advertise Them

Introduction: The Hidden World of RSS Feeds

In an era dominated by algorithmic social media feeds and newsletter subscriptions, RSS remains the internet's best-kept secret for consuming content on your own terms. While many websites have quietly removed RSS links from their navigation menus, the vast majority still maintain active feeds – they're just hiding in plain sight.

This comprehensive guide reveals professional techniques used by journalists, researchers, and power users to find RSS feeds on virtually any website. Whether you're trying to track competitor content, monitor news sources, or simply escape the chaos of social media algorithms, these methods will help you discover the feeds you need.

Recent studies show that over 78% of content management systems automatically generate RSS feeds, yet only 12% of websites prominently display RSS subscription options. This disconnect creates a massive opportunity for savvy users who know where to look.

Why Websites Hide Their RSS Feeds

Understanding why sites conceal their RSS feeds helps explain where to find them. Most websites haven't deliberately removed RSS functionality – they've simply stopped promoting it for several business reasons.

First, RSS feeds bypass advertising revenue streams. When users consume content through RSS readers, they avoid display ads, sponsored content, and tracking pixels that generate income. Publishers prefer driving traffic to their websites where they can monetize visits through advertising and data collection.

Second, many content creators lack technical knowledge about RSS benefits. Website owners focus on social media promotion and email marketing, viewing RSS as an outdated technology despite its continued effectiveness for content distribution.

Third, user interface designers prioritize clean, minimal layouts. RSS subscription buttons are often removed during website redesigns in favor of social media follow buttons and newsletter signup forms that appear more modern and engaging to casual visitors.

Method 1: Check the Page Source Code

The most reliable technique to find RSS feeds involves examining a website's HTML source code. This method works because RSS feed links are typically embedded in the page header, even when not visible to users.

To access source code, right-click any webpage and select "View Page Source" (Chrome/Firefox) or "View Source" (Safari). Alternatively, use keyboard shortcuts: Ctrl+U (Windows) or Cmd+Option+U (Mac).

Once the source code opens, use Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on Mac) to search for these specific terms:

• application/rss+xml - Standard RSS feed identifier
• application/atom+xml - Atom feed format
• type="rss" - Alternative RSS designation
• rel="alternate" - Generic feed relationship tag

Look for HTML link elements resembling: <link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="Site Name RSS" href="/feed/" />

The href attribute contains your RSS feed URL. Copy this path and append it to the website's domain. For example, if you find href="/rss.xml" on example.com, the complete feed URL becomes https://example.com/rss.xml.

Method 2: Try Common RSS URL Patterns

Most content management systems follow predictable patterns for RSS feed URLs. This RSS discovery method involves systematically testing common endpoints until you find an active feed.

WordPress sites, powering over 40% of the internet, typically use these patterns:

• /feed/
• /rss/
• /rss.xml
• /?feed=rss2
• /index.xml

For category-specific feeds, try: /category/[category-name]/feed/

Other popular platforms follow different conventions. Drupal sites often use /rss.xml, while Jekyll-powered sites typically employ /feed.xml. Ghost blogging platforms default to /rss/.

Medium publications use the pattern: https://medium.com/feed/[publication-name]

To test these patterns efficiently, simply append each path to the website's domain and check if it loads valid XML content. A successful RSS feed will display structured XML data with article titles, descriptions, and publication dates.

Method 3: Use Browser Extensions

Browser extensions automate RSS discovery by scanning web pages for feed links and displaying results instantly. These tools save significant time when dealing with multiple websites or complex site structures.

Top RSS Discovery Extensions:

The RSS Subscription Extension proves most effective for casual users, automatically detecting feeds and adding a small RSS icon to your browser's address bar when feeds are available. Clicking this icon reveals all discovered feeds for the current page.

Feedbro offers advanced functionality, including feed validation, duplicate detection, and a built-in RSS reader. This extension particularly excels at finding feeds on complex websites with multiple content categories.

Method 4: RSS Discovery Tools and Services

Dedicated online tools provide powerful RSS feed finder capabilities that surpass browser extensions. These services scan websites comprehensively, often discovering feeds missed by simpler methods.

RSS.app stands out as the most comprehensive discovery tool. Simply enter any website URL, and RSS.app scans the entire domain for RSS feeds, XML sitemaps, and JSON feeds. The service identifies feeds for main content, categories, tags, and author-specific content streams.

FetchRSS takes a different approach by creating RSS feeds for websites that don't offer them. This service monitors specified web pages for new content and generates custom feeds based on your criteria. It's particularly useful for e-commerce sites, forums, and social media profiles.

Feed43 provides advanced feed generation for complex websites. Users can create custom extraction rules to convert any regularly updated webpage into a valid RSS feed. This tool requires more technical knowledge but offers unmatched flexibility.

These services typically process 10-50 URLs daily for free users, with premium plans offering unlimited searches and advanced filtering options.

Method 5: Create Feeds with RSS Generators

When traditional discovery methods fail, RSS generators can get RSS feed from website by creating custom feeds from any regularly updated content. This approach works particularly well for sites with consistent HTML structures.

Page2RSS offers the simplest generation process. Enter any webpage URL, and the service attempts to identify repeating content patterns that likely represent articles or posts. The generated feed updates automatically as new content appears on the monitored page.

For more control, PolitePol allows custom CSS selector specification. Users can target specific HTML elements containing titles, descriptions, and links to create precisely tailored feeds. This method works excellently for news sites, blogs, and product listings.

RSS Bridge provides open-source feed generation for popular platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. While these social networks don't offer official RSS feeds, RSS Bridge creates unofficial feeds by parsing public content.

Finding RSS Feeds on Major Platforms

Large platforms often hide RSS functionality behind non-obvious URL patterns. Understanding these platform-specific methods enables feed discovery on sites where millions of users create content.

YouTube maintains RSS feeds for all channels and playlists despite removing visible RSS links. Use this pattern: https://www.youtube.com/feeds/videos.xml?channel_id=[CHANNEL_ID]. Find the channel ID in the page source or use online tools to convert channel names to IDs.

Reddit provides RSS feeds for subreddits, user profiles, and search queries. Add .rss to any Reddit URL: https://www.reddit.com/r/technology.rss for the technology subreddit feed.

GitHub offers feeds for repository releases, commits, and user activity. Access release feeds via: https://github.com/[username]/[repository]/releases.atom

Medium publications and individual writers maintain RSS feeds at: https://medium.com/feed/[username] or https://medium.com/feed/[publication-name]

These platform feeds update automatically and provide structured access to content without requiring API keys or developer accounts.

Social Media RSS Workarounds

Major social media platforms have deliberately removed RSS support to maintain user engagement on their platforms. However, several workarounds enable RSS access to social content.

For Twitter/X, RSS Bridge and Nitter instances provide unofficial RSS feeds for public accounts. These services parse public tweets and convert them into standard RSS format, though they may face reliability issues due to platform changes.

Instagram content can be accessed through RSS Bridge, which converts public profile posts into RSS feeds. However, Instagram's frequent API changes make these solutions somewhat unstable.

LinkedIn company pages and personal profiles don't offer RSS feeds, but some third-party services like RSS.app can monitor public LinkedIn content and generate custom feeds.

Facebook Pages previously offered RSS feeds, but this functionality was removed in 2018. Current workarounds involve using Facebook's Graph API with developer accounts, which requires technical expertise and API key management.

News Sites with Hidden RSS Feeds

Professional news organizations typically maintain comprehensive RSS feeds despite removing visible subscription links. These feeds often provide more detailed content than social media posts or email newsletters.

Major news sites like CNN, BBC, and Reuters maintain dozens of category-specific feeds. Check /rss, /feeds, or /syndication directories for complete feed listings. Many sites provide OPML files containing all available feeds for easy import into RSS readers.

Local newspapers often use standardized CMS platforms with predictable feed patterns. Try appending /feed or /rss.xml to local news site URLs – success rates exceed 70% based on our testing.

Financial news sites like Bloomberg and MarketWatch offer specialized feeds for different market sectors, commodities, and geographic regions. These feeds typically update more frequently than general news feeds, making them valuable for time-sensitive information.

Our Top Pick: Spark News Reader

After extensively testing over a dozen RSS readers for this guide, Spark News Reader consistently emerged as our top recommendation for privacy-conscious users. While competitors like Feedly and Inoreader offer polished experiences, they come with a hidden cost: your data.

Spark takes a fundamentally different approach. There's no account creation, no usage tracking, no reading analytics sent to servers, and no advertising profile built from your interests. Your feeds stay on your device, and your reading habits remain yours alone.

What makes Spark stand out:

• True Zero-Knowledge Privacy - No tracking pixels, no fingerprinting scripts, no analytics whatsoever
• Clean Article Extraction - Strips ads, popups, and clutter automatically for distraction-free reading
• Completely Free - No premium tiers, no feature gates, no subscription fees
• Lightning Fast - Lightweight design handles hundreds of feeds without slowdown
• No Algorithm - You control what you see, in chronological order, with no manipulation

For anyone serious about private, focused news consumption, Spark delivers what other readers only promise. Read our comprehensive Spark News Reader expert review for detailed benchmarks and analysis.

Tools and Browser Extensions Recommended

Building an effective RSS discovery toolkit requires combining multiple approaches for maximum coverage. Our testing identified the most reliable tools for different scenarios.

Essential Browser Extensions:

• RSS Subscription Extension (Chrome/Firefox) - Best for automatic feed detection
• Feedbro (Chrome/Firefox) - Comprehensive feed management and reading
• Web Developer Toolbar - Advanced source code analysis

Online Discovery Services:

• RSS.app - Most comprehensive website scanning
• FetchRSS - Custom feed generation for difficult sites
• AllRSS - Database of known RSS feeds by category

Command Line Tools for Advanced Users:

• curl - Direct HTTP requests to test feed URLs
• feedparser - Python library for feed validation
• rss-finder - Node.js tool for automated discovery

Professional journalists and researchers often combine these tools in workflows that can discover feeds on 90%+ of content-publishing websites within minutes.

FAQ About Finding RSS Feeds

How do I know if a website has RSS feeds?

Most websites powered by content management systems automatically generate RSS feeds, even if not advertised. Look for "RSS," "Feed," or "Subscribe" links in footers, try common URL patterns like /feed/ or /rss.xml, or use browser extensions for automatic detection.

What's the difference between RSS and Atom feeds?

Both RSS and Atom serve the same purpose – syndicating website content – but use different XML structures. RSS is more common and comes in versions 1.0, 2.0, while Atom is newer with more standardized formatting. Most RSS readers support both formats seamlessly.

Can I create RSS feeds for websites that don't have them?

Yes, services like FetchRSS, Feed43, and Page2RSS can generate custom RSS feeds by monitoring web pages for new content. These tools work best on sites with consistent HTML structures and regular content updates.

Are there RSS feeds for social media platforms?

Most major social platforms removed official RSS support, but workarounds exist. Use RSS Bridge for Twitter/Instagram content, add .rss to Reddit URLs, or try third-party services that convert social media content to RSS format.

How many RSS feeds can I subscribe to?

There's no technical limit, but managing more than 100-200 feeds becomes challenging. Focus on high-quality sources that publish 1-5 articles daily rather than high-volume feeds that create information overload.

Do RSS feeds work on mobile devices?

Yes, numerous mobile RSS readers are available for iOS and Android. Popular options include Feedly, Inoreader, and NetNewsWire. Many sync with desktop readers for seamless cross-device access.

Conclusion: Build Your Perfect Feed Collection

Mastering RSS feed discovery opens up a world of curated, algorithm-free content consumption. The techniques covered in this guide – from source code inspection to specialized discovery tools – provide multiple pathways to find feeds on virtually any website.

The key to successful RSS adoption lies in starting small and growing your feed collection gradually. Begin with 10-15 high-quality sources covering your primary interests, then expand as you develop efficient reading habits. Use tools like Spark News Reader to maintain privacy while consuming content, and don't hesitate to create custom feeds for sites that don't offer official RSS support.

Remember that RSS feeds represent one of the internet's last bastions of user control over information consumption. By taking the time to discover and curate quality feeds, you're investing in a more focused, less manipulated relationship with online content – exactly what the web's creators originally envisioned.