RSS isn’t dead—it’s just hiding. Most websites still have RSS feeds, but they’ve buried them beneath layers of code or completely removed obvious links. If you're tired of scouring a site’s footer for that little orange icon, you’re not alone. At 3minread.com, we help you stay in control of your digital tools—and today, we’ll show you how to track content from nearly any site using RSS feeds, even if they don't want you to.

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The Simplest Trick: Just Add “/feed” to the URL

Start here—this one-line trick works on millions of sites.

Before diving into source code or automation tools, try this: go to the homepage of the site and add /feed to the end of the URL. For example:

https://example.com/feed

This works on a huge number of WordPress-powered websites (which make up over 40% of the internet). You might be surprised how often this works, especially for blogs, niche publications, and portfolio sites.

If it doesn’t work, don’t worry—we’ve got more advanced ways to uncover the feed.

Platform-Specific RSS Feed Tricks

Each major blogging platform has its own RSS format—and they’re easy to guess.

Even if a website doesn’t directly advertise its RSS feed, most blogging platforms follow standard patterns. Here’s how to find them:

• WordPress: Add /feed to the end of any blog or category URL.

  • Example: https://justinpot.com/feed

• YouTube: Paste a channel URL directly into your RSS reader. Most readers will convert it automatically. You can also export all your subscriptions via an OPML file.

• Medium:

  • For a publication: https://medium.com/feed/example-site
  • For a user subdomain: https://example.medium.com/feed

• Tumblr: Add /rss at the end of the site URL.

  • Example: https://example.tumblr.com/rss

• Blogger: Add /feeds/posts/default to the blog’s homepage.

  • Example: https://example.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

Try these shortcuts before diving into more technical methods—they work more often than you’d think.

Advanced Method: Digging Through Source Code

If all else fails, the site’s HTML might hold the RSS feed URL you need.

Here’s how to find it in the source code:

1. Right-click anywhere on the site and choose View Page Source.
2. Press Ctrl+F (or Cmd+F on Mac) to open the search bar.
3. Search for keywords like rss, atom, or xml.

Look for <link> tags with a type like "application/rss+xml" or "application/atom+xml". The href attribute is usually the feed URL.

Example:

Copy that link and paste it into your RSS reader. Voilà—you’re subscribed.

Can’t Find It? Build Your Own RSS Feed With Zapier

When a site refuses to give you a feed, make your own in minutes with Zapier.

Not all websites publish RSS feeds anymore. But with Zapier’s RSS by Zapier, you can create feeds from scratch using automation triggers. Some powerful use cases include:

• Reddit: Create RSS feeds for new hot posts or filtered search terms
• Google Sheets: Turn new spreadsheet rows into RSS items
• Google Docs/Drive: Create a feed for file updates or new documents
• Slack or GitHub: Track messages, issues, or commits via RSS
• Facebook Pages and Instagram: Monitor new posts and activity

Each Zap can feed into a custom RSS URL Zapier generates. Then, use that feed in any RSS reader, or trigger additional automations (like sending updates to email or posting to Slack).

This method is particularly useful for tracking data from internal tools, private databases, or social platforms without native RSS support.

Pro Tips for Smarter RSS Usage

Once you’ve found (or created) a feed, make it actually work for you.

• Use Feedly, Inoreader, or NetNewsWire for a smooth reading experience.
• Combine multiple feeds using tools like RSS Mix or Zapier.
• Use filters to only see posts that match certain keywords.
• Set up email alerts from RSS updates if you prefer inbox notifications.
• Automate actions—use Zapier to send RSS updates to Slack, Trello, or your calendar.

And remember, you can build workflows where RSS is the trigger, not just the output. It’s an incredibly flexible format once you harness it properly.