Separates content from presentation XML tags describe meaning not presentation. The look and feel of an XML document can be controlled by XSL stylesheets, allowing the look of a document (or of a complete Web site) to be changed without touching the content of the document.

XML supports information exchange between computer systems such as websites, databases, and third-party applications. Predefined rules make it easy to transmit data as XML files over any network because the recipient can use those rules to read the data accurately and efficiently.

The primary purpose of XML, however, is to store data in a way that can be easily read by and shared between software applications. Since its format is standardized, XML can be shared across systems or platforms, both locally and over the internet, and the recipient will still be able to parse the data.