Hreflang: Guide to International and Multilingual SEO

Hreflang is an HTML attribute that tells search engines about language and regional versions of a page. It helps Google serve the correct URL to users based on their language or location. Format: hreflang='en-US' (English for US). Hreflang must be bidirectional - all versions must reference each other and themselves.

Hreflang is an HTML attribute that tells search engines about language and regional versions of a page. It helps Google serve the correct URL to users based on their language or location. Format: hreflang=“en-US” (English for US). Hreflang must be bidirectional - all versions must reference each other and themselves.

What is Hreflang?

Hreflang is an attribute that indicates the language and optionally the geographic target of a webpage. It’s used when you have multiple versions of content for different languages or regions.

Hreflang purposes:

Show correct language version in search results
Prevent duplicate content issues between versions
Target specific geographic markets
Improve user experience for international visitors

When to Use Hreflang

Use Hreflang When

Same content in multiple languages
Same language, different regions (en-US vs en-GB)
Translated pages with equivalent content
Regional variations with different pricing/products

Don’t Need Hreflang When

Single language website
No regional targeting needed
Automatically translated content (consider noindex)
Different content that happens to be in different languages

Hreflang Syntax

Language Only

Use ISO 639-1 language codes.

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/page/">
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="es" href="https://example.com/es/page/">
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.com/de/page/">

Language + Region

Combine language code with ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 country code.

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/us/page/">
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-GB" href="https://example.com/uk/page/">
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-AU" href="https://example.com/au/page/">

x-default

Specifies fallback for unmatched languages/regions.

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page/">

Complete Hreflang Example

For a page with English, Spanish, and German versions:

<head>
  <!-- Self-reference -->
  <link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/page/">

  <!-- Other versions -->
  <link rel="alternate" hreflang="es" href="https://example.com/es/pagina/">
  <link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.com/de/seite/">

  <!-- Fallback -->
  <link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page/">
</head>

Important: Each version must include ALL hreflang tags, including self-reference.

Implementation Methods

HTML Link Tags

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/page/">

Pros: Easy to implement, visible in source Cons: Adds to page size, must update each page

HTTP Headers

For non-HTML files (PDFs).

Link: <https://example.com/page/>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="en",
      <https://example.com/es/page/>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="es"

XML Sitemap

<url>
  <loc>https://example.com/page/</loc>
  <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/page/"/>
  <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="es" href="https://example.com/es/pagina/"/>
  <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.com/de/seite/"/>
</url>

Pros: Centralized management, easier updates Cons: Not visible on page, may have crawl delay

Common Hreflang Codes

Language Codes (ISO 639-1)

Code	Language
en	English
es	Spanish
de	German
fr	French
zh	Chinese
ja	Japanese
pt	Portuguese
ar	Arabic
ms	Malay

Country Codes (ISO 3166-1)

Code	Country
US	United States
GB	United Kingdom
DE	Germany
FR	France
ES	Spain
AU	Australia
MY	Malaysia
SG	Singapore

Combined Examples

Hreflang	Target
en-US	English for US
en-GB	English for UK
es-ES	Spanish for Spain
es-MX	Spanish for Mexico
pt-BR	Portuguese for Brazil
pt-PT	Portuguese for Portugal
zh-CN	Chinese for China (Simplified)
zh-TW	Chinese for Taiwan (Traditional)

Hreflang Best Practices

Bidirectional Requirement

All pages must reference each other.

Correct:

Page A (en) references: A (en), B (es), C (de)
Page B (es) references: A (en), B (es), C (de)
Page C (de) references: A (en), B (es), C (de)

Incorrect:

Page A (en) references: B (es), C (de)  // Missing self-reference
Page B (es) references: A (en)          // Missing C

Use Absolute URLs

<!-- Correct -->
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/page/">

<!-- Incorrect -->
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="/page/">

Match Canonical URLs

Hreflang URLs should match canonical URLs.

<link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/page/">
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://example.com/page/">

Return 200 Status

All hreflang URLs must return 200 (not redirects or errors).

Include Self-Reference

Always include the current page in hreflang.

URL Structures for International Sites

Subdirectories (Recommended)

example.com/en/
example.com/es/
example.com/de/

Pros: Easy to implement, shared domain authority Cons: No separate geo-targeting in Search Console

Subdomains

en.example.com
es.example.com
de.example.com

Pros: Can geo-target in Search Console Cons: Separate domain authority, more setup

ccTLDs

example.com (US)
example.co.uk (UK)
example.de (Germany)

Pros: Strong geo-signal, local trust Cons: Separate domains to manage, divided authority

Troubleshooting Hreflang

Common Errors

Error	Cause	Solution
Missing return links	One-directional references	Add reciprocal tags
Wrong codes	Invalid language/country	Use correct ISO codes
Broken links	URLs return errors	Fix or remove URLs
Conflicting signals	Canonical conflicts	Align canonical and hreflang

Validation Tools

Google Search Console (International Targeting)
Hreflang Tags Testing Tool
Ahrefs/Semrush site audit
Screaming Frog

Search Console Reports

Check:

International Targeting section
Coverage report for hreflang errors
URL Inspection for specific pages

Hreflang Checklist

Implementation

Validation

Maintenance

New pages get hreflang
Removed pages cleaned up
URL changes updated
Regular audits scheduled

Conclusion

Hreflang is essential for multilingual and international websites. It ensures users see the correct language version in search results and prevents duplicate content issues between regional versions.

Implement hreflang on all alternate versions, always include self-reference, and ensure bidirectional linking. Use x-default as a fallback for unmatched languages. Validate regularly with Search Console and site audit tools.

Combine hreflang with proper canonicalization and international SEO strategy for effective global search visibility.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need hreflang for different English versions (US, UK, AU)?

Yes, if you have distinct content for different English-speaking regions (different spellings, pricing, products), use hreflang with region codes: en-US, en-GB, en-AU. If the content is identical, you may not need separate versions. Hreflang helps prevent duplicate content issues between regional versions.

What is x-default in hreflang?

x-default specifies the default or fallback page when no other hreflang matches the user's language/region. It's typically your main language version or a language selector page. Always include x-default to handle users whose language isn't specifically targeted.

Does hreflang affect rankings?

Hreflang doesn't directly boost rankings, but it helps the correct page rank in the correct market. Without hreflang, the wrong language version might rank in a market, or versions might compete against each other. Proper implementation ensures the right page appears for the right audience.