Hreflang & International SEO
When to Use
- Use when validating or generating hreflang for multilingual or multiregional sites.
- Use when the user mentions international SEO, language tags, x-default, or hreflang issues.
- Use when auditing locale alternates across HTML, headers, or sitemap implementations.
Validate existing hreflang implementations or generate correct hreflang tags
for multi-language and multi-region sites. Supports HTML, HTTP header, and
XML sitemap implementations.
Validation Checks
1. Self-Referencing Tags
- Every page must include an hreflang tag pointing to itself
- The self-referencing URL must exactly match the page's canonical URL
- Missing self-referencing tags cause Google to ignore the entire hreflang set
2. Return Tags
- If page A links to page B with hreflang, page B must link back to page A
- Every hreflang relationship must be bidirectional (A→B and B→A)
- Missing return tags invalidate the hreflang signal for both pages
- Check all language versions reference each other (full mesh)
3. x-default Tag
- Required: designates the fallback page for unmatched languages/regions
- Typically points to the language selector page or English version
- Only one x-default per set of alternates
- Must also have return tags from all other language versions
4. Language Code Validation
- Must use ISO 639-1 two-letter codes (e.g.,
en, fr, de, ja)
- Common errors:
eng instead of en (ISO 639-2, not valid for hreflang)jp instead of ja (incorrect code for Japanese)zh without region qualifier (ambiguous; use zh-Hans or zh-Hant)
5. Region Code Validation
- Optional region qualifier uses ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 (e.g.,
en-US, en-GB, pt-BR)
- Format:
language-REGION (lowercase language, uppercase region)
- Common errors:
en-uk instead of en-GB (UK is not a valid ISO 3166-1 code)es-LA (Latin America is not a country; use specific countries)- Region without language prefix
6. Canonical URL Alignment
- Hreflang tags must only appear on canonical URLs
- If a page has
rel=canonical pointing elsewhere, hreflang on that page is ignored
- The canonical URL and hreflang URL must match exactly (including trailing slashes)
- Non-canonical pages should not be in any hreflang set
7. Protocol Consistency
- All URLs in an hreflang set must use the same protocol (HTTPS or HTTP)
- Mixed HTTP/HTTPS in hreflang sets causes validation failures
- After HTTPS migration, update all hreflang tags to HTTPS
8. Cross-Domain Support
- Hreflang works across different domains (e.g., example.com and example.de)
- Cross-domain hreflang requires return tags on both domains
- Verify both domains are verified in Google Search Console
- Sitemap-based implementation recommended for cross-domain setups
Common Mistakes
| Issue |
Severity |
Fix |
| Missing self-referencing tag |
Critical |
Add hreflang pointing to same page URL |
| Missing return tags (A→B but no B→A) |
Critical |
Add matching return tags on all alternates |
| Missing x-default |
High |
Add x-default pointing to fallback/selector page |
Invalid language code (e.g., eng) |
High |
Use ISO 639-1 two-letter codes |
Invalid region code (e.g., en-uk) |
High |
Use ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 codes |
| Hreflang on non-canonical URL |
High |
Move hreflang to canonical URL only |
| HTTP/HTTPS mismatch in URLs |
Medium |
Standardize all URLs to HTTPS |
| Trailing slash inconsistency |
Medium |
Match canonical URL format exactly |
| Hreflang in both HTML and sitemap |
Low |
Choose one method (sitemap preferred for large sites) |
| Language without region when needed |
Low |
Add region qualifier for geo-targeted content |
Implementation Methods
Method 1: HTML Link Tags
Best for: Sites with <50 language/region variants per page.
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-GB" href="https://example.co.uk/page" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />
Place in <head> section. Every page must include all alternates including itself.
Method 2: HTTP Headers
Best for: Non-HTML files (PDFs, documents).
Link: <https://example.com/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="en-US",
<https://example.com/fr/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="fr",
<https://example.com/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="x-default"
Set via server configuration or CDN rules.
Method 3: XML Sitemap (Recommended for large sites)
Best for: Sites with many language variants, cross-domain setups, or 50+ pages.
See Hreflang Sitemap Generation section below.
Method Comparison
| Method |
Best For |
Pros |
Cons |
| HTML link tags |
Small sites (<50 variants) |
Easy to implement, visible in source |
Bloats <head>, hard to maintain at scale |
| HTTP headers |
Non-HTML files |
Works for PDFs, images |
Complex server config, not visible in HTML |
| XML sitemap |
Large sites, cross-domain |
Scalable, centralized management |
Not visible on page, requires sitemap maintenance |
Hreflang Generation
Process
- Detect languages: Scan site for language indicators (URL path, subdomain, TLD, HTML lang attribute)
- Map page equivalents: Match corresponding pages across languages/regions
- Validate language codes: Verify all codes against ISO 639-1 and ISO 3166-1
- Generate tags: Create hreflang tags for each page including self-referencing
- Verify return tags: Confirm all relationships are bidirectional
- Add x-default: Set fallback for each page set
- Output: Generate implementation code (HTML, HTTP headers, or sitemap XML)
Hreflang Sitemap Generation
Sitemap with Hreflang
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9"
xmlns:xhtml="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/page</loc>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.de/page" />
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />
</url>
<url>
<loc>https://example.com/fr/page</loc>
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.de/page" />
<xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />
</url>
</urlset>
Key rules:
- Include the
xmlns:xhtml namespace declaration
- Every
<url> entry must include ALL language alternates (including itself)
- Each alternate must appear as a separate
<url> entry with its own full set
- Split at 50,000 URLs per sitemap file
Output
Hreflang Validation Report
Summary
- Total pages scanned: XX
- Language variants detected: XX
- Issues found: XX (Critical: X, High: X, Medium: X, Low: X)
Validation Results
| Language |
URL |
Self-Ref |
Return Tags |
x-default |
Status |
| en-US |
https://... |
✅ |
✅ |
✅ |
✅ |
| fr |
https://... |
❌ |
⚠️ |
✅ |
❌ |
| de |
https://... |
✅ |
❌ |
✅ |
❌ |
Generated Hreflang Tags
- HTML
<link> tags (if HTML method chosen)
- HTTP header values (if header method chosen)
hreflang-sitemap.xml (if sitemap method chosen)
Recommendations
- Missing implementations to add
- Incorrect codes to fix
- Method migration suggestions (e.g., HTML to sitemap for scale)
Error Handling
| Scenario |
Action |
| URL unreachable (DNS failure, connection refused) |
Report the error clearly. Do not guess site structure. Suggest the user verify the URL and try again. |
| No hreflang tags found |
Report the absence. Check for other internationalization signals (subdirectories, subdomains, ccTLDs) and recommend the appropriate hreflang implementation method. |
| Invalid language/region codes detected |
List each invalid code with the correct replacement. Provide a corrected hreflang tag set ready to implement. |
Limitations
- Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.
- Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.
- Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.
1---2name: seo-hreflang3description: Hreflang and international SEO audit, validation, and generation — self-referencing/return tags, x-default, ISO language/region code validation, and HTML/header/sitemap output. USE WHEN a user mentions hreflang, i18n SEO, international SEO, multi-language, multi-region, or language tags.4---56# Hreflang & International SEO78## When to Use9- Use when validating or generating hreflang for multilingual or multiregional sites.10- Use when the user mentions international SEO, language tags, x-default, or hreflang issues.11- Use when auditing locale alternates across HTML, headers, or sitemap implementations.1213Validate existing hreflang implementations or generate correct hreflang tags14for multi-language and multi-region sites. Supports HTML, HTTP header, and15XML sitemap implementations.1617## Validation Checks1819### 1. Self-Referencing Tags20- Every page must include an hreflang tag pointing to itself21- The self-referencing URL must exactly match the page's canonical URL22- Missing self-referencing tags cause Google to ignore the entire hreflang set2324### 2. Return Tags25- If page A links to page B with hreflang, page B must link back to page A26- Every hreflang relationship must be bidirectional (A→B and B→A)27- Missing return tags invalidate the hreflang signal for both pages28- Check all language versions reference each other (full mesh)2930### 3. x-default Tag31- Required: designates the fallback page for unmatched languages/regions32- Typically points to the language selector page or English version33- Only one x-default per set of alternates34- Must also have return tags from all other language versions3536### 4. Language Code Validation37- Must use ISO 639-1 two-letter codes (e.g., `en`, `fr`, `de`, `ja`)38- Common errors:39 - `eng` instead of `en` (ISO 639-2, not valid for hreflang)40 - `jp` instead of `ja` (incorrect code for Japanese)41 - `zh` without region qualifier (ambiguous; use `zh-Hans` or `zh-Hant`)4243### 5. Region Code Validation44- Optional region qualifier uses ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 (e.g., `en-US`, `en-GB`, `pt-BR`)45- Format: `language-REGION` (lowercase language, uppercase region)46- Common errors:47 - `en-uk` instead of `en-GB` (UK is not a valid ISO 3166-1 code)48 - `es-LA` (Latin America is not a country; use specific countries)49 - Region without language prefix5051### 6. Canonical URL Alignment52- Hreflang tags must only appear on canonical URLs53- If a page has `rel=canonical` pointing elsewhere, hreflang on that page is ignored54- The canonical URL and hreflang URL must match exactly (including trailing slashes)55- Non-canonical pages should not be in any hreflang set5657### 7. Protocol Consistency58- All URLs in an hreflang set must use the same protocol (HTTPS or HTTP)59- Mixed HTTP/HTTPS in hreflang sets causes validation failures60- After HTTPS migration, update all hreflang tags to HTTPS6162### 8. Cross-Domain Support63- Hreflang works across different domains (e.g., example.com and example.de)64- Cross-domain hreflang requires return tags on both domains65- Verify both domains are verified in Google Search Console66- Sitemap-based implementation recommended for cross-domain setups6768## Common Mistakes6970| Issue | Severity | Fix |71|-------|----------|-----|72| Missing self-referencing tag | Critical | Add hreflang pointing to same page URL |73| Missing return tags (A→B but no B→A) | Critical | Add matching return tags on all alternates |74| Missing x-default | High | Add x-default pointing to fallback/selector page |75| Invalid language code (e.g., `eng`) | High | Use ISO 639-1 two-letter codes |76| Invalid region code (e.g., `en-uk`) | High | Use ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 codes |77| Hreflang on non-canonical URL | High | Move hreflang to canonical URL only |78| HTTP/HTTPS mismatch in URLs | Medium | Standardize all URLs to HTTPS |79| Trailing slash inconsistency | Medium | Match canonical URL format exactly |80| Hreflang in both HTML and sitemap | Low | Choose one method (sitemap preferred for large sites) |81| Language without region when needed | Low | Add region qualifier for geo-targeted content |8283## Implementation Methods8485### Method 1: HTML Link Tags86Best for: Sites with <50 language/region variants per page.8788```html89<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />90<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-GB" href="https://example.co.uk/page" />91<link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />92<link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />93```9495Place in `<head>` section. Every page must include all alternates including itself.9697### Method 2: HTTP Headers98Best for: Non-HTML files (PDFs, documents).99100```101Link: <https://example.com/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="en-US",102 <https://example.com/fr/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="fr",103 <https://example.com/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="x-default"104```105106Set via server configuration or CDN rules.107108### Method 3: XML Sitemap (Recommended for large sites)109Best for: Sites with many language variants, cross-domain setups, or 50+ pages.110111See Hreflang Sitemap Generation section below.112113### Method Comparison114| Method | Best For | Pros | Cons |115|--------|----------|------|------|116| HTML link tags | Small sites (<50 variants) | Easy to implement, visible in source | Bloats `<head>`, hard to maintain at scale |117| HTTP headers | Non-HTML files | Works for PDFs, images | Complex server config, not visible in HTML |118| XML sitemap | Large sites, cross-domain | Scalable, centralized management | Not visible on page, requires sitemap maintenance |119120## Hreflang Generation121122### Process1231. **Detect languages**: Scan site for language indicators (URL path, subdomain, TLD, HTML lang attribute)1242. **Map page equivalents**: Match corresponding pages across languages/regions1253. **Validate language codes**: Verify all codes against ISO 639-1 and ISO 3166-11264. **Generate tags**: Create hreflang tags for each page including self-referencing1275. **Verify return tags**: Confirm all relationships are bidirectional1286. **Add x-default**: Set fallback for each page set1297. **Output**: Generate implementation code (HTML, HTTP headers, or sitemap XML)130131## Hreflang Sitemap Generation132133### Sitemap with Hreflang134```xml135<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>136<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9"137 xmlns:xhtml="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">138 <url>139 <loc>https://example.com/page</loc>140 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />141 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />142 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.de/page" />143 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />144 </url>145 <url>146 <loc>https://example.com/fr/page</loc>147 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />148 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />149 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.de/page" />150 <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />151 </url>152</urlset>153```154155Key rules:156- Include the `xmlns:xhtml` namespace declaration157- Every `<url>` entry must include ALL language alternates (including itself)158- Each alternate must appear as a separate `<url>` entry with its own full set159- Split at 50,000 URLs per sitemap file160161## Output162163### Hreflang Validation Report164165#### Summary166- Total pages scanned: XX167- Language variants detected: XX168- Issues found: XX (Critical: X, High: X, Medium: X, Low: X)169170#### Validation Results171| Language | URL | Self-Ref | Return Tags | x-default | Status |172|----------|-----|----------|-------------|-----------|--------|173| en-US | https://... | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |174| fr | https://... | ❌ | ⚠️ | ✅ | ❌ |175| de | https://... | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ |176177### Generated Hreflang Tags178- HTML `<link>` tags (if HTML method chosen)179- HTTP header values (if header method chosen)180- `hreflang-sitemap.xml` (if sitemap method chosen)181182### Recommendations183- Missing implementations to add184- Incorrect codes to fix185- Method migration suggestions (e.g., HTML to sitemap for scale)186187## Error Handling188189| Scenario | Action |190|----------|--------|191| URL unreachable (DNS failure, connection refused) | Report the error clearly. Do not guess site structure. Suggest the user verify the URL and try again. |192| No hreflang tags found | Report the absence. Check for other internationalization signals (subdirectories, subdomains, ccTLDs) and recommend the appropriate hreflang implementation method. |193| Invalid language/region codes detected | List each invalid code with the correct replacement. Provide a corrected hreflang tag set ready to implement. |194195## Limitations196- Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.197- Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.198- Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.
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