Hreflang Tag Checker

Verify hreflang tags on any page. Check self-references, invalid codes, x-default, duplicate targets, non-absolute URLs, and get a detailed score analysis with actionable fixes.

Check Hreflang Tags

Enter a URL to check its <link rel="alternate" hreflang="..."> tags. The tool follows redirects and analyzes the final page.
Quick test:

About the Hreflang Tag Checker

This tool fetches any webpage and performs a comprehensive analysis of the <link rel="alternate" hreflang="..."> tags. It checks for common issues that can hurt your international SEO:

Hreflang Tag Detection

Scans the page for all <link rel="alternate"> tags and their hreflang attributes.

Self-Reference Check

Verifies that the page includes itself in its hreflang set — a requirement for proper implementation.

x-default Validation

Checks for the recommended x-default fallback tag for users with unmatched language preferences.

Why Hreflang Tags Matter for International SEO

Hreflang tags are essential for any website targeting multiple languages or regions. They tell search engines which version of a page to show users based on their language and region preferences. Without proper hreflang implementation:

  • Wrong content in search results — Users may see the English version when searching in French, or vice versa
  • Duplicate content issues — Similar content across language versions can be flagged as duplicate by search engines
  • Lost traffic — The right audience won't find the right version of your content, leading to lower engagement and conversions
  • Crawl budget waste — Search engines may crawl multiple variations inefficiently

Best Practices for Hreflang

  • Every page must include a self-referencing hreflang tag pointing to itself
  • Always include an x-default tag as a language-unspecified fallback
  • Use absolute URLs (not relative paths) in all hreflang href attributes
  • Use valid BCP 47 language codes like en, en-US, fr-CA, de-DE
  • Ensure bidirectional linking — if page A links to page B via hreflang, page B must link back to page A
  • Use consistent protocol — all hreflang URLs should use HTTPS if your site uses HTTPS
  • Each hreflang code must point to a unique URL — no duplicate targets
  • Keep your hreflang tags in the HTML <head> (or HTTP header for non-HTML resources)

Frequently Asked Questions

Hreflang tags tell search engines which language and region a page targets. They help Google serve the right version to users in different countries and languages, preventing duplicate content issues across international sites. Hreflang is a critical component of international SEO and is implemented via <link rel="alternate" hreflang="..." href="..." /> tags in the HTML <head> or via HTTP headers.
It performs a structural audit covering: hreflang tags found, self-referencing (each page must include itself in its hreflang set), x-default tag presence, invalid language codes (must follow BCP 47 standards), duplicate hreflang targets, non-absolute URLs, HTTPS consistency, and overall score calculation. Each check contributes to a weighted score out of 100.
x-default is the fallback page shown when no language matches the user's browser settings. It is typically your language selector page or the most universal version of your content. Google recommends including an x-default tag in every hreflang implementation to ensure users always have a fallback option.
Valid codes follow BCP 47 format like "en" (language only), "en-US" (language + region), or "es-MX". Codes that don't match a valid ISO 639-1 language code (like "english" or "spanish") or use incorrect region codes (like "en-USA") may be ignored by Google. The code must start with a valid two-letter language code, optionally followed by a hyphen and a region code (ISO 3166-1 alpha-2).
Every page in an hreflang cluster MUST include a hreflang tag pointing to itself. This tells search engines that this specific URL is the canonical version for its language/region. Without a self-reference, the page won't be properly associated with its own language target, potentially causing the wrong URL to rank for the wrong market.
Duplicate hreflang targets defeat the purpose of the annotation. If two language codes (e.g., "en-US" and "en-GB") both point to the same URL, Google can't determine which version serves which audience. Each hreflang target URL should be unique within the cluster. Google may ignore the entire hreflang set if it contains unresolvable duplicates.
Google explicitly recommends using fully-qualified absolute URLs in hreflang tags. Relative URLs may not be crawled or resolved correctly, especially if the page is accessed via different domains or protocols. Always use the full https://example.com/page format.
Hreflang and canonical tags work together but serve different purposes. If you use a canonical tag that points to a different URL than the hreflang self-reference, Google may get confused about which URL should rank. The canonical URL should match the self-referencing hreflang URL for each language variant to avoid conflicting signals.
Yes — hreflang annotations can be included in HTTP Link headers for non-HTML resources like PDFs. However, for HTML pages, Google recommends using the HTML <link> tag approach as it's easier to maintain and audit. This checker currently inspects the HTML <head> for <link rel="alternate"> tags.
Language specifies the linguistic content ("en" for English), while region narrows it to a specific market ("en-US" for US English, "en-GB" for British English). When you specify a region, Google can target users in that specific country. You can use language-only codes for globally applicable content, or language-region codes for country-specific content. Both are valid under BCP 47.
Reviewed Jun 2026 · Sources and limitations

Review details: 2026-06-10 · Marc LaClear · v1.0

Reference sources:

Known limits:

  • Checks are based on publicly fetchable HTML, response headers, and browser-side input. They do not use private Google Search Console, analytics, or ranking data.
  • Scores and warnings are diagnostic aids, not guarantees of ranking improvement or Google indexation.
  • Pages blocked by robots.txt, login walls, bot protection, heavy JavaScript, or network timeouts may return incomplete results.
  • Validate critical fixes with official Google tools such as Search Console, Rich Results Test, Lighthouse, and your own crawl data.

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