Free Hreflang Checker
Validate a page's hreflang international tags.
What is the Hreflang Checker?
Hreflang tells search engines which version of a page to show which audience — English to the US, French to France, and so on. Get it right and the correct page ranks in each market; get it wrong and Google ignores the whole set, showing the wrong language or splitting your ranking signals.
This hreflang checker fetches any URL and validates its hreflang annotations so you can catch the small mistakes that quietly break international SEO.
Last updated: Aug 13, 2026
What does this tool do?
You enter a URL and the tool fetches the page and reads every hreflang link annotation in the <head>.
It validates each one — checking the language/region code format, that URLs are absolute, that there are no duplicates, that the page references itself, and whether an x-default fallback is declared.
Key features
Code validation
Flags malformed language and region codes.
Absolute URLs
Catches relative hreflang URLs, which are invalid.
Self-reference
Confirms the page lists itself in the set.
x-default check
Tells you if a fallback is declared.
Duplicate detection
Finds a code declared more than once.
Example
Common use cases
- International SEO teams — Validate multi-market setups.
- Developers — Confirm hreflang renders correctly per template.
- E-commerce owners — Serve the right storefront per region.
- Agencies — Audit a client's international targeting.
- Migrators — Verify hreflang after a site move.
- Publishers — Target language editions correctly.
- Localization managers — Check translated pages are linked.
- Anyone with translated pages — Make sure Google shows the right one.
Benefits
- It catches malformed codes that void the whole set.
- It confirms the self-reference Google requires.
- It reminds you to add an x-default fallback.
- It spots duplicates and relative URLs at a glance.
Tips
- Use ISO 639-1 language codes, optionally with an ISO 3166-1 region (e.g. en, en-GB).
- Every page in a set must reference itself with its own hreflang.
- All pages in the set must link to each other — reciprocity is required.
- Add an x-default for users whose language isn't covered.
- Always use absolute https URLs in hreflang.
- Keep hreflang and canonical consistent — don't canonicalize across languages.
- Only add hreflang when you genuinely have per-language or per-region pages.
- Re-check after adding a new market or moving pages.
Common mistakes to avoid
Invalid language codes
Fix: Use valid ISO codes — a typo like 'en-UK' (should be 'en-GB') voids the annotation.
Missing self-reference
Fix: Each page must include an hreflang pointing to itself.
No x-default
Fix: Add x-default so unmatched users get a sensible fallback.
Relative URLs
Fix: hreflang requires absolute https URLs, not relative paths.
How it works
- 1
Enter a URL
A page with international versions.
- 2
Check
It reads and validates the hreflang tags.
- 3
Fix
See invalid codes, missing x-default and more.
Frequently asked questions
It validates each hreflang code's format, that URLs are absolute, that there are no duplicates, that the page references itself, and whether an x-default is declared.
It checks on-page syntax and self-reference. Full return-tag reciprocity should be confirmed across each of your language versions.
Each hreflang code's format, that URLs are absolute, that there are no duplicates, that the page references itself, and whether an x-default is declared.
It checks on-page syntax and self-reference. Full return-tag reciprocity — each alternate linking back — should be confirmed across all your language versions.
A special hreflang value for a fallback page shown to users whose language/region isn't otherwise matched.
In the HTML <head>, in an XML sitemap, or in HTTP headers. This tool reads the <head> annotations.
Only if you have the same content in multiple languages or regions. For a single-language site, you don't.
No. The page is fetched only to validate its hreflang tags.
Conclusion
An hreflang checker catches the subtle mistakes that silently break international SEO, so the right page ranks in each market. Pair it with the meta tags analyzer and whole-site SEO audit to keep every locale healthy.