This translation has not been editorially reviewed yet. The German version is authoritative. Deutsche Fassung →
SEO
When does a website need hreflang values?
A website needs hreflang values exactly when it's reachable in multiple languages. The value sits invisibly in the source code, and tells search engines which language version of a page applies to which language — the German one for German-speaking searchers, the English one for English-speaking searchers, say. Single-language websites don't need hreflang values, and our check doesn't mark them down for it either.
hreflang connects your language versions with each other
If your website offers the same content in German and English, two pages with identical statements exist in different languages. To a search engine, these are initially two unconnected pages. The hreflang value creates the connection: every language version lists, in the source code, every sister version along with its language code — "this page exists in German at this address, and in English at that one". Google can then show every searcher the matching version: someone searching in English gets the English page, someone searching in German gets the German one. In addition, the "x-default" entry lets you name a default version for every other language.
Missing values pit language versions against each other
Without hreflang, two unwanted things happen. First, searchers land in the wrong language: an English-speaking prospect finds your German page, doesn't understand it, and leaves — even though the English version exists. Second, the versions can cannibalise each other in search results: since the content closely resembles itself, they compete for the same queries instead of cleanly splitting the languages. Both cost you visitors your website had effectively already won. The hreflang value, on the other hand, costs only a few lines of source code per page, which your agency can usually set up centrally in the page system.
How we check multilingual and single-language websites fairly
Our check derives from the page measured itself whether multiple languages are present — from language paths in addresses, language-switcher links, or language codes, for instance. A single-language website passes the check point with no hreflang; the report simply notes, for information, that the value isn't required here. If the check detects additional languages and hreflang values are missing, though, the report reports a serious shortcoming and names the languages found. If values are present, we additionally check whether an "x-default" entry names the default version — if only that's missing, it counts as a minor shortcoming.
- First establish whether your website even has several language versions — only then is hreflang needed.
- Ask your agency to link every language version, with its language code, in the source code of every page.
- Use "x-default" to determine which version searchers outside your languages should see.
- As a test, search for your offering from the perspective of a foreign-language customer, and check which language version appears.
- Remember, for every new subpage, to set up the link for every language version too.
FAQ
Does my single-language website need hreflang?
No. hreflang connects several language versions of the same content — if there's only one language, there's nothing to connect. Our check recognises single-language websites and doesn't mark down the missing value there; the report simply notes, for information, that hreflang isn't required. Only once you add a second language does the value become mandatory.
What is x-default in hreflang?
"x-default" names the default version for every searcher whose language has no version of its own. If your website offers German and English, "x-default" determines what a French-speaking searcher sees, for instance — usually the English version. Our check reports a missing "x-default" entry as a minor shortcoming, if hreflang values are otherwise present.
What happens without hreflang on multilingual pages?
Searchers more often land on the wrong language version and bounce, even though the matching version exists. On top of that, the similar versions compete for the same search queries in results, instead of splitting the languages between them. Our check therefore reports missing hreflang values on websites detected as multilingual as a serious shortcoming, and names the languages found.