What is the correct hreflang format?

The value is an ISO 639-1 language code, optionally followed by a region as an ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code - for example en, en-GB, or pt-BR. The language comes first and the region is optional; you cannot target a region alone. Note the standards differ from everyday abbreviations: the United Kingdom is GB, not UK.

Does this tool validate ISO language and region codes?

It checks the shape of every code and warns about unfamiliar ones, but it does not reject them. A value must be a 2 or 3 letter language, optionally followed by a 4 letter script and a 2 letter or 3 digit region, or x-default; anything else is an error and left out. A well-formed code that is not in the built-in lists, such as en-UK, is still output with a warning to double-check it. The region list covers about 50 common countries, so a correct but less common code like sw-KE also gets that warning.

What does x-default mean in hreflang?

x-default specifies the fallback page for users whose language or region you have not explicitly targeted. It is typically your homepage or a language-selector page. Google recommends including an x-default in every hreflang set so unmatched visitors are sent somewhere sensible rather than a random language version.

Where should I put hreflang tags?

You can implement hreflang in three places: as tags in the HTML , as xhtml:link entries in your XML sitemap, or as an HTTP Link header (useful for non-HTML files like PDFs). Pick one method and apply it consistently - mixing them for the same pages can send conflicting signals. This tool generates all three.

Do hreflang tags have to be reciprocal?

Yes. If page A declares page B as its French alternate, page B must declare page A in return. Google ignores hreflang annotations that are not confirmed by return tags on the pages they point to. The simplest approach is to include the full, identical set of hreflang entries - including a self-referential one - on every page in the group.

Can hreflang tags fix duplicate content across regions?

Hreflang does not remove duplicate content, but it tells Google that similar pages are regional or language variants of one another rather than duplicates to filter out. This helps the correct version rank in each market instead of the pages cannibalizing each other. For genuinely identical pages, combine hreflang with correct canonical tags that each point to themselves.

How do I test that hreflang is working?

Crawl the site with an SEO auditing tool that reports hreflang errors, such as missing return tags and unknown codes, and confirm every page carries the full reciprocal set. Google retired the International Targeting report in Search Console in 2022, so use URL Inspection there to check that Google has fetched the page with the tags you expect. Fixes can take time to reflect, since Google must recrawl every page in the group.

Is my data kept private?

Yes. The tags are generated entirely in your browser with plain JavaScript. Your URLs and site structure are never transmitted, logged, or stored, and the generator keeps working without a network connection once the page has loaded.

How many language versions can I add, and is the generator free?

Add as many rows as the page has versions; there is no maximum, and the output carries the full set in whichever of the three formats you picked. It is free with no signup. The limit that bites is not in this tool but in the deployment: the cluster has to be reciprocal, so every URL in it needs the same list pointing back, and a sitemap entry with hundreds of alternates on it is valid but heavy enough to be worth splitting by section.

Hreflang Generator

Free hreflang generator for multilingual and multi-region sites - build hreflang tags as HTML link tags, XML sitemap entries, or an HTTP header. Validates codes and x-default. Runs client-side.

Language versions

Output format

hreflang tags5 versions

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/us/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-GB" href="https://example.com/uk/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr-FR" href="https://example.com/fr/" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="de-DE" href="https://example.com/de/" />

hreflang must be reciprocal: every page in the set must link back to all the others, including itself.

hreflang	URL	Status
x-default	https://example.com/	Valid
en-US	https://example.com/us/	Valid
en-GB	https://example.com/uk/	Valid
fr-FR	https://example.com/fr/	Valid
de-DE	https://example.com/de/	Valid

What is the Hreflang Generator?

The Hreflang Generator builds the hreflang annotations that tell Google which language and regional version of a page to show each user. You enter one row per version - a language/region code like en-US, fr-FR, or es-419 and the matching URL - and this hreflang tag generator outputs valid markup in whichever of the three formats Google accepts: HTML <link rel="alternate"> tags for the page <head>, xhtml:link entries for an XML sitemap, or an HTTP Link response header for non-HTML files like PDFs. Correct hreflang is what stops a French user landing on your English page and keeps your regional pages from competing with each other in search.

Hreflang is deceptively easy to get wrong. The codes follow the ISO 639-1 language and ISO 3166-1 region standards, not intuition - the United Kingdom is GB, not UK, and Spanish for Latin America is the UN M49 code es-419. Return tags must be reciprocal: if page A points to page B, page B has to point back. And most sites forget the x-default fallback for users whose language you do not target. This generator validates every code against the expected shape, flags codes that are not recognized language or region subtags, catches duplicates, checks that each URL is absolute, and reminds you about x-default and reciprocity before the markup ever reaches your site.

Everything runs in your browser. Your URL structure - which can reveal your entire international site architecture - is never uploaded, and the tool works offline once loaded. Pick a format, fill in your language versions, and copy the generated tags straight into your templates, sitemap, or server config. After deploying, check a few pages with the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console or a site crawler that reports hreflang errors.

A short run shows what this hreflang tags generator catches. Enter x-default for https://example.com/, en-us for https://example.com/us/, en-UK for https://example.com/uk/ and fr-FR for /fr/. The output has three link tags: en-us is rewritten as en-US, en-UK is kept but flagged because UK is not a common ISO 3166-1 region code (the United Kingdom is GB), and fr-FR is dropped with the error that the URL must be an absolute http(s) URL. Fix those two rows and the set is ready to copy.

How to use the Hreflang Generator?

Add your language versions
Enter one row per version: a language/region code (en, en-US, fr-CA, zh-Hant…) and the full URL of that version. Use the quick-pick codes if you are unsure of the format.
Include an x-default
Add an x-default row pointing to your fallback URL (often a language selector or your main homepage) for visitors whose language you do not explicitly target.
Choose an output format
Switch between HTML link tags for the <head>, xhtml:link entries for an XML sitemap, or an HTTP Link header. The tool validates codes and URLs and warns about duplicates and missing x-default.
Copy and deploy reciprocally
Copy the tags and add the same complete set to every URL in the group so the annotations are reciprocal. Spot-check the live pages with URL Inspection in Google Search Console or a crawler that reports hreflang errors.

Key Features

Three Output Formats
HTML <link> tags for the page head, xhtml:link entries for an XML sitemap, and an HTTP Link header - every method Google supports
Language & Region Validation
Checks each code against the ISO 639-1 language and ISO 3166-1 region shape and flags subtags that are not recognized standards
x-default & Reciprocity Reminders
Warns when no x-default fallback is set and reminds you that hreflang must be reciprocal across every page in the group
Duplicate & URL Checks
Catches repeated language/region codes and rejects URLs that are not absolute http(s) links before they break your setup

Frequently Asked Questions

An hreflang tag tells search engines which language and regional version of a page to show a given user. It uses the rel="alternate" hreflang="x" annotation, where x is a language code (optionally with a region), so a Spanish speaker in Mexico can be served your es-MX page instead of your English one. Hreflang helps international sites avoid duplicate-content problems and rank the right page in each market.

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Learn more

Read the full Hreflang Generator guide

Command Palette

Hreflang Generator

What is the Hreflang Generator?

How to use the Hreflang Generator?

Add your language versions

Include an x-default

Choose an output format

Copy and deploy reciprocally

Key Features

Three Output Formats

Language & Region Validation

x-default & Reciprocity Reminders

Duplicate & URL Checks