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Marketing Glossary· HREFLANG

What is Hreflang?

By Nikhil Sharma · Updated 1 November 2026 · Marketing Glossary
Definition

Hreflang is an HTML attribute that tells search engines which language and region a page is intended for, so the right version is shown to the right audience.

What is hreflang?

If you publish the same content in multiple languages or for multiple countries, hreflang annotations (e.g. en-IN, hi-IN, ta-IN) tell Google which version to serve to which searcher — and that these versions are alternates, not duplicates.

Why it matters

Without hreflang, multilingual or multi-region pages can compete with each other and the wrong version can rank for the wrong user. It is essential for Indian sites serving content in English plus regional languages, and it works alongside canonical tags.

How to use it

  • Add reciprocal hreflang tags on every alternate version.
  • Use correct language and optional region codes.
  • Include a self-referencing tag.
  • Add an x-default for the fallback version.
Related terms
CanonicalSEOCrawl Budget
NS
Written & reviewed by Nikhil Sharma
Founder, Fabulous Media
Nikhil has led growth for 850+ brands across 35 nations since 2008. Fabulous Media is an invitation-only growth agency that reports on pipeline and revenue, not vanity metrics. Meet the team · Request an invite.

Questions, answered

It tells search engines which language and region each version of a page targets, so the correct version is shown to each user and alternate-language pages are not treated as duplicates.

Yes. If you serve the same content in several languages or regions, hreflang ensures the right version ranks for the right audience and prevents the versions from competing with each other.

It specifies the fallback page to serve when none of the defined language or region versions match the user, such as a language selector or a default international version.

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