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seo-hreflang▌

agricidaniel/claude-seo · updated Apr 8, 2026

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$npx skills add https://github.com/agricidaniel/claude-seo --skill seo-hreflang
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summary

Validate existing hreflang implementations or generate correct hreflang tags

  • ›for multi-language and multi-region sites. Supports HTML, HTTP header, and
  • ›XML sitemap implementations.
skill.md

Hreflang & International SEO

Validate existing hreflang implementations or generate correct hreflang tags for multi-language and multi-region sites. Supports HTML, HTTP header, and XML sitemap implementations.

Validation Checks

1. Self-Referencing Tags

  • Every page must include an hreflang tag pointing to itself
  • The self-referencing URL must exactly match the page's canonical URL
  • Missing self-referencing tags cause Google to ignore the entire hreflang set

2. Return Tags

  • If page A links to page B with hreflang, page B must link back to page A
  • Every hreflang relationship must be bidirectional (A→B and B→A)
  • Missing return tags invalidate the hreflang signal for both pages
  • Check all language versions reference each other (full mesh)

3. x-default Tag

  • Required: designates the fallback page for unmatched languages/regions
  • Typically points to the language selector page or English version
  • Only one x-default per set of alternates
  • Must also have return tags from all other language versions

4. Language Code Validation

  • Must use ISO 639-1 two-letter codes (e.g., en, fr, de, ja)
  • Common errors:
    • eng instead of en (ISO 639-2, not valid for hreflang)
    • jp instead of ja (incorrect code for Japanese)
    • zh without region qualifier (ambiguous; use zh-Hans or zh-Hant)

5. Region Code Validation

  • Optional region qualifier uses ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 (e.g., en-US, en-GB, pt-BR)
  • Format: language-REGION (lowercase language, uppercase region)
  • Common errors:
    • en-uk instead of en-GB (UK is not a valid ISO 3166-1 code)
    • es-LA (Latin America is not a country; use specific countries)
    • Region without language prefix

6. Canonical URL Alignment

  • Hreflang tags must only appear on canonical URLs
  • If a page has rel=canonical pointing elsewhere, hreflang on that page is ignored
  • The canonical URL and hreflang URL must match exactly (including trailing slashes)
  • Non-canonical pages should not be in any hreflang set

7. Protocol Consistency

  • All URLs in an hreflang set must use the same protocol (HTTPS or HTTP)
  • Mixed HTTP/HTTPS in hreflang sets causes validation failures
  • After HTTPS migration, update all hreflang tags to HTTPS

8. Cross-Domain Support

  • Hreflang works across different domains (e.g., example.com and example.de)
  • Cross-domain hreflang requires return tags on both domains
  • Verify both domains are verified in Google Search Console
  • Sitemap-based implementation recommended for cross-domain setups

Common Mistakes

Issue Severity Fix
Missing self-referencing tag Critical Add hreflang pointing to same page URL
Missing return tags (A→B but no B→A) Critical Add matching return tags on all alternates
Missing x-default High Add x-default pointing to fallback/selector page
Invalid language code (e.g., eng) High Use ISO 639-1 two-letter codes
Invalid region code (e.g., en-uk) High Use ISO 3166-1 Alpha-2 codes
Hreflang on non-canonical URL High Move hreflang to canonical URL only
HTTP/HTTPS mismatch in URLs Medium Standardize all URLs to HTTPS
Trailing slash inconsistency Medium Match canonical URL format exactly
Hreflang in both HTML and sitemap Low Choose one method (sitemap preferred for large sites)
Language without region when needed Low Add region qualifier for geo-targeted content

Implementation Methods

Method 1: HTML Link Tags

Best for: Sites with <50 language/region variants per page.

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-GB" href="https://example.co.uk/page" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />

Place in <head> section. Every page must include all alternates including itself.

Method 2: HTTP Headers

Best for: Non-HTML files (PDFs, documents).

Link: <https://example.com/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="en-US",
      <https://example.com/fr/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="fr",
      <https://example.com/page>; rel="alternate"; hreflang="x-default"

Set via server configuration or CDN rules.

Method 3: XML Sitemap (Recommended for large sites)

Best for: Sites with many language variants, cross-domain setups, or 50+ pages.

See Hreflang Sitemap Generation section below.

Method Comparison

Method Best For Pros Cons
HTML link tags Small sites (<50 variants) Easy to implement, visible in source Bloats <head>, hard to maintain at scale
HTTP headers Non-HTML files Works for PDFs, images Complex server config, not visible in HTML
XML sitemap Large sites, cross-domain Scalable, centralized management Not visible on page, requires sitemap maintenance

Hreflang Generation

Process

  1. Detect languages: Scan site for language indicators (URL path, subdomain, TLD, HTML lang attribute)
  2. Map page equivalents: Match corresponding pages across languages/regions
  3. Validate language codes: Verify all codes against ISO 639-1 and ISO 3166-1
  4. Generate tags: Create hreflang tags for each page including self-referencing
  5. Verify return tags: Confirm all relationships are bidirectional
  6. Add x-default: Set fallback for each page set
  7. Output: Generate implementation code (HTML, HTTP headers, or sitemap XML)

Hreflang Sitemap Generation

Sitemap with Hreflang

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<urlset xmlns="http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9"
        xmlns:xhtml="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
  <url>
    <loc>https://example.com/page</loc>
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.de/page" />
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />
  </url>
  <url>
    <loc>https://example.com/fr/page</loc>
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="en-US" href="https://example.com/page" />
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" href="https://example.com/fr/page" />
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="de" href="https://example.de/page" />
    <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/page" />
  </url>
</urlset>

Key rules:

  • Include the xmlns:xhtml namespace declaration
  • Every <url> entry must include ALL language alternates (including itself)
  • Each alternate must appear as a separate <url> entry with its own full set
  • Split at 50,000 URLs per sitemap file

Output

Hreflang Validation Report

Summary

  • Total pages scanned: XX
  • Language variants detected: XX
  • Issues found: XX (Critical: X, High: X, Medium: X, Low: X)

Validation Results

Language URL Self-Ref Return Tags x-default Status
en-US https://... ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
fr https://... ❌ ⚠️ ✅ ❌
de https://... ✅ ❌ ✅ ❌

Generated Hreflang Tags

  • HTML <link> tags (if HTML method chosen)
  • HTTP header values (if header method chosen)
  • hreflang-sitemap.xml (if sitemap method chosen)

Recommendations

  • Missing implementations to add
  • Incorrect codes to fix
  • Method migration suggestions (e.g., HTML to sitemap for scale)

Error Handling

Scenario Action
URL unreachable (DNS failure, connection refused) Report the error clearly. Do not guess site structure. Suggest the user verify the URL and try again.
No hreflang tags found Report the absence. Check for other internationalization signals (subdirectories, subdomains, ccTLDs) and recommend the appropriate hreflang implementation method.
Invalid language/region codes detected List each invalid code with the correct replacement. Provide a corrected hreflang tag set ready to implement.
how to use seo-hreflang

How to use seo-hreflang on Cursor

AI-first code editor with Composer

1

Prerequisites

Before installing skills in Cursor, ensure your development environment meets these requirements:

  • ›Cursor installed and configured on your development machine
  • ›Node.js version 16.0+ with npm package manager (verify with node --version)
  • ›Active project directory or workspace where you want to add seo-hreflang
2

Execute installation command

Execute the skills CLI command in your project's root directory to begin installation:

$npx skills add https://github.com/agricidaniel/claude-seo --skill seo-hreflang

The skills CLI fetches seo-hreflang from GitHub repository agricidaniel/claude-seo and configures it for Cursor.

3

Select Cursor when prompted

The CLI will show a list of available agents. Use arrow keys to navigate and space to select Cursor:

◆ Which agents do you want to install to?
│
│ ── Universal (.agents/skills) ── always included ────
│ • Amp
│ • Antigravity
│ • Cline
│ • Codex
│ ●Cursor(selected)
│ • Cursor
│ • Windsurf
4

Verify installation

Confirm successful installation by checking the skill directory location:

.cursor/skills/seo-hreflang

Reload or restart Cursor to activate seo-hreflang. Access the skill through slash commands (e.g., /seo-hreflang) or your agent's skill management interface.

⚠

Security & Verification Notice

We perform automated surface-level scans (Gen AI Scanner, Socket, Snyk) during installation. These checks detect common vulnerabilities but do not guarantee complete security. Always review skill source code and verify the publisher's reputation before production use.

Skills execute code in your development environment. Always verify the publisher's identity, review recent commits, and test in isolated environments before production deployment.

Additional Resources

›View source code on GitHub›Skills CLI documentation›Learn more about Cursor›What are agent skills?

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Use Cases▌

Task Automation & Efficiency

Automate repetitive workflows and reduce manual effort

Example

Generate reports, summarize documents, draft communications

✓

Save 3-5 hours per week on routine tasks

Knowledge Enhancement

Learn new skills, understand complex topics, get expert guidance

Example

Explain concepts, provide examples, suggest learning resources

✓

Accelerate learning and skill development by 2x

Quality Improvement

Enhance output quality through reviews, suggestions, and refinements

Example

Review drafts, suggest improvements, catch errors

✓

Improve work quality by 30-40% with less effort

Implementation Guide▌

Prerequisites

  • ›Claude Desktop or compatible AI client with skill support
  • ›Clear understanding of task or problem to solve
  • ›Willingness to iterate and refine outputs

Time Estimate

15-45 minutes depending on use case complexity

Installation Steps

  1. 1.Install skill using provided installation command
  2. 2.Test with simple use case relevant to your work
  3. 3.Evaluate output quality and relevance
  4. 4.Iterate on prompts to improve results
  5. 5.Integrate into regular workflow if valuable

Common Pitfalls

  • ⚠Expecting perfect results without iteration
  • ⚠Not providing enough context in prompts
  • ⚠Using skill for tasks outside its intended scope
  • ⚠Accepting outputs without review and validation

Best Practices▌

✓ Do

  • +Start with clear, specific prompts
  • +Provide relevant context and constraints
  • +Review and refine all outputs before using
  • +Iterate to improve output quality
  • +Document successful prompt patterns

✗ Don't

  • −Don't use without understanding skill limitations
  • −Don't skip validation of outputs
  • −Don't share sensitive information in prompts
  • −Don't expect skill to replace human judgment

💡 Pro Tips

  • ★Be specific about desired format and style
  • ★Ask for multiple options to choose from
  • ★Request explanations to understand reasoning
  • ★Combine AI efficiency with human expertise

When to Use This▌

✓ Use When

Use when skill capabilities match your task, clear ROI on time saved, and you can validate outputs. Best for repetitive tasks, learning, and quality improvement.

✗ Avoid When

Avoid when task requires deep expertise you can't validate, involves sensitive decisions, or when learning process is more valuable than speed of completion.

Learning Path▌

  1. 1Familiarize yourself with skill capabilities and limitations
  2. 2Start with low-risk, non-critical tasks
  3. 3Progress to more complex and valuable use cases
  4. 4Build expertise through regular use and experimentation

Discussion

Product Hunt–style comments (not star reviews)
  • No comments yet — start the thread.
general reviews

Ratings

4.5★★★★★75 reviews
  • ★★★★★Min Wang· Dec 20, 2024

    seo-hreflang reduced setup friction for our internal harness; good balance of opinion and flexibility.

  • ★★★★★Omar Choi· Dec 20, 2024

    seo-hreflang is among the better-maintained entries we tried; worth keeping pinned for repeat workflows.

  • ★★★★★Min Gonzalez· Dec 16, 2024

    seo-hreflang fits our agent workflows well — practical, well scoped, and easy to wire into existing repos.

  • ★★★★★Charlotte Garcia· Dec 8, 2024

    I recommend seo-hreflang for anyone iterating fast on agent tooling; clear intent and a small, reviewable surface area.

  • ★★★★★Pratham Ware· Dec 4, 2024

    We added seo-hreflang from the explainx registry; install was straightforward and the SKILL.md answered most questions upfront.

  • ★★★★★Soo Dixit· Dec 4, 2024

    We added seo-hreflang from the explainx registry; install was straightforward and the SKILL.md answered most questions upfront.

  • ★★★★★Hana Chen· Nov 27, 2024

    Keeps context tight: seo-hreflang is the kind of skill you can hand to a new teammate without a long onboarding doc.

  • ★★★★★Sakshi Patil· Nov 23, 2024

    seo-hreflang fits our agent workflows well — practical, well scoped, and easy to wire into existing repos.

  • ★★★★★Hana Srinivasan· Nov 23, 2024

    seo-hreflang fits our agent workflows well — practical, well scoped, and easy to wire into existing repos.

  • ★★★★★Carlos Anderson· Nov 11, 2024

    Registry listing for seo-hreflang matched our evaluation — installs cleanly and behaves as described in the markdown.

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