Hreflang Tags Outside Head Element
What This Means
One or more <link rel="alternate" hreflang="..."> elements are present in the document outside the <head> section. The HTML specification requires these link elements to appear inside <head>.
Why It Matters for SEO
Search engine parsers look for hreflang tags in the head section specifically. Hreflang tags outside the head are not recognized and will not contribute to language targeting. This is typically caused by a template that closes the head prematurely, or a component that injects hreflang tags after the head has been written.
What the Platform Checks
The platform locates all hreflang link elements and verifies each is inside the document head. Fires when any hreflang link is found outside the head subtree.
How to Fix It
- Move all hreflang link elements inside
<head>. - Check for broken HTML structure that causes the head to close before hreflang tags are injected.
- Review template include order — hreflang tags must be in an include that runs while the head is still open.
Find every misplacedhreflang tag
The audit verifies that every hreflang element is correctly positioned inside the document head.