# International SEO: Which URL Structure for a Multilingual Website in 2026? Documentation3 minPublished on Mar 16, 2022Updated on Oct 06, 2026![Stylized glowing globe with multilingual greetings in different alphabets and languages in the background.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67053868fc01e494462e71c9/68c1639bd80f73f947a1fd84_url-inter.jpg)Table of contents [ Copied](#)[ ](#)[ ](#)[ ](#) - [H2 Example](#) Use AI to summarize this article[ ChatGPT](#)[ Claude](#)[ Grok](#)[ Perplexity](#)[ Google AI](#)Key points - A distinct URL for each language is the foundation of international SEO: Google advises against switching languages with cookies, IP detection or automatic redirects - Four possible structures: country domain (example.de), subdomain (de.example.com), subfolder (example.com/de/) and URL parameters (not recommended by Google) - Google doesn't infer language from the URL: reciprocal hreflang annotations are what tie the versions of a page together - At Digidop we recommend subfolders in most cases, and that is how Webflow Localize works natively (from $9 per month per locale) Any website aimed at several countries or languages has to make one technical decision early: how to organize its URLs. It is a hard decision to undo, because changing it later means migrating the whole site. This article covers what Google officially recommends, the four possible structures with real-world examples, how to set up hreflang without mistakes, and what Webflow does for you. Our own site is the running example: English at the root, French under `/fr`. *Originally published in 2022, fully updated on October 6, 2026.* ## What is international SEO? International SEO means making a website visible in several languages or several countries. Google separates two cases in its [guide to multi-regional and multilingual sites](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/specialty/international/managing-multi-regional-sites?hl=en): - a **multilingual** site offers content in more than one language (a Canadian business with English and French versions); - a **multi-regional** site explicitly targets users in different countries (a manufacturer shipping to both Canada and the US). Plenty of sites are both. And plenty need neither: a dentist in Chicago has nothing to gain from ranking in Germany. The question comes up as soon as you sell, hire or look for partners outside your home market. ### The ground rule: one URL per language Google recommends a different URL for each language version of a page, rather than content that changes based on cookies or browser settings. Googlebot usually crawls from the US and sends requests without an `Accept-Language` header, so a version that only appears after language detection may never get crawled. For the same reason, an on-the-fly translation widget (Google Translate inside the page, for instance) does nothing for international SEO: there is no translated URL to index. ## The 4 possible URL structures Google lists four options. Here is what it says about each, with a real example (checked on October 6, 2026): StructureExamplePros according to GoogleCons according to GoogleCountry-code domain (ccTLD)`hubspot.fr`, `hubspot.de`clear geotargeting, easy separation of sitesexpensive, more infrastructure, one country per domainSubdomain`fr.semrush.com`, `de.semrush.com`easy to set up, allows different server locationsusers can't tell whether "de" means the language or the countrySubfolder`digidop.com/fr`, `chargemap.com/fr-fr`easy to set up, low maintenance (same host)harder to separate sites, single server locationURL parameter`site.com?loc=de`none**not recommended by Google** **Google doesn't determine a page's language from its URL**, nor from the `lang` attribute: it reads the visible content. Few articles on the topic point this out. The URL structure organizes your site and makes it readable; on Google's side, the content and hreflang do the work. ### One domain per country ![Homepage of HubSpot's French site, hubspot.fr, with its language switcher menu.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67053868fc01e494462e71c9/68c16421d1d8697203c55802_hubspot.fr%20(1).webp) A `.fr`, a `.de`, a `.es`: this is the strongest geographic signal, since Google ties country-code domains to a specific country. HubSpot works this way, with `hubspot.fr`, `hubspot.de` and `hubspot.es` linked to `hubspot.com` through hreflang. The downside: each domain is a separate site, with its own backlinks, its own tracking and often its own team. Some country codes also come with registration requirements. And watch out for "vanity" extensions: Google treats `.io`, `.co`, `.ai`, `.me` and `.tv` as generic domains, not country domains. This option makes sense for a business that only operates in one country (a financial service regulated in France, for example), or for a group with the resources to run one site per market. ### Subdomains ![Screenshot of Semrush's French website, fr.semrush.com, showing its main SEO tools and plans.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67053868fc01e494462e71c9/68c163ca01328db296655955_semrush.webp) A language prefix in front of the domain: `fr.semrush.com`, `de.semrush.com`. Each version can then live as an independent project, on its own servers or tools. Our reservations: the prefix is easy to miss in the address bar, and each subdomain ends up being managed almost like a separate site. On a CMS like Webflow, that often means maintaining several projects side by side instead of one. ### Subfolders (our recommendation) Each language lives in a folder on the same domain: `digidop.com/fr/`, `chargemap.com/de-de/`. This is the structure we recommend at Digidop for the vast majority of projects: - one domain to grow, one host, one Search Console property to monitor; - readable URLs where the language is obvious; - one CMS for every language, so versions don't drift apart. Its limit, according to Google: versions are harder to separate (same server, same project). For a marketing site that is rarely a problem, and often an advantage. ## How to choose your structure Your situationRecommended structureOne country, one language, a regulated or very local businessa country domain (`.fr`, `.de`), no multilingual structureSeveral languages, one marketing team, a corporate or B2B sitesubfolders (`/fr/`, `/de/`)One language across several countries, with different prices or offerslanguage-country subfolders (`/en-us/`, `/en-gb/`) and language-country hreflangSeparate teams, offers and tools for each countrycountry domains or subdomains, with hreflang between themAn existing site with a messy structurea migration to subfolders, with a complete 301 redirect plan Three questions help you decide. Is your market local, national or international? Who will keep each version alive, and with what budget? Can your platform handle several languages cleanly, or will it need workarounds? Answer them before launch: changing structure later means migrating every URL. ## Hreflang: what Google actually requires Hreflang tells Google "this page also exists in French, at this address". Google documents it in [Tell Google about localized versions of your page](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/specialty/international/localized-versions?hl=en). The rules that matter: - **Each version lists every version, including itself.** The English page references both the English and the French page. - **Links must be reciprocal.** If page A points to B but B doesn't point back to A, Google ignores the annotations. This is the most common mistake. - **URLs must be absolute**: `https://www.digidop.com/fr`, not `/fr`. - **Codes follow ISO standards**: language first (ISO 639-1), then an optional region (ISO 3166-1). `fr-BE` is valid, while `be` means… Belarusian. A country code on its own doesn't work, and codes such as `es-419` aren't supported. - **`x-default` marks the fallback page**, shown when no language matches. There are three methods: `` tags in the ``, HTTP headers (useful for PDFs) or an XML sitemap. Google treats them as equivalent, and combining them brings no ranking benefit. The same documentation adds two more rules: **don't automatically redirect** visitors to the language you assume they speak (it can stop users and search engines from seeing every version), and **don't adapt content based on IP address**. Offer a visible language switcher on every page instead. ## What about Webflow? ![Webflow interface showing localization settings with subdirectories for multiple locales, including French and German.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67053868fc01e494462e71c9/68c163da6b87631c973b6df5_chargemap.webp) Webflow handles multilingual sites natively with **Webflow Localize** (formerly Localization). According to the [Webflow Help Center](https://help.webflow.com/hc/en-us/articles/33961235675155-Localized-SEO-and-locale-routing) and the [pricing page](https://webflow.com/pricing), both checked on October 6, 2026: - each locale is served in a **subfolder**, `/fr` by default or `/fr-fr` if a country is set, and the folder name can be customized; - Webflow automatically generates **hreflang tags** in each page's ``, adds hreflang entries to the auto-generated **sitemap** and sets the `lang` attribute for each locale; - SEO titles and meta descriptions, CMS content, images and styles can be translated or adapted per locale; - 301 redirects don't carry over to localized versions on their own: `/old-url` and `/es/old-url` need two separate rules. Localize is an add-on to your site plan, billed per added locale (the primary locale isn't counted): Localize planPrice per locale (yearly / monthly billing)Added localesAI translationNotesEssential$9 / $12 per monthup to 310,000 words per locale per monthsubfolders, hreflang, localized SEOAdvanced$29 / $35 per monthup to 1050,000 words per locale per monthadds translated URL slugs and automatic visitor routingEnterprisecustomcustomcustomdraft pages per locale, element visibility per locale The Team platform plan ($2,500 per month, annual contract) and Enterprise include Localize: 2 locales on Team, a custom number on Enterprise. Two settings deserve attention. **Translated slugs** (`/fr/a-propos` rather than `/fr/about-us`) start at Advanced. **Automatic visitor routing** (Advanced and Enterprise) sends visitors to the homepage of their browser language with a 302 redirect, which sits uneasily with Google's advice on automatic redirects. A language switcher remains the safe choice. The most common alternative is **Weglot**, a third-party translation tool that works with [either subdomains or subfolders](https://support.weglot.com/article/248-webflow-setup-guide). It is quick to plug in, but adds a subscription and a dependency on another tool. For a full walkthrough of Localize, see our [Webflow Localization guide](/blog/ultimate-webflow-localization-guide) and our article on [multilingual SEO settings](/blog/webflow-localization-options-seo). ### The digidop.com example ![Multilingual sitemap XML file structure for Digidop's website, showing alternate hreflang attributes for SEO.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67053868fc01e494462e71c9/68c16469091bbb280d07038b_sitemap-multilingue.xml.webp) Our own site follows the structure we recommend. English sits at the root, French under `/fr`, and each page declares both versions plus a fallback: PagehreflangURLEnglish version`en``https://www.digidop.com/about-us`French version`fr``https://www.digidop.com/fr/a-propos`Fallback`x-default``https://www.digidop.com/about-us` These annotations appear both in the `` and in the sitemap, and they are reciprocal. Slugs are translated (`/about-us` becomes `/fr/a-propos`). The former `digidop.fr` domain redirects with a 301 to `digidop.com/fr` since we merged the two sites, as explained in [Digidop.fr is now Digidop.com](/blog/digidop-fr-is-now-digidop-com). {{custom-blog-cta}} ## Our take The subdomain-versus-subfolder debate takes up a lot of space, and Google doesn't settle it: it presents both as valid options. The real problems are elsewhere. According to Google, the most common mistake is hreflang that only points one way. Google also advises against pages where only the navigation is translated. And a version nobody has updated since launch is useless, whatever its URL. That is why we recommend subfolders: everything lives in one Webflow project, run by the same team, with far fewer chances to get things wrong. And if your current site mixes structures, or translates on the fly without dedicated URLs, now is a good time to fix it. We do this regularly in our [Webflow migration projects](/services/migration). ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the best URL structure for international SEO? Google doesn't name a single one: it presents country domains, subdomains and subfolders as valid options and only advises against URL parameters. For a multilingual marketing site run by one team, we recommend subfolders (`example.com/fr/`). ### How do I build an international SEO strategy? In this order: pick the markets and languages that actually matter to your business, choose the URL structure, redo keyword research in each language (a word-for-word translation often misses the terms people actually search for), translate and adapt the pages, set up hreflang, then track each version separately in Search Console. ### Subdomain or subfolder: which should I choose? A subdomain fits when each version is a separate project, with its own servers or teams. A subfolder fits when you want one site, one CMS and one domain to grow. That is the most common case. ### Do I need a separate domain for each country? Only if you can run each domain as a full site of its own, or if your business is limited to one country. A country domain (`.fr`, `.de`) is the clearest geographic signal, but it multiplies the number of sites to maintain. ### Is hreflang mandatory? Google can sometimes find the versions of a page on its own, but it recommends declaring them explicitly. That is what helps it show each searcher the version for their language or country. ### Can I automatically redirect visitors based on their language? Google advises against it: an automatic redirect can prevent visitors and search engines from seeing every version. Use a visible language switcher and let each URL display its own language. ### How much does a multilingual Webflow site cost? On top of the site plan, the Localize add-on costs $9 per month per added locale on Essential and $29 on Advanced (yearly billing, prices checked on October 6, 2026). Translation, proofreading and content adaptation come on top. Planning a multilingual site or a migration?[Talk to our team ](https://www.digidop.com/calendly)![Florian Bodelot](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/67053868fc01e494462e71c9/678a725470105160732b0a8a_florian-website-vf.webp)Florian BodelotCo-founder[ ](/team/florian-bodelot)[ ](https://fr.linkedin.com/in/florian-bodelot-digidop)[ ](https://twitter.com/florian_bodelot)+1200 readers ## Stay ahead of the curve! Subscribe now for expert insights. 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