Arabic SEO in Saudi Arabia: Structure, hreflang and Content for Bilingual Websites That Rank
Arabic SEO in Saudi Arabia: Structure, hreflang and Content for Bilingual Websites That Rank
Arabic SEO in Saudi Arabia is where many bilingual websites quietly lose traffic. The Arabic version is added after the English one, and Google then shows the wrong language, or the Arabic pages read like translations nobody would search for. Customers in the Kingdom search in Arabic, English and a mix of both, so the Arabic version deserves the same planning.
This guide covers URL structure, hreflang, the HTML lang and dir attributes, Arabic keyword research across Modern Standard Arabic, Gulf dialect and transliterated English, localised metadata, Arabic URL slugs, right-to-left layout, Core Web Vitals and a launch checklist. It builds on our overview of SEO services in Saudi Arabia and how to compete in local search results and focuses on the bilingual site itself.
Table of Contents
- Arabic SEO in Saudi Arabia starts with the URL structure
- hreflang for Arabic and English pages: the rules Google applies
- lang, dir and RTL website SEO
- Arabic keyword research: MSA, Gulf dialect and transliterated queries
- Localisation, titles, metadata and Arabic URL slugs
- Avoiding duplicate, thin and auto-translated pages
- Fonts, Core Web Vitals, launch checklist and how Sokrab Saudi Arabia can help
Arabic SEO in Saudi Arabia starts with the URL structure
Before translating a single page, decide where the Arabic version will live. Google's guide to managing multi-regional and multilingual sites compares four options and recommends a separate URL for each language version rather than switching language with cookies or browser settings.
| Option | Example | Strengths Google lists | Drawbacks Google lists |
|---|---|---|---|
| Country-code domain | example.sa | Clear geotargeting, easy to separate sites | Cost and availability, more infrastructure, eligibility rules, targets one country |
| Subdomain | ar.example.com | Easy to set up, separate server locations possible | Users may not know whether the prefix means a language or a country |
| Subdirectory | example.com/ar/ | Easy to set up, low maintenance on one host | One server location, harder to separate sites |
| URL parameter | example.com?lang=ar | None | Not recommended by Google |
For most Saudi companies serving one market in two languages, subdirectories are the practical choice: one domain, one CMS and simple maintenance. Whatever you choose, keep each page in one language, navigation included, and avoid side-by-side Arabic and English text.
As a reference point, sokrabsaudi.com publishes English at the root and Arabic and Simplified Chinese in subdirectories (/ar/ and /zh/), with reciprocal hreflang links between the versions.
hreflang for Arabic and English pages: the rules Google applies
hreflang tells Google which URL is the equivalent page in another language, so Arabic searchers see the Arabic page and English searchers the English one. The rules in Google's documentation on localized versions of your pages are strict:
- Every version lists every version. Each page names itself and all its alternates. If two pages do not point to each other, Google ignores the annotations for that pair.
- One method is enough. HTML link elements, an HTTP Link header (useful for PDFs) or the XML sitemap; using all three adds nothing.
- Full URLs only. Include https:// and the domain; relative URLs are not accepted.
- Language first, region optional. The language uses an ISO 639-1 code such as ar or en; a region from ISO 3166-1 Alpha 2 may follow, as in ar-SA. A country code on its own is not valid.
- x-default for everyone else. It marks the page for users whose language matches none of your versions, often the English page or a language selector.
A typical set for a service page in Arabic and English looks like this, repeated identically on both pages:
| hreflang value | URL |
|---|---|
| en | https://example.com/seo-services/ |
| ar | https://example.com/ar/seo-services/ |
| x-default | https://example.com/seo-services/ |
Use ar when one Arabic version serves all Arabic speakers; use ar-SA only alongside Arabic versions for other markets, keeping a generic ar page as the catch-all. Point each version's canonical to itself, not to the English page.
lang, dir and RTL website SEO
Google states that it determines a page's language from its visible content and does not use code-level signals such as the lang attribute or hreflang for that purpose. The attributes still matter for users, browsers and accessibility tools.
- lang on the html element. Set lang="ar" on Arabic pages and lang="en" on English pages. Screen readers use it to choose pronunciation, and WCAG requires the page language to be set programmatically. Mark English phrases inside Arabic pages with their own lang value.
- dir on the html element. MDN's reference for the HTML dir attribute recommends setting dir="rtl" on the root of Arabic pages, because lang does not imply direction and the default is left to right. Prefer the attribute over the CSS direction property, since direction belongs to the content, not the styling.
- Mixed-direction content. Wrap English names and codes in an element with dir="ltr" so punctuation and numbers display in order, and use dir="auto" for user input such as reviews.
- Mirrored layout. Navigation, breadcrumbs and arrows should run right to left; logical CSS properties (inline-start and inline-end) let one stylesheet serve both directions. Phone numbers, emails and URLs stay left to right.
Our guide to web design for corporate websites in Saudi Arabia places these choices in the wider design brief.
Arabic keyword research: MSA, Gulf dialect and transliterated queries
Translating your English keyword list is the most common shortcut. Arabic keyword research has to start from how Saudi users actually type.
Three ways the same need is searched
- Modern Standard Arabic. Formal phrasing, common for professional and B2B services, government-related topics and longer informational searches.
- Gulf and Najdi dialect. Conversational words and spellings, for example ابي instead of أريد (I want) or وش instead of ماذا (what), especially in mobile and voice searches.
- Transliterated and mixed queries. English terms in Latin letters inside Arabic queries, Arabic words spelled in English letters, or brand and software names left in English.
Spelling variants to group
Users write the same word with or without hamza (أسعار and اسعار), with ة or ه at the end of a word, and with ي or ى. They also use Western or Arabic-Indic digits. Group these variants under one topic so you write one strong page instead of several thin ones.
A workable process
- Start from customer language: sales notes, WhatsApp enquiries, site search and Search Console queries.
- Expand each topic into its MSA, dialect and mixed forms, and check the Arabic results Google shows for each.
- Note which page types rank (service pages, guides, directories) and match the format.
- Map one primary query per Arabic page, separate from the English page's target.
Treat volume data from your tools as directional. For the competitive picture, see our service for AI SEO competitor research in Saudi Arabia.
Localisation, titles, metadata and Arabic URL slugs
A literal translation keeps the English structure and loses the Saudi reader. Localisation rewrites the page around Arabic search intent: headings phrased the way Arabic searchers ask, Saudi examples, prices in SAR and calls to action that match how local buyers make contact.
- Titles in Arabic script. Google's title link guidance asks site owners to use the same language and writing system as the page's main content, and warns that a mismatched title may be replaced. Write a distinct Arabic title for each page and avoid repeated boilerplate.
- Meta descriptions and alt text in Arabic. Write them for the Arabic searcher, not as translations of the English snippets.
- Structured data matching the page. Google's structured data guidelines require markup to reflect visible content, so markup on the Arabic page should carry the Arabic text users see.
Arabic or Latin URL slugs
Google's URL structure guidelines encourage words in your audience's language and include an Arabic example. They also state that non-ASCII characters should be percent-encoded in links, and recommend hyphens rather than underscores between words. Google does not say that Arabic slugs rank better than Latin ones. Arabic slugs are readable to Arabic users but become long encoded strings when shared; short Latin slugs are easier to maintain. Choose one convention and never change slugs after launch without 301 redirects.
Avoiding duplicate, thin and auto-translated pages
Google's localized versions guidance treats language versions as duplicates only when the main content stays untranslated. The risks lie in how translations are produced and published.
- Template-only translation. Translating the menu and footer while the main content stays in English gives a poor experience and weak Arabic pages.
- Unchecked machine translation at scale. In June 2025 Google removed its old advice to block automatically translated pages with robots.txt, aligning the documentation with its spam policies. Those policies treat mass-produced pages that add little value for users as scaled content abuse, and list automated translation among the techniques involved. Machine translation can be a first draft; a fluent Saudi reviewer should edit every page before it is indexed.
- Half-built Arabic sections. Launch fewer, complete Arabic pages rather than pages partly empty or still in English.
- Automatic redirects by IP or browser language. Google advises against them: users and crawlers may never reach the other version, and Googlebot usually crawls from the United States without a language header. Offer a visible language switcher instead.
On WordPress, the translation plugin often controls hreflang, slugs and sitemaps; our guide to WordPress development and maintenance in Saudi Arabia covers keeping such settings stable after updates.
Fonts, Core Web Vitals, launch checklist and how Sokrab Saudi Arabia can help
Arabic pages often load an extra web font. Google recommends good Core Web Vitals for success in Search, with Largest Contentful Paint within 2.5 seconds, Interaction to Next Paint below 200 milliseconds and Cumulative Layout Shift below 0.1. For Arabic fonts, serve WOFF2, load only the weights you use, subset where the licence permits and set font-display deliberately (optional for speed, swap when the brand font is essential).
Launch checklist
- One URL per language, with reciprocal hreflang, x-default and full URLs.
- Self-referencing canonical on each language version.
- lang and dir on the html element of every page.
- Arabic keyword map, one primary query per page.
- Arabic titles, descriptions, alt text and structured data, reviewed by a native Saudi editor.
- Slug convention agreed and redirects in place for changed URLs.
- Arabic pages in the XML sitemap and checked in Search Console.
Common mistakes
- One-way hreflang, or hreflang pointing to redirected URLs.
- Arabic pages canonicalised to English pages.
- English titles on Arabic pages, and translated rather than researched keywords.
Search engine guidance changes, so confirm the current Google Search Central documentation, or consult a qualified adviser, before a major migration. Through its SEO services in Saudi Arabia, Sokrab Saudi Arabia helps businesses with Arabic and English SEO, keyword research, on-page optimisation, technical SEO, content and local SEO. For new builds and redesigns, its corporate website design and development service supports responsive, SEO-friendly sites tailored to the Saudi market.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should the Arabic version of a Saudi website use a subdirectory, a subdomain or a separate domain?
Google describes all three as workable and lists trade-offs for each, while advising against URL parameters. For most companies serving Saudi Arabia in Arabic and English, a subdirectory such as /ar/ is the simplest choice: one domain, one CMS and easy maintenance. A subdomain or separate domain suits cases where the Arabic site is managed separately or targets a different market.
Should I use hreflang ar or ar-SA for Saudi Arabic pages?
Use ar when one Arabic version serves Arabic speakers everywhere. Use ar-SA only if you also publish Arabic versions for other countries, and keep a generic ar page as the catch-all for unspecified regions. Google requires the language code first, accepts an optional ISO 3166-1 region code after it, and does not accept a country code on its own.
Does Google use the HTML lang attribute to decide the language of a page?
No. Google says it determines language from the visible content and does not use code-level signals such as the lang attribute or hreflang for that purpose. You should still set lang and dir on the html element, because screen readers, browsers and accessibility standards rely on them, and dir="rtl" is needed for Arabic text to display correctly.
Are Arabic URL slugs better for SEO than English slugs?
Google does not say either ranks better. Its URL guidelines encourage words in your audience's language, show an Arabic example and ask for non-ASCII characters to be percent-encoded in links. Arabic slugs are readable to Arabic users but turn into long encoded strings when shared; short Latin slugs are easier to manage. Pick one convention and keep it stable.
Planning an Arabic and English website that ranks in both languages? Contact Sokrab Saudi Arabia today.
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