From an SEO perspective, which is preferable in the URL for a non-English site: local language or English?

[DusBus]

For example, the article is titled ' गर्मी में त्वचा की देखभाल कुछ यूँ करें' (English Meaning: Skin Care Tips for Summer), which one of these three URLs is best for SEO purpose?

1. example.com/ गर्मी-में-त्वचा-की-देखभाल/  (URL in local language, Hindi in this case)

2. example.com/summer-skin-care-tips/ (URL uses English words with English translation)

3. example.com/garmi-mein-twacha-ki-dekhbhaal/  (Hindi words, but written in Roman English)

A response will be much appreciated,

Amit

[iugac]

It depends on what you want to rank for. If it is English searches, use that language. If you want to rank for Hindi, use that version. As a rule of thumb, try to do what benefits your end users since this will eventually pay off in search engines. How do your users search for those pages or product? Use those keywords (after a keyword research process, of course). This will also be an advantage from a user experience point of view. Good luck!

[danatanseo]

I agree with Christian. In the example you give above, the article is in Hindi. That being the case, a translated URL using Hindi would be the one I would choose.

[DusBus]

Thanks Cristian for your answer. I do agree with you, however based on a few examples (where translated URLs were performing better), what I began to fear is that 'Google's' understanding of other languages is yet limited, and translation to English seems to be helping Google understand what the article is clearly about.

But I am still thinking of changing tacks and going by your advise as that seems to be the right thing to do, and over time the Google bot will know better!

[DusBus]

Hi Dana

Thank you for your answer. But I didnt understand what you meant by 'translated URL using Hindi'? Is it one of the 3 options I gave or yet another URL writing style?

Thanks,