How to Translate Your WooCommerce Store into Multiple Languages (2 Easy Methods)

Having a multilingual WooCommerce store is crucial if you want to reach international audiences and boost global sales.

According to a recent study by Common Sense Advisory, 75% of customers prefer to purchase products in their native language. Providing translated product information helps them make buying decisions faster, leading to higher conversion rates.

In this detailed guide, we‘ll show you two easy ways to translate your existing WooCommerce store into multiple languages using WordPress plugins.

Why Go Multilingual? The Benefits of Translating Your Store

Here are some compelling stats that highlight why having a multilingual store is so valuable:

• 56% of shoppers won‘t buy from sites in just one language [Source: BigCommerce]
• Multilingual sites see 60-80% higher SEO visibility by targeting multiple locales [Source: hreflang.org]
• 45% of online shoppers say they‘d be more likely to buy from retailers with multilingual sites [Source: Common Sense Advisory]

It‘s clear that providing translated product information and support in a buyer‘s native tongue is tremendously beneficial for conversion rates and international sales.

Specifically, translating your WooCommerce store allows you to:

Reach More Customers Globally

You can expand your reach and market to broader international audiences in their native languages. This directly connects with more potential customers worldwide.

Improve User Experience

Visitors are more likely to make a purchase when they can read product descriptions, specs, shipping details, policies, etc. in their own language. It creates a seamless, positive shopping experience.

Increase Brand Awareness

Translations help make your brand name, product names, slogans, and messaging resonate across multiple regions. This raises awareness and perception of your brand globally.

Enhance SEO in Localized Markets

Optimizing your pages with hreflang tags and translations can improve SEO rankings in foreign markets, driving more organic traffic from local search engines.

Comply with Regulations

Some countries require you to provide fully translated sites, product information, documentation, and support in order to do business there. Translations help you expand into those markets compliantly.

Boost International Sales

Most importantly, having a multilingual store allows you to appeal to diverse global shoppers, convert international traffic at higher rates, and achieve bigger international sales overall.

Choosing the Right Translation Plugin for WooCommerce

The easiest way to translate a WordPress and WooCommerce site is by using a dedicated multilingual plugin. This automates much of the translation process for you.

There are several good WooCommerce translation plugins out there, but two of the most popular and powerful choices are:

• TranslatePress – The top-rated translation plugin for WordPress. Offers an intuitive visual translation interface.

• WPML – A very popular premium translation plugin. Comes with helpful ecommerce-focused add-ons.

We‘ll cover both of these solutions in-depth next. However, here‘s a quick comparison to help you decide which one might be best for your needs:

	TranslatePress	WPML
Pricing	Free version available. Paid upgrades start at $69.	Paid-only plugin. Starts at $99 per year.
Ease of Use	Very user-friendly. Great for beginners.	Steeper learning curve with more options to configure.
Features	Visual translation editor. Automatic translations.	Translation management dashboard. Ecommerce-specific capabilities.
Language Limit	Unlimited languages.	Unlimited languages.
Support	Solid customer support. Helpful documentation.	Responsive support team. Large knowledgebase.

Now let‘s dive into a step-by-step tutorial on using both TranslatePress and WPML to translate a WooCommerce store.

Method 1: Using TranslatePress to Translate WooCommerce

TranslatePress is one of the top WordPress translation plugins available. It boasts over 300,000 active installs and a 5 star rating.

TranslatePress makes translating WordPress sites intuitive thanks to its straight-forward visual translation editor.

Some key features include:

• Simple drag-and-drop translation interface
• Automatic translation powered by Google or DeepL
• Translation blocks to easily reuse translated content
• Support for both manual and machine translation

There‘s also a free version available that lets you translate your site into 1 language. Paid plans start at $69 for 25 sites to enable translating into unlimited languages.

Next, we‘ll walk through installing and configuring TranslatePress step-by-step to translate a WooCommerce store.

Step 1: Install and Activate TranslatePress

First, you need to install and activate the TranslatePress plugin.

Go to Plugins > Add New and search for "TranslatePress". Install the plugin and activate it.

You‘ll then get a notice that machine translation requires the "Extra Languages" add-on.

Step 2: Install the Extra Languages Add-on

The free version of TranslatePress only allows translating into 1 secondary language.

To remove this limitation, you need to install the paid "Extra Languages" add-on. This enables translating your pages into unlimited languages.

Visit your TranslatePress account and download the Extra Languages add-on. Install and activate it.

Step 3: Enter Your License Key

Next, go to Settings > TranslatePress in your WordPress dashboard.

Select the License tab and enter your TranslatePress license key here. This activates the add-on.

You can find your license key under My Account on the TranslatePress website.

Step 4: Configure Site Languages

Still on the TranslatePress settings page, switch to the General tab.

First, set your site‘s default language using the dropdown.

Next, open the "All Languages" section. Choose which additional languages you want to translate your site into. Click the Add button to enable each one.

You can also customize options for the language switcher menu here.

When ready, click Save Changes at the bottom.

Step 5: Launch the Translation Editor

You‘re now ready to start translating your WooCommerce store pages.

Go to your WordPress toolbar at the top and click on Translate Site to launch the visual translation editor.

You‘ll see your site preview on the right. The translation panel is on the left.

Start browsing through your product and category pages that need translating.

Step 6: Translate Text Elements

When viewing a page you want to translate, hover over any text element.

A blue translation pencil icon will appear. Click it to start editing the text.

The translation panel will open up. You can now type translations for that text in all of your configured languages.

Elements like product titles, descriptions, attributes, etc. can be translated right within the editor.

Step 7: Translate WordPress-Generated Strings

For text generated by WooCommerce like "Add to cart", a green translate icon appears.

Hover over those elements and translate the dynamic strings. TranslatePress comes with many common strings pre-translated.

You can override the defaults by typing your preferred translations.

Step 8: Save and Publish Translations

When done translating a page, make sure to click the Save Translation button at the top to publish changes.

Now when you visit your translated pages frontend, you‘ll see your saved translations live on the site.

Repeat this process to translate additional pages and products across your store.

Step 9: Translate Images (Optional)

You may also want to provide translated versions of your product images for each language.

This step is optional, but can improve user experience on translated product pages.

Go to WPML > Media Translation to upload alternate versions of images. TranslatePress will use the translated images on those pages.

And that‘s all there is to it! The visual translation editor makes it really easy to translate entire WooCommerce stores using TranslatePress.

Automatically Translating Content with TranslatePress

If manually translating each page is too time consuming, TranslatePress does offer automatic translation powered by Google or DeepL.

To enable it, go to Settings > TranslatePress > Automatic Translation and enable automatic translations.

You‘ll need to sign up for the Google Cloud Translation API or DeepL API and connect your API key. This allows TranslatePress to fetch machine translations from those services.

The translations won‘t be completely perfect, but it‘s a helpful starting point. You can then go back and refine any unclear translations later.

Method 2: Using WPML to Translate WooCommerce

WPML is another very popular premium plugin for translating WordPress and WooCommerce sites.

It‘s a paid plugin that starts at $99 per year. WPML also offers helpful add-ons tailored specifically for WooCommerce translation.

Let‘s take a look at how to use WPML to translate an ecommerce store step-by-step:

Step 1: Install WPML and Add-ons

First, install and activate the WPML plugin. You‘ll then see a "Commercial" tab added in Plugins > Add New.

Go there and install/activate the following add-ons:

• String Translation
• Translation Management
• Media Translation
• WooCommerce Multilingual

These provide the translation tools needed for WooCommerce stores.

Step 2: Configure Translation Languages

Go to WPML > Languages in your WordPress dashboard next.

First, select your default site language.

Next, enable which additional languages you want to translate content into. These will be available for translation.

You can also customize language switcher options and translation settings here.

Step 3: Translate Products and Categories

Go to WooCommerce > WooCommerce Multilingual to start translating products.

You‘ll see a table with all of your products. There will be columns for each language.

Click the + icon to translate an individual product into a language.

On the translation screen, you can copy over fields from the original language or translate text manually.

When done, mark the translation as complete. Repeat this to translate all products.

You can also translate product category pages by going to the Categories tab.

Step 4: Translate Images

To upload translated image versions, go to WPML > Media Translation.

Click the + icon to translate an existing image. Upload an alternate image or just change the title.

WPML will use the translated image for that language.

Step 5: Enable Automatic Translations

You can save time by enabling WPML‘s automatic translation service.

Go to WPML > Translation Management and enable Free Automatic Translation.

Select products or other content, add them to the translation basket, and send for translation.

Then go to Translation Tools and click Translate Automatically to populate translations using machine translation.

This automated translation workflow helps accelerate the process. You can then go back and refine any unclear translations.

And that covers the basics of using WPML to translate a WooCommerce store!

Tips for Managing Translations Ongoing

Here are some tips to manage translations smoothly once your multilingual WooCommerce store is up and running:

• Translate new content – As you add new products, categories, pages, etc., make sure to translate them too. Add this step to your editorial process.

• Update translations – If you edit the original text, translations may become outdated. Update translated versions promptly to keep things in sync.

• Empower contributors – Let editors, product managers, and translators contribute translations efficiently. Give them access to manage translations.

• Monitor translation status – Use translation management tools to monitor completion status across languages and get alerts for untranslated content.

• Refine automated translations – Review machine translations periodically and manually refine any that seem inaccurate or unclear.

• Test rigorously – Thoroughly test your translated stores across devices, browsers, and markets. Fix any issues before launching.

• Analyze performance – Track traffic, sales, and conversions per language. Double down on high-performing translations.

Focusing on translation maintenance ensures your multilingual stores provide an amazing localized experience over the long haul.

Go Global with a Multilingual WooCommerce Store

Offering translated versions of your WooCommerce store is critical for appealing to diverse global audiences. This helps you connect with more potential customers worldwide.

Whether you choose TranslatePress, WPML, or another translation plugin, the process of translating your existing WordPress and WooCommerce site is fairly straightforward.

By following the steps in this guide, you can expand your ecommerce business into new languages and markets faster.

Over time, you‘re likely to see significant lifts in international traffic, conversions, and sales as a result of translating your store.

So take the first step now. Installing one of these top translation plugins will empower you to easily convert your current single-language store into a successful multilingual business!