What multilingual tags are
The limits of built-in tags
Section titled “The limits of built-in tags”A Shopify product tag holds exactly one value, in your store’s default language. There is no translation mechanism, so in a multilingual store:
- Tags shown on a product page stay in the default language, whatever language the shopper is browsing in
- Tag filters on collection pages list their values in the default language too
Shopify’s own documentation states that vendor and product tag filters only display in the store’s default language.
How this app works
Section titled “How this app works”Tags are stored in a translatable metafield instead of the built-in tag field.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Stored in | Product metafield custom.multilang_tags |
| Type | Single line text (list) |
| Storefront access | Enabled (required for translation) |
Metafields are translatable in Shopify, so you can register a value per language in Translate & Adapt. Liquid on the storefront returns the translated value for the language being viewed, which means the product page block shows the right tags without any extra network request.
Search & Discovery filters based on a metafield also show values translated into the languages published on your store. That is the decisive difference from the built-in tag filter.
Translation happens per product
Section titled “Translation happens per product”With this approach, translation is needed per product, per language. Even if the same tag is applied to many products, the translation has to be registered on each product.
For larger catalogs, use the migration to line up your tags first, then work through them using the translation status page.
Terminology
Section titled “Terminology”- Multilingual tag — a tag this app manages in a metafield
- Standard tag — Shopify’s built-in product tag
- Default language — your store’s primary language (see Settings > Languages in the admin)