If you sell internationally on Shopify, you have probably already translated your product titles and descriptions. But that is only half the story. To fully translate metafields on Shopify, you need to go beyond the default translatable resources and address the custom data that appears on your product pages - materials, care instructions, sizing details, and any other structured attributes stored in metafields.
Leaving metafields untranslated creates an awkward experience where a customer browsing in French sees product titles and descriptions in French, but then hits “Material: 100% Organic Cotton” in English halfway down the page. That inconsistency erodes trust and costs conversions.
What Are Shopify Metafields?
Metafields are Shopify’s system for attaching custom data to resources like products, collections, and pages. Every metafield is identified by a namespace and key pair (for example, custom.material or custom.care_instructions) and has a specific type that controls what kind of value it holds.
The metafield types that matter for translation are the text-based ones:
- single_line_text - Short values like material names, fabric blends, or warranty summaries. Example:
custom.materialstoring “100% Merino Wool”. - multi_line_text - Longer content like detailed care instructions or product stories. Example:
custom.care_instructionsstoring a paragraph about washing and drying. - rich_text - HTML-formatted content used in size guides, feature descriptions, or ingredient lists. Preserves bold, italic, lists, and links.
- list.single_line_text - Arrays of text values, often used for product features, available colors as text, or bullet-point specifications.
Non-text types like number_integer, number_decimal, boolean, date, url, and color do not need translation because their values are language-independent. A weight of 250 or a hex code of #2E8B57 reads the same in every language.
Why Metafield Translation Matters
Metafields are not hidden backend data. If your theme references them, customers see them. Shopify’s Online Store 2.0 themes heavily rely on metafields for product page sections, and many merchants use them for:
- Material composition and fabric blends
- Washing and care instructions
- Sizing and fit guidance
- Warranty terms
- Product feature bullet points
- Ingredient or allergen lists
When these fields remain in your store’s default language while everything else is translated, the page feels broken. Customers may not understand critical purchasing information - is this jacket machine washable? What is this supplement made of? - and leave without buying.
Search engines also index metafield content when it renders on the page. Mixed-language content on a page targeting French shoppers sends conflicting signals to Google about what language and market that page serves, which hurts your rankings in local search results.
Which Metafields to Translate (and Which to Skip)
The key to translating metafields on Shopify correctly is knowing what to include and what to leave alone. LocaleFlow provides field-level control through a blacklist system - you explicitly mark which metafield keys should never be translated.
Always translate these metafield keys:
| Namespace.Key | Type | Why |
|---|---|---|
custom.material | single_line_text | Customer-facing product detail |
custom.care_instructions | multi_line_text | Essential purchasing info |
custom.size_guide | rich_text | Conversion-critical content |
custom.features | list.single_line_text | Product selling points |
custom.warranty_info | multi_line_text | Trust-building content |
custom.ingredients | multi_line_text | Required for compliance in some markets |
Blacklist these - never translate:
| Namespace.Key | Type | Why |
|---|---|---|
custom.sku_suffix | single_line_text | Inventory tracking code |
custom.color_hex | color | Technical value |
custom.weight_grams | number_decimal | Numeric, language-independent |
custom.model_number | single_line_text | Identifier, must stay exact |
custom.certification_code | single_line_text | Regulatory code (CE, UL, FCC) |
custom.internal_notes | multi_line_text | Staff-only, never rendered |
The blacklist concept is especially important for single_line_text fields that look like they contain translatable content but actually hold codes. A metafield key like custom.fabric_code storing “CTN-BLD-220” should not be translated, even though it is a text type. LocaleFlow lets you add these keys to a skip list so they are excluded from every translation job.
Step-by-Step Guide with LocaleFlow
Before diving into the steps below, here is what the process looks like in practice. The route template on this page renders the step-by-step walkthrough from our structured data, but there are a few practical details worth expanding on.
Connecting your store takes about 30 seconds. LocaleFlow reads your store’s metafield definitions through the Shopify Admin API, so it knows every namespace, key, and type before you start configuring anything.
Selecting metafield keys is where the field-level control comes in. Rather than translating all text-type metafields blindly, you review the list and toggle individual keys on or off. If you have 40 metafield definitions but only 12 contain customer-facing text, you select just those 12. The other 28 stay untouched.
Choosing target languages works the same as product translation. You pick from your store’s published languages (configured in Shopify Markets), and LocaleFlow translates the selected metafield content into each one.
Automatic handling means LocaleFlow respects the metafield type during translation. For rich_text fields, it parses the HTML, translates only the text nodes, and reconstructs the markup. For list.single_line_text fields, it translates each item individually while preserving the array structure and order. For a deep walkthrough with screenshots, see the complete metafield translation guide.
After your initial translation run, any future changes to metafield values trigger automatic re-translation. You update the care instructions for a product, and LocaleFlow picks up the change and translates it across all your languages without manual intervention.
Common Metafield Translation Mistakes
Translating everything without reviewing. Running a bulk translation on all text-type metafields catches SKU suffixes, internal reference codes, and other identifiers that should stay in their original form. Always audit your metafield definitions first and set up the blacklist before your first translation job.
Ignoring list.single_line_text fields. Merchants often forget that list-type metafields contain translatable content. If your product pages display feature bullets pulled from a list.single_line_text metafield, those bullets need translation just like your product description does.
Not testing rich_text rendering after translation. While LocaleFlow preserves HTML structure, the translated text may be longer or shorter than the original. German translations, for instance, tend to be 20-30% longer than English. Check that your theme’s product page layout handles the expanded text without breaking, especially in size guide tables and feature comparison sections.
Mixing manual and automated translations. If you manually translate some metafields through Shopify’s native translation editor and let LocaleFlow handle others, you can end up with inconsistent terminology across the same product page. Pick one approach and stick with it. LocaleFlow’s translation tools provide consistency across all resource types in a single workflow.
Forgetting metaobject text fields. Shopify metaobjects - structured content types like size guides and FAQ entries - contain text fields that also need translation. If your metaobject has a description field of type rich_text, it needs the same treatment as a product metafield. Check the comparison page to see how LocaleFlow handles both metafields and metaobjects compared to other apps.
Getting metafield translation right means your international customers see a fully localized product page from the title down to the last specification line. No mixed languages, no confusion, no lost sales.
Ready to translate your metafields? Install LocaleFlow from the Shopify App Store and start translating today.
Written by Kwadwo Adu, Co-founder of LocaleFlow