The No-BS Guide to Multilingual Squarespace Sites (2026 Edition): Native vs. Weglot vs. The "Hard Way"

By Gediminas | Founder of UOGAweb & Squarespace Circle Gold Member

The Ultimate Guide to Multilingual Squarespace Websites 2026

I still remember the panic in my client's voice. It was 2021. He had just tried to "hack" his Squarespace site to be bilingual using a random script he found on a forum.

The result? His Google rankings crashed overnight. His French customers were landing on English pages. His mobile menu completely disappeared. He called me asking, "Why is this so hard? It’s just a language button!"

He was right. It shouldn't be hard. But on Squarespace, multilingual has always been the elephant in the room.

While platforms like Shopify or Wix rolled out native translation tools years ago, Squarespace purists (like me) had to suffer. We had to use hacky code, duplicate pages, and pray that Google didn't penalize us.

Good news: It’s 2026, and we finally have options. Bad news: You can still easily destroy your SEO if you choose the wrong one.

I have built over 50 multilingual sites—from massive e-commerce stores to boutique law firms in Lithuania. I’ve tried every plugin. I’ve broken sites and fixed them.

This guide is not a generic AI summary. This is the exact playbook we use at UOGAweb to build world-class multilingual sites that rank #1 globally.

Part 1: The "Big Three" Options (And Why One Probably Sucks for You)

Let’s cut through the marketing fluff. You only have three real paths.

Option A: The "Official" Extension (Weglot)

• The Vibe: "I have a budget and I value my sanity."

• The Cost: Starts at ~€15/mo (increases with traffic).

• The Reality: It’s an external layer that sits on top of your site. It translates content automatically but lets you edit it manually.

• My Take: Use this if you are a business. If you sell products or services, the time you save is worth 10x the monthly fee.

Option B: The "Manual" Workaround (DIY)

• The Vibe: "I am a control freak and I refuse to pay subscriptions."

• The Cost: €0 (but costs you ~20 hours of life).

• The Reality: You physically duplicate every page (/home becomes /lt/pradzia). You use custom code to hide navigation menus.

• My Take: Use this for Portfolios or simple 5-page sites. It gives you ultimate design freedom (e.g., a totally different layout for Lithuanian users), but it’s a nightmare to maintain for large sites.

Option C: Google Translate Widget (The "Ugly" Way)

• The Vibe: "I don't care about my brand image."

• The Cost: Free.

• The Reality: You embed a script. A nasty toolbar appears. It translates "Home" to "House" and "Book Now" to "Book Immediately".

• My Take: Never do this. It looks cheap. It breaks your design. It provides ZERO SEO benefit because Google doesn't index the translated dynamic content. Just don't.

Left side: A beautiful custom language switcher. Right side: The ugly Google Translate dropdown bar.

Part 2: The Weglot Strategy (How to Do It Like a Pro)

Most people just install Weglot and leave it. That’s why their sites look "generic." Here is how we customize it for high-end clients.

1. The Setup (Don't mess this up)

Go to your Squarespace Settings > Extensions > Search "Weglot". Connect it. It will ask for your API key. Once connected, it automatically detects your content.

The Critical Step: Go to your Weglot Dashboard > Project Settings. Ensure "Auto-Switch" is OFF. Wait, what? Yes. Auto-switch sounds nice ("It detects the user is from Lithuania and shows Lithuanian!"). But in reality, it causes a "flash of content" where the user sees English for 0.5 seconds before it snaps to Lithuanian. It feels buggy. Let the user choose their language.

2. Styling the Switcher (The "Gold Member" Code)

By default, the switcher is a floating button at the bottom right. It covers your "Scroll to Top" button or your Chat widget. It’s annoying.

We move it to the Header Navigation using CSS.

Copy this into Design > Custom CSS:

CSS

/* UOGAweb PRO TIP: Move Weglot to Header */
.weglot-container {
    position: absolute;
    top: 25px; /* Adjust based on your logo height */
    right: 5vw;
    z-index: 1000;
}

/* Typography Polish */
.wg-li a {
    font-family: 'aktiv-grotesk', sans-serif; /* CHANGE THIS to your site font */
    font-weight: 500;
    letter-spacing: 0.05em;
    text-transform: uppercase;
    color: #1a1a1a !important;
}

/* Active Language State */
.wg-current {
    border-bottom: 2px solid #000; /* Underline the active language */
    padding-bottom: 2px;
}

UOGAweb website’s header showing the clean "EN | LT" switcher integrated perfectly next to the navigation.

3. The "Visual Editor" Rule

AI translation has gotten scary good (thanks, DeepL). But it still fails on nuance.

• Example: In English, a button says "Get in Touch".

• AI Translation: "Gaukite prisilietimą" (Lithuanian literal translation).

• Correct: "Susisiekite".

Rule: Never launch without a human review. Open the Weglot "Visual Editor", click on your headlines, and rewrite them to sound human.

Part 3: The Manual Method (For the Brave)

Okay, so you want to save the monthly fee and have total control. I respect the hustle. I built my first agency site this way. It took me three days, but the SEO result was incredible.

Here is the exact architecture you need.

Step 1: The "Two-Site" Illusion

You aren't building one site. You are building two sites under one roof.

1. Create a Folder in Pages called "MAIN-EN".

2. Create a Folder in Pages called "MAIN-LT".

3. Drag your English pages into MAIN-EN.

4. Duplicate them, translate the text, and drag them into MAIN-LT.

SEO WARNING: Look at the URL Slug. Squarespace often defaults to /home-1. Change it immediately to /lt/pradzia. The /lt/ prefix is vital for tracking.

Folder structure clearly pointing to "English" and "Lithuanian" folders.

Step 2: The Navigation Nightmare (Solved)

If you just leave it like this, your header will show: HOME ABOUT CONTACT PRADZIA APIE KONTAKTAI It looks like a mess.

You need to tell Squarespace: "When I am on an English page, hide the Lithuanian links."

We use Page Header Code Injection for this. Go to the Settings (Gear Icon) of your "MAIN-EN" folder (yes, the folder itself has settings). Go to Advanced. Paste this:

HTML

<style>
  /* Hide LT Folder Links when inside EN */
  .header-nav-item:nth-child(n+4) { display: none !important; } 
  /* Adjust "n+4" based on how many links you have. */
</style>

Then do the reverse for the LT folder. Note: This is "brittle" code. If you rearrange your menu, you break the code. Be careful.

Step 3: The Mobile Menu Trap

This is where 99% of tutorials fail you. They give you code for the desktop menu, but when you open your phone, the "Burger Menu" still shows ALL links.

You need to target the mobile class specifically:

CSS

/* Mobile Menu Specific Hiding */
.header-menu-nav-item a[href*="/lt/"] {
    display: none;
}

Place this in Custom CSS, wrapped in a body class targeting your English pages.

Part 4: Advanced SEO (How to Rank #1 Globally)

This is the secret sauce. This is why clients pay us €2,000+ instead of hiring a Fiverr freelancer.

The Hreflang Tag

Google is smart, but it gets confused easily. If it sees two pages with similar content, it marks them as Duplicate Content and penalizes BOTH.

You must explicitly map the relationship.

The Code Snippet (Put this in every page header):

HTML

<link rel="alternate" hreflang="en" href="https://uogaweb.com/en/services" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="lt" href="https://uogaweb.com/lt/paslaugos" />
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://uogaweb.com/en/services" />

What is x-default? It tells Google: "If a user comes from a country where we don't have a specific language (e.g., Japan), show them the English version." Without this, Google might randomly show your Lithuanian page to a user in Tokyo.

Google Search Console "International Targeting" report showing the hreflang tags highlighted.

Part 5: E-commerce & The "Currency Problem"

Here is the hard truth Squarespace doesn't advertise: You cannot sell in multiple currencies natively. Even if you translate your site to Lithuanian, the checkout will still show € (EUR) (which is fine for us) or $ (USD). You cannot show Dollars to Americans and Euros to Europeans automatically.

The Workaround:

1. Stick to one currency (EUR). Most international shoppers are used to it.

2. Add a Currency Converter Widget. There are plugins (like Elfsight) that show an approximate price in USD below the EUR price.

3. The Checkout Page Language. Even with Weglot, the checkout page (where they enter credit card info) is locked by Squarespace security. It allows some translation, but often reverts to the "Site Language".

   • Tip: Set your main Site Language to English. It’s better for a Lithuanian to see English checkout than for an American to see Lithuanian checkout (they will panic and think it's a scam).

Conclusion: Which Path is Yours?

I wrote this guide because I was tired of seeing businesses fail globally because of bad technical decisions.

Choose Weglot if:

• You have more than 10 pages.

• You run an online store.

• You value your time at more than €2/hour.

• Verdict: It’s the "Business" choice.

Choose Manual if:

• You are a portfolio artist (photographer, architect).

• You need "Pixel Perfect" control over each language.

• You have zero budget but unlimited coffee.

• Verdict: It’s the "Designer" choice.

Still feeling overwhelmed? I get it. This stuff is technical. One missing semicolon in the code can break your mobile menu.

At UOGAweb, we fix this stuff for breakfast. We are Squarespace Circle Gold Members, which means we have direct lines to support and tools you don't have.

If you want to skip the headache and just have a global system that prints money: 👉 Book a Strategy Call with Me

We won't just "translate" your site. We will build you a global sales engine.

Author Bio

Gediminas is the founder of UOGAweb and a Squarespace Expert based in Vilnius. When he isn't debugging CSS for international brands, he's probably sailing or complaining about bad UX design on some social platforms.