How to Set Up Weglot on a Webflow Nonprofit Website

Published on

February 17, 2026

Multilingual

Before You Start

This guide covers the Webflow-side installation of Weglot and the initial configuration in the Weglot dashboard. It doesn't cover choosing whether Weglot is the right multilingual approach for your organisation — that's covered in Multilingual Nonprofit Websites: Webflow Native, Weglot, or Google Translate?

What you need before starting:

A Weglot account with a plan that covers the languages and word count your site requires
A Webflow site on a paid hosting plan with a custom domain connected and published
Admin access to the Webflow site
A clear decision on URL structure — subdirectory or subdomain (covered below)

Step 1: Get Your Weglot API Key

After creating a Weglot account and starting a plan, log into the Weglot dashboard. Your API key is displayed in the Setup or Installation section — it's a string that looks like wg_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.

Copy this key. You'll need it in the next step.

Step 2: Add the Weglot Script to Webflow

There is no native integration between Weglot and Webflow — the connection is made via a script embed in Webflow's custom code settings.

In Webflow, navigate to Site Settings → Custom Code → Head Code.

Add the Weglot initialisation script with your API key, then save and publish the Webflow site. Weglot loads from the <head> so it can intercept and translate content before the page renders.

After publishing, visit your site. A Weglot language switcher widget should appear on the page — typically in the bottom-right corner by default. If it appears, Weglot is installed and active.

Step 3: Decide on URL Structure — Subdirectory or Subdomain

This is the most important configuration decision in the Weglot setup and should be made before translating any content.

Subdirectory structure places translated content at a path beneath your main domain: yourcharity.org.uk/fr for French, yourcharity.org.uk/es for Spanish. Translated pages inherit domain authority. This is better for SEO.

Subdomain structure places translated content at a subdomain: fr.yourcharity.org.uk. Search engines treat subdomains as separate sites, so translated content starts with no inherited authority. Generally weaker for SEO.

Which to use: Subdirectory is recommended for any organisation where multilingual SEO is a goal. If you select subdomain, you'll need to add DNS records for each language subdomain — the same process described in How to Connect Your Domain to Webflow via DNS.

In your Weglot dashboard, navigate to Settings → URL structure and select your preferred option. Check whether subdirectory configuration is available on your current plan.

Step 4: Add Your Languages in the Weglot Dashboard

In the Weglot dashboard, navigate to the Languages section. Add each language you want to support. Weglot will begin scanning your site's content and generating machine translations automatically.

The initial scan may take a few minutes. Once complete, Weglot displays a word count — the number of words detected and translated, which determines your pricing tier.

Step 5: Review and Edit Translations

Machine translation requires human review before it's published to a live audience. Medical terms, legal language, safeguarding terminology, programme names, and sector-specific vocabulary are areas where automated translation commonly produces errors.

In Weglot, go to Translations and select the language you want to review. Weglot displays a side-by-side view of the original and translated text. Click any translation to edit it directly. Changes save immediately and appear on the live site without requiring a Webflow publish.

What to prioritise in the review:

Navigation labels — these appear on every page
Homepage hero text and primary calls to action
Programme or service descriptions
Contact page content
Any legally significant language — privacy policy, terms, safeguarding statements
Donation page content

Core pages should be reviewed before the translated version is promoted publicly.

Step 6: Configure the Language Switcher

Weglot adds a language switcher widget automatically. In the Weglot dashboard under Appearance, customise position, display style (flag icons, language names, or both), and colours to match your brand.

Ensure the switcher has sufficient colour contrast against the page background to meet WCAG AA requirements.

Weglot also supports placing the switcher in a specific location — useful if you want it integrated into header navigation. This requires adding a small HTML snippet to a Webflow embed element at the desired location.

Step 7: Exclude Pages or Content from Translation

Not all content needs to be translated. Weglot translates everything it can access by default, which increases your word count and plan costs.

In the Weglot dashboard under Exclusions, specify URL patterns to exclude (e.g. /blog/ to keep blog content in English only) or CSS selectors to exclude specific elements.

Decide on exclusions before Weglot's initial scan if possible.

Step 8: Test Before Promoting

Before publicising the translated version, test thoroughly:

Visit the site and switch to each translated language
Navigate through all core pages — confirm translated content appears correctly
Check that forms still work in translated mode
Check that the donation form or button works correctly
Confirm the URL structure matches your configuration
Test on mobile — confirm the language switcher is accessible at small screen widths
Run a keyboard navigation test — can you reach and activate the switcher without a mouse?

What Weglot Doesn't Translate

Text within images — Weglot translates HTML text, not image content. Use HTML text over images rather than text embedded in image files.

Donation platform content — The donation modal or iframe is served by the donation platform, not your Webflow site. If translated donation forms are required, configure this within the platform itself.

PDF documents — Linked PDFs remain in their original language.

A Blueprint Audit tells you exactly what needs to change — and why.

Before implementing anything new, it's worth knowing what your current site is and isn't doing for your stakeholders. The Blueprint Audit gives you that clarity in two to three weeks.

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