To migrate from Weglot on Shopify, you move your translated content off Weglot’s proxy/subdomain layer and into Shopify’s native translation system, so your languages live on your own domain instead of a serving layer in front of it. The migration itself is straightforward and non-destructive - the part that needs planning is SEO, because your translated URLs change format when you switch. This guide walks the full sequence: what to prepare, how to protect your rankings with 301 redirects and hreflang, the numbered migration steps, an overlap period to avoid downtime, post-migration verification, and how to roll back if you need to.
Why merchants migrate from Weglot on Shopify
There are three honest reasons stores make this move, and none of them are that Weglot stopped working. Weglot is a mature app (“Weglot: AI Translation & SEO”, 4.5/5 across 798 reviews). Merchants migrate because their situation changed, not because the tool broke.
Cost at scale. Weglot meters by translated words and language count and auto-upgrades your plan when you exceed limits. On the Shopify listing that runs Starter $17, Business $32, and Pro $87; on weglot.com the higher tiers reach Advanced (around $329/mo) and Extended (around $769/mo). A growing catalog with several languages keeps pushing you up the ladder. LocaleFlow is a flat $150/mo with unlimited words and languages, so the bill stops moving as you grow. We break the numbers down in Weglot pricing explained.
Native-domain SEO ownership. Weglot serves translated content through a proxy/subdomain layer. That works, but it means your international SEO signals are shaped by that layer rather than living directly on your store domain. When translations are written into Shopify’s native system, each locale renders on your own domain with native hreflang, so the signals consolidate where you control them.
Leaving the proxy layer. Some teams simply want fewer moving parts. A proxy sits in front of your storefront; the native approach puts translations inside Shopify itself, alongside your products, with full metafield and metaobject support and auto-sync when content changes. Fewer layers, fewer things to reason about.
If you are still deciding whether to switch at all, the Weglot review and the side-by-side LocaleFlow vs Weglot comparison are the right places to start before you read the migration steps below.
The one real risk: your URL structure changes
This is the part to get right. Everything else is mechanical.
Weglot serves localized pages from its proxy at URLs that follow Weglot’s subdomain or subdirectory pattern. When you move to Shopify-native translations, those same pages render at Shopify’s native localized paths instead. The content is equivalent; the addresses are not. If Google has indexed your Weglot URLs and you switch off the proxy without a plan, those indexed URLs stop resolving and you can lose the rankings attached to them.
The fix is standard site-move hygiene, and Google documents it directly. Per Google Search Central’s guidance on site moves with URL changes, you map each old URL to its new equivalent and serve a 301 (permanent) redirect so ranking signals transfer. For international sites you also need correct hreflang annotations so each language version points at its counterparts. Shopify handles native hreflang automatically once translations live in its system - see Shopify’s help on translating your store - but you own the 301 mapping from the old Weglot URLs.
Build your redirect map first
Before you disable anything, export a full list of your current Weglot localized URLs and write the native Shopify URL each one should point to. That spreadsheet is your 301 map and your hreflang checklist. No inventory, no safe cutover.
What to prepare before you start
Gather these first so the migration itself is fast:
- Language list. Every active language you serve today, so nothing gets dropped.
- URL inventory. A crawl or export of your live Weglot localized pages. This becomes the 301 map.
- Term rules. Any glossary, brand terms, or do-not-translate rules you configured in Weglot, so you can recreate them.
- Markets and domain check. Confirm your Shopify Markets configuration and that your primary domain is set the way you want localized paths to resolve.
- A staging window. Pick a low-traffic period for the cutover, and make sure you can edit redirects and DNS if needed.
The migration sequence, step by step
Follow this order. It is additive at every step, which is what keeps it safe.
-
Install LocaleFlow from the Shopify App Store. Nothing about your live store or Weglot changes yet. LocaleFlow simply gains access to write into Shopify’s native translation layer.
-
Configure your languages and term rules. Recreate the language set and glossary/do-not-translate rules you exported from Weglot so the native translations match your existing tone and brand terms.
-
Auto-translate into Shopify native translations. Run the initial translation pass. LocaleFlow writes into Shopify’s native system, covering products, collections, pages, and metafields/metaobjects. Your source content is untouched; Weglot’s proxy is still live and serving customers.
-
Verify the native translations. Review the results in Shopify. Check product pages, collections, checkout-adjacent text, and any metafield-driven content. Fix anything that needs a human touch.
-
Build and stage your 301 redirect map. Using your URL inventory, map each old Weglot localized URL to its new native path. Stage these redirects so they are ready to activate, but do not switch traffic yet.
-
Confirm hreflang on the native pages. With translations in Shopify’s native system, confirm each locale renders on your domain with correct hreflang pointing at its counterparts. This is what tells search engines the pages are language variants, not duplicates.
-
Run the overlap period (see below). Let both systems coexist and verify before you cut over.
-
Disable Weglot’s proxy and activate redirects. Once native pages check out, turn off Weglot’s serving layer and activate your 301 redirects so old Weglot URLs forward to the native equivalents.
-
Submit and monitor. Resubmit your sitemap and watch Search Console for coverage and redirect processing over the following weeks.
Running an overlap period to avoid downtime
The overlap is the safety feature of this whole process. Because native translations can exist in Shopify while Weglot’s proxy is still serving pages, you never have a moment where your international storefront is dark.
During overlap - anywhere from a few days to about two weeks - you verify the native pages directly: correct rendering, correct URLs, correct hreflang, correct metafield content. Customers keep hitting the live Weglot proxy the whole time. Only when you are confident in the native pages do you flip the switch in step 8. There is no window where translations are missing, because you build the new system fully before retiring the old one.
Don't cancel Weglot on day one
Keep your Weglot subscription active through the overlap and through your first round of post-migration checks. It is your rollback. Cancel it only after 301s, hreflang, and indexing all look healthy. Our guide on how to cancel Weglot properly covers the clean shutdown once you’re ready.
Post-migration verification
After you cut over, work through this checklist:
- Redirects resolve. Spot-check a sample of old Weglot URLs and confirm each returns a 301 to the correct native path.
- Hreflang is correct. Confirm each locale’s pages reference their counterparts and self-reference correctly.
- No orphaned pages. Make sure no localized page 404s after the proxy is off.
- Sitemap and indexing. Resubmit your sitemap and monitor Search Console coverage; expect a few weeks for redirect signals to settle.
- Rendering and metafields. Re-check the product and metafield content that mattered most during setup.
- Auto-sync works. Publish a small content change and confirm the native translation updates as expected.
If you had lingering questions about Weglot’s word limits or SEO behavior that pushed you to switch, Weglot word limit and Weglot SEO issues give the background - useful context when you’re validating that the native setup behaves the way you wanted.
Rollback note
Because every step is additive, rollback is real, not theoretical. If your native pages have problems after cutover, you can keep serving through Weglot’s proxy while you fix them - which is exactly why you keep the Weglot subscription live until your checks pass. The only irreversible action is canceling Weglot, so save that for last. Migration keeps your Shopify content intact throughout; the source of truth is always your store, and both translation systems read from it rather than replacing it.
Conclusion
Migrating from Weglot to Shopify-native translation is a real, reversible move that lands your languages on your own domain with native hreflang and a flat, predictable bill. The migration is non-destructive - your Shopify content is never touched - and the one thing that needs care is the URL change, which you handle with a 301 redirect map and correct hreflang. Prepare your inventory, run an overlap period, verify, then retire the proxy.
Ready to make the switch? Install LocaleFlow from the Shopify App Store and start translating into Shopify’s native system today - keep Weglot running alongside it until your checks pass.
For the bigger picture, see the full Weglot alternative guide, the LocaleFlow vs Weglot comparison, and how LocaleFlow stacks up across the market on our comparison page.
