An Arabic visitor should be able to find a service, understand it and send an enquiry without being pushed into an unfinished English journey. Plan the content, reading direction and page relationships together.
Open the Arabic version of a website and try to complete a simple task. Find a service, switch language, enter a phone number and submit the form. That short exercise can tell you more than comparing two homepage screenshots.
For UAE businesses, a bilingual website needs to work as two complete experiences. Translating paragraphs helps, but so do the less visible details: an equivalent-page link, a readable error message and a form that handles mixed Arabic and English input properly.
Decide which pages you're translating
Make a page map before design starts. Show each English page, its Arabic equivalent and the person who will approve the translation. Keep stable URLs for both versions.
The language switcher should take someone to the equivalent page when it exists. Sending every visitor back to the homepage makes them find the same information twice. If a translation isn't available, make the fallback clear instead of quietly opening an unrelated page.
A translated heading above several paragraphs of English copy isn't a finished Arabic page. Set the scope around complete answers to a visitor's question.
RTL isn't a command to flip everything
Set the right language and direction, then review the actual layout with a fluent Arabic reader. Navigation, alignment and directional icons need thought. A logo or product photograph doesn't automatically need reversing because the surrounding text reads from right to left.
Pay attention to phone numbers, email addresses, URLs and product codes inside Arabic text. Mixed-direction content can become difficult to read or select. Use appropriate bidirectional handling and test real examples; manual spaces that fix one screenshot tend to be a fragile solution.
Keep the search relationships clear
Hreflang identifies alternate language or regional versions. Google's localized-page guidance explains the required relationships, including reciprocal links. It doesn't translate your pages or guarantee how they will rank.
Each distinct translated page should normally retain its own canonical URL. Don't use a blanket rule that points every Arabic page's canonical to English while expecting both versions to have a clear identity in search.
Use language and regional codes that match the actual content. A UAE address alone doesn't mean every English page needs a region-specific alternative. Keep the page mapping maintainable as translations are added or withdrawn.
| Part of the journey | Arabic review | Check across languages |
|---|---|---|
| Navigation | Natural labels and direction | Equivalent-page switching |
| Search metadata | Translated title and description | Correct page relationships |
| Enquiry form | Readable labels and errors | Submission reaches the team |
| Mobile layout | No clipped Arabic copy | Usable controls and text |
Design with real Arabic copy, not a placeholder
A button label that fits neatly in English may wrap differently in Arabic. Test font coverage, weight, line height and punctuation using the copy you intend to publish.
Review headings, tables, cards and small metadata on a phone. Shrinking all the Arabic text is rarely a good answer to overflow. Give the layout room to adapt, and don't put important wording inside images that cannot wrap or resize naturally.
Follow the enquiry beyond the contact page
Translate form hints, upload instructions, validation messages and confirmations too. A visitor who completes an Arabic form shouldn't be left puzzling over an unexplained English error.
Decide who will receive and follow up Arabic enquiries. Preserve the enquiry language in the handover, and keep phone numbers and email addresses easy to use. Our form-accessibility checklist adds useful checks for labels, focus and error recovery.
Keep both versions current
When a service changes, give the translation an owner and an update task. Otherwise, the two versions can gradually promise different things.
Review queries, indexed pages and completed enquiries by language rather than treating all traffic as one audience. For a Gligx bilingual website project, a page map and named language reviewers are useful things to bring to the briefing. They make RTL design and multilingual SEO part of the plan from the start.
Sources and further reading
References checked on 23 October 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is translated copy enough for an Arabic website?
Not on its own. Have a fluent reviewer check navigation, typography, direction, mixed-language fields and the full enquiry journey.
Will hreflang translate our pages or improve rankings automatically?
No. It identifies alternate language or regional versions. You still need useful translated content and sound technical implementation.
Should every Arabic page point its canonical to English?
Normally, a distinct translated page should keep its own canonical URL. Connect language alternatives separately rather than using a blanket English canonical.
Where should the language switcher send someone?
To the equivalent page when there is one. If a translation is missing, explain the fallback instead of quietly sending the visitor to an unrelated page.