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Troubleshooting Multilingual Header and Footer Issues with Elementor and WPML/Polylang

33 threads Sep 9, 2025 Plugin → Ultimate addons for elementor

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Creating a multilingual website with Elementor is a common task, but integrating it with plugins like Elementor Header & Footer Builder (EHF) and translation tools like WPML or Polylang can sometimes lead to unexpected issues. Users frequently report problems where headers, footers, or their styles don't display correctly across different languages.

This guide compiles the most common problems and their solutions based on community reports and resolutions.

Common Multilingual Integration Issues

Based on numerous community threads, the typical problems include:

  • Headers or footers not appearing on translated pages.
  • Only the default language's header/footer showing on all pages.
  • CSS styles not loading correctly for specific language versions.
  • Language switcher flags or dropdown arrows not displaying, especially on mobile.
  • Editing headers/footers for secondary languages gets stuck or throws errors.
  • The backend interface shows "No Templates found" after enabling multilingual support.

Why These Issues Happen

These problems usually stem from a misconfiguration between the translation plugin and the header/footer builder. The header and footer templates are custom post types. For WPML or Polylang to manage them, they must be explicitly set as translatable. Furthermore, caching, permalink conflicts, or specific plugin bugs can also cause these display issues.

Most Effective Solutions

If you're facing these problems, work through these solutions in order.

1. Configure Translation Plugin Settings (CRITICAL)

This is the most crucial step and resolves the majority of reported issues.

  • For Polylang: Navigate to Languages > Settings > URL modifications. Ensure the "Elementor Header & Footer Builder" checkbox is enabled in the "Custom post types and Taxonomies" section. This allows Polylang to create and manage translations of your headers and footers.
  • For WPML: Go to WPML > Settings > Custom Post Type Translation. Find the post type for your headers and footers (often named something like "Elementor Header & Footer") and set the translation option to "Translatable". Don't forget to also configure the display conditions for each translated template within the EHF settings.

2. Flush Permalinks

A simple but often effective fix for 404 errors, missing content, or front-end display issues is to refresh your WordPress permalinks.

  1. Go to Settings > Permalinks in your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Without making any changes, simply click the "Save Changes" button.
  3. This action refreshes the rewrite rules and can resolve many cross-origin or loading issues.

3. Check Individual Template Conditions

After making your templates translatable, you must set the display conditions for each language-specific version.

  1. Edit the header or footer template for your secondary language.
  2. Go to the Display Conditions in the EHF settings.
  3. Set the condition to display on the specific pages or posts that are in that language. Avoid using broad rules like "Entire Site" for multiple templates, as they can conflict.

4. Investigate Specific Bugs and Workarounds

Some issues are caused by temporary plugin conflicts:

  • Base64 Flags Not Displaying: A known bug occurred where Polylang's base64-encoded flag images were not rendered correctly by the EHF plugin. This was typically fixed in a subsequent update. Ensure all your plugins (Polylang and EHF) are updated to their latest versions.
  • Mobile Dropdown Arrows: If a dropdown arrow for a language switcher is missing on mobile, remember that the mobile menu often functions as a toggle (hamburger) button. The arrow indicator is part of the desktop menu structure and may not be designed to appear in the mobile view.

When to Seek Further Help

If you have worked through all these steps and your issue persists, it may be a more unique conflict. Before seeking help, ensure you have:

  • Updated WordPress, Elementor, EHF, and your translation plugin (WPML/Polylang) to their latest versions.
  • Disabled other plugins temporarily to check for a conflict.
  • Switched to a default WordPress theme (like Twenty Twenty-Four) to rule out theme-specific problems.

When the problem is complex, providing clear details, such as a short screen recording or a list of your specific plugin versions, will help others assist you more effectively.

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