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Why Your Loco Translate Changes Disappear: Common Causes and How to Fix Them

56 threads Sep 7, 2025 Plugin → Loco translate

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If you've ever spent hours carefully translating your WordPress site with Loco Translate, only to see your work vanish after an update, you're not alone. This is one of the most common frustrations users report. This guide will explain why this happens and provide the most effective solutions to protect your translations.

The Core of the Problem: File Location

The overwhelming reason translations are lost is due to file location. WordPress, along with its themes and plugins, manages its own files. When updates occur, they often overwrite the directories they control.

Why your translations get reverted or deleted:

  • Plugin/Theme Updates: If your custom translation files (`.po` and `.mo`) are saved in the plugin's or theme's own folder (e.g., `/wp-content/plugins/my-plugin/`), the update process will completely replace that folder, erasing your work.
  • WordPress Core Updates: While less common, major WordPress core updates can sometimes affect the system's `wp-content/languages` directory.
  • Automatic Translation Installs: If an official translation is available on translate.wordpress.org, WordPress may automatically download and install it during an update, potentially overriding your custom version if it's in the same location.

How to Permanently Save Your Translations

The solution is to always save your custom translations in a "safe" location that is never touched by updates.

Solution 1: Use the Custom Location (Recommended)

Loco Translate provides a dedicated, safe directory for this exact purpose. When saving your translations, always choose this option:

  1. Navigate to Loco Translate → [Themes/Plugins].
  2. Click on the theme or plugin you want to translate.
  3. Click on the language you are editing (e.g., German / Deutsch).
  4. On the translation editor screen, look for the "Save" button.
  5. Click the dropdown arrow next to it and select "Custom" as the location.
  6. Save your file. Loco Translate will now store it in `/wp-content/languages/loco/` (for plugins) or `/wp-content/languages/themes/` (for themes), which is safe from updates.

Solution 2: Use the System Location (With Caution)

You can also save files to the system-wide language directory at `/wp-content/languages/plugins/` or `/wp-content/languages/themes/`. While this location is generally safe from plugin/theme updates, it can be overwritten if WordPress automatically installs an official translation for that plugin. Use this location if you are sure you want to manage potential conflicts manually.

Other Common Issues and Quick Fixes

Translations not showing up?

  • Caching: Always clear your site's cache (both any caching plugins and your server/browser cache) after making translation changes.
  • File Permissions: Ensure the generated `.mo` file (the compiled binary) has the correct read permissions on your server.
  • Conflicting Plugins: As seen in the sample threads, other translation plugins like TranslatePress can sometimes take precedence and override translations set by Loco Translate. Try deactivating other translation plugins to test.

New strings aren't being detected?

  • Use the "Sync" function in Loco Translate. This will rescan the plugin or theme for any new or changed text strings that need translating.

Some specific strings still won't translate?

  • The text might be hard-coded in the theme or plugin and not passed through WordPress's translation functions. In this case, Loco Translate cannot access it. You would need to contact the theme/plugin developer.
  • The string could be a JavaScript translation, which Loco Translate may not extract from some sources like WordPress core. Using official translations as a base is often the best approach here.

Best Practice: Back Up Your Translations

Once you have your translations saved in the safe custom location, it's wise to back them up. You can easily download your `.po` files from the Loco Translate file manager. This gives you a snapshot you can re-upload if anything ever goes wrong, saving you from having to redo all your work.

By understanding why translations disappear and using the safe "Custom" location, you can use Loco Translate with confidence, knowing your hard work will survive the next update.

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