I cannot get the language switcher to work

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This topic contains 3 replies, has 0 voices.

Last updated by Noman 6 months, 2 weeks ago.

Assisted by: Noman.

Author	Posts
October 21, 2025 at 4:40 pm #17503754
jamieW-9	Background of the issue: I am developing a site and want to use the WPML plugin to allow users to manually change the site language using a language switcher. I have tried removing plugins to check for compatibility issues and looked for errors but found none. Symptoms: The language switcher appears but does not display any languages and does not change its formatting when I amend settings in languages. Questions: Why does the language switcher not display any languages? How can I fix the formatting issue with the language switcher?
October 21, 2025 at 6:29 pm #17504254
Noman	Hi, Thank you for contacting WPML Support. Could you please try to follow the below steps and let me know how it goes: 1. Make sure the minimum requirements for WPML meet: https://wpml.org/home/minimum-requirements/ 2. Make sure you are using the latest version of theme and plugins on your site. 3. Please delete all sorts of caches on your site/server cache if any / plugin cache / CDN cache (if any), clear browser cache, and then see if it resolves the issue afterward. 4. Please make sure the pages you are viewing are translated into all languages and the status of translated pages is set as Published and not Draft. 5. For fixing language switcher styling issues, please try to follow the suggestions from this doc: https://wpml.org/documentation/getting-started-guide/language-setup/language-switcher-options/how-to-fix-styling-and-css-issues-for-the-language-switchers/ and see if this resolves the issue. If the issue persists, please add the debug report in the Debug Information box. I have also enabled debug info box for your next reply: https://wpml.org/faq/provide-debug-information-faster-support/ Thank you
October 23, 2025 at 10:45 am #17511968
jamieW-9	Hello WPML Support Team, I am experiencing issues getting the language switcher to function and translated pages to render correctly on my site, which uses the "Handmade" theme along with its required "Handmade Framework" plugin and the bundled "WPBakery Page Builder." The Problems: Theme Language Switcher Non-Functional: My theme includes a built-in header language switcher. It correctly displays the languages I have configured in WPML, but clicking on any language in the dropdown does nothing. The URL does not change, and the language does not switch. Broken Rendering on Translated Pages: I have created and published a full translation for my homepage in French using the Advanced Translation Editor. However, when I navigate to the French version (/fr/), the page layout is broken: many sections built with WPBakery are blank or missing, the footer disappears entirely, and some text elements remain in English. Troubleshooting Steps Completed: I have performed extensive troubleshooting to rule out common causes: WPML Settings: Language URL format: "Different languages in directories" Browser language redirect: "Disable browser language redirect" AJAX language filtering: Disabled ("Store a language cookie..." is unchecked) Menu language switcher: Not currently in use (attempting to use theme's built-in switcher) Post Type Fallback: Set Pages/Products to "Translatable - use translation if available or fallback to default language" Theme/Plugin Localization: Scanned all relevant themes and plugins for strings. WPML versions are up-to-date. Environment: WordPress version is up-to-date. The site works stably on PHP 7.4, but experiences these rendering/switcher issues on PHP 8.2 (the recommended version). Conflict Testing: No JavaScript errors appear in the browser console on page load or when clicking the non-functional switcher. LiteSpeed Cache plugin has been tested while completely deactivated. Issue persists. Cloudflare has been tested while paused. Issue persists. All non-essential plugins were deactivated. Issue persists, indicating the conflict is between WPML and the core theme/builder plugins (Handmade Framework, WPBakery). Translation Status: Confirmed the homepage translation exists, is marked 100% complete, and is published. Conclusion: Despite correct WPML configuration and ruling out common conflicts, the theme's switcher is non-functional, and WPML seems unable to correctly instruct the theme/page builder (WPBakery) to render the translated page content properly, resulting in a broken layout. Could you please assist in investigating this compatibility issue with the Handmade theme and its bundled WPBakery Page Builder? Is this a known issue, or are there specific WPML settings required for this theme combination that I might be missing? [Instruct user to add Debug Info] Please find the WPML Debug Information attached below. [Optional: Offer Admin Access] I am happy to provide temporary administrator access if it helps diagnose the problem. Thank you for your support. Best regards, Jamie New threads created by Noman and linked to this one are listed below: https://wpml.org/forums/topic/broken-rendering-on-translated-pages/
October 23, 2025 at 5:37 pm #17513696
Noman	1. For the “Broken Rendering on Translated Pages” problem, it’s a different issue and will be handled separately as per our support policy. I've created a new ticket for this at: https://wpml.org/forums/topic/broken-rendering-on-translated-pages/ 2. For the original language switcher issue, I visited your site and I can see the language switcher dropdown and also I’m able to switch to a secondary language using WPML language switcher: hidden link. Could you please let me know if I missed something? If the issue persists, please try to enable the Footer language switcher from WPML >> Languages > Footer language switcher section, try to switch the language and let me know if it works correctly. Kindly let me know the results, Thank you for your cooperation and patience

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