Google fonts and Chinese translation

This thread is resolved. Here is a description of the problem and solution.

Problem:
The client is working on translating a site into traditional and simplified Chinese and plans to use Google Fonts Noto Sans TC and Noto Sans SC. However, Google Fonts do not load reliably in mainland China due to most of the fonts.googleapis.com and fonts.gstatic.com domains being blocked, resulting in slow loading or broken text rendering.
Solution:
We confirmed that Google Fonts indeed do not work reliably in China. To ensure fonts load properly for a Chinese audience, we recommend self-hosting the fonts. The client has already downloaded local .ttf versions of Noto Sans TC and Noto Sans SC, converted them to .woff2 format using Google Webfonts helper - A Hassle-Free Way to Self-Host Google Fonts, and uploaded these as custom fonts in the Avada theme. This approach is suitable for audiences in China.

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Tagged: Not WPML issue

This topic contains 2 replies, has 1 voice.

Last updated by dominicC-10 1 week, 2 days ago.

Assisted by: Kor.

Author	Posts
September 3, 2025 at 10:21 pm #17371939
dominicC-10	Background of the issue: I am working on translating a site in development, hidden link, into traditional Chinese and simplified Chinese. I plan to use Google fonts Noto Sans TC and Noto Sans SC for these translations. Symptoms: Google Fonts do not load reliably in mainland China, as most of the fonts.googleapis.com and fonts.gstatic.com domains are blocked. This results in very slow loading or broken text rendering, where fonts never load and the site falls back to a system font. Questions: Is it true that Google Fonts do not load reliably in mainland China? What do others do in a similar situation to ensure fonts load properly for a Chinese audience?
September 3, 2025 at 10:31 pm #17372797
dominicC-10	I'm using Avada theme, so I am able to upload and self-host Noto Sans TC and Noto Sans SC as custom fonts rather than via Google CDN, but will that be suitable for audiences in China? Or would you recommend going for system fonts when displaying Trad/Simp Chinese, and if so, what would you recommend as suitable for stacks for Windows/Mac/iOS & Android.
September 4, 2025 at 1:13 am #17372924
Kor WPML Supporter since 08/2022 Languages: English (English ) Timezone: Asia/Singapore (GMT+08:00)	Thanks for contacting us. Yes, that’s correct. Google Fonts don’t work in China. You will need to use fonts that are either hosted on your own server or provided through another CDN. I recommend checking with your theme author as this question is more relevant to them. If you need any help related to WPML, feel free to let us know.
September 4, 2025 at 10:18 am #17374554
dominicC-10	OK. Thanks for confirming. For others who are interested... I have downloaded local .ttf versions of all weights of Noto Sans TC and Noto Sans SC from Google. These have then been converted to .woff2 format using 'Google Webfonts helper - A Hassle-Free Way to Self-Host Google Fonts' (hidden link). The conversion to .woff2 is highly recommended as it reduces the .ttf file size for each weight down from ~11Mb to ~1.5Mb. I'd avoid using the variable weight 'family font' file, unless absolutely necessary, as it is ~18Mb. After adding Chinese Simple and Chinese Traditional languages in WPML, these .woff2 fonts are uploaded as custom fonts in Avada theme. First, switch admin to the language you are adding the fonts for, then go to Avada > Options > Typography > Custom Fonts. Name them uniquely, so they don't clash with the built-in CDN Google Font. These custom fonts are then available to that language, and can be used to set Global, Heading and Body typography within Avada (Avada > Options > Typography >)