WPML ACF integration

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

Problem:
You are working on a site using ACF with WPML for multilingual support in English, German, Chinese, and Japanese. You have an ACF field named 'compatibility_info_content' set as a WYSIWYG in English and have created the same field in other languages with the 'copy once' option. However, content entered in the primary language is not being passed to other language versions for translation.
Solution:
First, ensure that your Field Groups are set to 'Not translatable' in WPML > Settings > Post Type Translation. After setting this, delete any translated groups and test the functionality again. If issues persist, consider setting the field groups to 'Different fields across languages'. This setting configures each field for translations created with the WordPress Editor.

Please note that this solution might be outdated or not applicable to your specific case. We highly recommend checking related known issues at https://wpml.org/known-issues/, verifying the version of the permanent fix, and confirming that you have installed the latest versions of themes and plugins. If the problem persists, please open a new support ticket at WPML support forum.

This is the technical support forum for WPML - the multilingual WordPress plugin.

Everyone can read, but only WPML clients can post here. WPML team is replying on the forum 6 days per week, 22 hours per day.

Tagged: Documentation request, Exception

This topic contains 4 replies, has 1 voice.

Last updated by Andreas W. 2 months, 1 week ago.

Assisted by: Andreas W..

Author	Posts
February 28, 2025 at 3:20 pm #16761464
davidH-172	Background of the issue: I'm working on a site that uses ACF with WPML. The primary language is English, and I have multilingual versions for German, Chinese, and Japanese. I've set up an ACF field named 'compatibility_info_content' as a WYSIWYG in English and created the same field in the other languages, selecting the 'copy once' option. Symptoms: When I enter content into the primary language site, the content is not being passed over to the other language versions of the site for translation. Questions: What settings do I need to change to ensure content added to the primary language is passed to the other multilingual versions? Is there another setting in WPML that I need to update to ensure content is passed to all multilingual sites?
February 28, 2025 at 3:22 pm #16761606
davidH-172	I'm following all the settings that have been applied and are translating correctly on the site. I just need to know what setting i need to update to get the fields to populate on all the other languages
March 1, 2025 at 9:50 pm #16764591
Andreas W. WPML Supporter since 12/2018 Languages: English (English ) Spanish (Español ) German (Deutsch ) Timezone: America/Lima (GMT-05:00)	Hello, Thank you for the provided details! Field Groups should not be set to "Translatable". Please change them to "Not translatable" at WPML > Settings > Post Type Translation. Delete any translated groups. Now, test again. If you still run into issues I would suggest setting the field groups to "Different fields across languages" which will automatically configure each field for translations created with the WordPress Editor. If you are looking for more details about field translation preferences, please read this: https://wpml.org/documentation/related-projects/translate-sites-built-with-acf/recommended-custom-fields-translation-preferences-for-acf-and-wpml/ Best regards Andreas
March 3, 2025 at 3:31 pm #16769717
davidH-172	Thank you Andreas I've checked the WPML > Settings > Post Type Translation page and the 'Field Groups' are set as translatable (image included) but i do not want to change this setting as the site is already populated with over 10 thousand products - and the translations appear to be working for the rest of the site. I am trying to add a new wysiwyg ACF field to display additional content about the products we are selling. I've added the new field into my primary (USA) product page field group and then copied the field info into the other language sites - using the identical field names and the 'copy once' option, to make sure content is being passed over from the primary language site. With all the fields set up in the different language sites i then added my new content to new field on the primary site, published the page and then tried to edit the other languages. However, when i scroll through the english / alternative language options their are not options for the new text to be translated. Another issue i have noticed is sometimes the field names appear multiple times but without any of the content showing up to be translated. In the alternative language columns appears to be a translation of the field name and not the content that i wish to translate. (image included) I have tried this process a number of times and i have deleted a number acf fields to make sure i have completed the steps properly. Are these duplicates taken from my previous attempts? Is there an extra step i need to complete to delete old acf fields that i no longer require? I have copied how all the other ACF fields have been added to the site and applied to the other languages that have already been set up in WordPress. I'm just confused why the new fields are not interacting the same way with WPML as all the previous fields that have been added to the site. thank you for you help on this so far. I look forward to your response. Steven
March 4, 2025 at 3:41 pm #16775025
Andreas W. WPML Supporter since 12/2018 Languages: English (English ) Spanish (Español ) German (Deutsch ) Timezone: America/Lima (GMT-05:00)	Do I understand correctly, that you wish to use only the Word Press Editor to translate the pages and posts that contain the fields? If so, you might consider disabling "Advanced Custom Fields Multilingual (ACFML)" and have the field groups set to "Translatable". The translations should work out this way. While using the ACFML addon the translation will only work out of the field groups are set to "Not translatable" and each field group should exist only once in the backend. The main purpose of the addon is to make the fields available inside the WPML Translation Editor.