Start with the highest-visibility content
UI strings, onboarding flows, and error messages are what users see first and most often — prioritizing these over lower-visibility content (like admin panels) usually gives the best return on a localization budget.
Plan for ongoing updates, not just launch
Software changes constantly — a localization workflow that only handles the initial launch will fall behind quickly. Planning for how new strings get translated as the product evolves saves rework later.
Test in context
Translated strings can look right in a spreadsheet and still break the layout in the actual app — in-context review inside the real product catches issues that isolated translation can't.
Key takeaways
- Prioritize high-visibility content: UI, onboarding, and error messages.
- Build a workflow for ongoing localization, not just a one-time launch.
- Always review translated strings inside the actual product.
Need help with this?
What to localize — and in what order — when taking a product to a new country.