Localize your store listing for more installs
Many apps only have an English listing, even when the app itself is translated. People who search in their own language find fewer results, and the page they land on feels foreign. Localizing the listing is one of the cheapest ASO improvements, because you already own the product; you only add words and images.
Listing localization is not app localization
You can ship an app in one language and still publish several listings. Each store lets you add localized title, subtitle or short description, long description, keywords (App Store) and screenshots per language and, in some cases, per region. The store then shows the matching version to people whose device or store language fits.
Localize the listing first if your app works for people who do not speak the language, for example a tool with little text. Localize the app too once users ask for it.
Pick markets with data
Look in your consoles at where impressions and installs come from. Also check:
- Where you already get installs without trying. A small, steady trickle from one country is a sign.
- Language fit. Is the app usable for them as it is?
- Competition. Search your main phrase in the local language. Fewer strong competitors means more room.
- Your ability to support users in that language. A listing in Portuguese attracts Portuguese-speaking users who will write in Portuguese.
Start with two or three languages, not twenty.
Translate meaning, not words
Machine translation is a fine first draft and a poor final version. Typical problems:
- The title becomes a literal phrase nobody searches for. Do keyword research in the target language instead of translating your keyword list. See app keyword research.
- Tone is off: too formal, too casual, or wrong for the audience.
- Text is longer than the character limits. German and Finnish especially expand.
- Idioms and humour do not carry over.
Ask a native speaker to read it, ideally someone who uses apps like yours. Fellow developers who speak the language are a good source; on AppReviewX you can ask for a private review of exactly this.
Localize the images too
Screenshots with English captions in a German listing lose trust. Translate captions, check that the longer text still fits, and make sure the app UI in the screenshot matches the language where possible. Replace culture-specific content (currency, units, dates, names, local holidays) when it affects how relevant the app looks.
Details that are easy to forget
- Prices and currency formats.
- Support email and privacy policy link in the right language where possible.
- Release notes.
- Right-to-left layout for Arabic and Hebrew, which needs real testing, not just translation.
- Separate regional variants (for example Portuguese for Portugal versus Brazil, Spanish for Spain versus Latin America).
Measure it
Compare impressions, page views and installs for each market before and after. Allow a few weeks. If a market responds, invest more there; if not, check keyword choices before deciding the market is dead.
Checklist
- Choose two or three markets from your own data.
- Do keyword research in each language.
- Translate title, short text, description and screenshots.
- Have a native speaker review.
- Check text length and layout.
- Track by market and iterate.
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