Liferay survey finds poor localization drives away multilingual shoppers

A survey of 800 U.S. consumers conducted by Liferay reveals that more than half of multilingual shoppers have abandoned potential purchases due to poor digital localization. While many companies focus on literal translation, the research suggests that a lack of cultural and linguistic nuance often results in an unnatural user experience.

Key findings from the Liferay 2026 Website Localization Report indicate that 56% of respondents decided against a purchase because a site felt poorly adapted to their language. Notably, 54% of consumers still abandoned purchases even when they rated a brand’s translation as good or excellent, highlighting a gap between accurate translation and effective localization.

Data shows that 90% of respondents noticed at least one localization issue online in the past year, and only 23% felt that non-English websites were typically written specifically for them. Regarding technology, 82% of participants expressed confidence in their ability to distinguish machine-translated content from text reviewed by fluent speakers. While AI is a factor, 43% of respondents cited human involvement as the deciding factor for a strong localized experience.