A bilingual website for a Quebec business, French first
If your business is in Quebec, your website probably needs to speak French and English. The question is how to do it without running two websites, paying for every change twice and watching the English page slowly drift away from the French one. Here is what the rules ask in plain terms, what "French first" looks like, and how to keep both languages right.
What the Charter means for your website
Quebec's Charter of the French Language covers the commercial content of websites. Versions in other languages are allowed, as long as a French version of comparable quality is available. That is the core of it: English is fine, as long as French is not the lesser version.
The rules are enforced. In 2026 a Montreal hotel was fined $3,000 for failing to comply with an OQLF order about website content available only in another language.
This is not legal advice. The details depend on your business, your sector and what your site contains, so if you're unsure what applies to you, check with the OQLF or a lawyer.
French first, in practice
"Comparable quality" is easier to meet when French is the starting point rather than an afterthought. In practice that means:
- French is the default. A visitor who arrives without a language preference lands on the French site.
- Equal quality. The French text is written or checked by someone who reads French well, not a raw machine draft left as is.
- The same pages. If the English site has a page about your catering service, the French site has it too.
- The same features. The contact form, the menus, the photo gallery and the search work in French, with French labels and French error messages.
A simple test: browse your site in French only. If you ever have to switch to English to find something, French isn't first yet.
Three ways businesses run two languages
Two separate sites. One site in French, another in English, sometimes on different domains. Each language is fully independent, which gives you freedom. The trade-off is double work: two sets of pages, two places to change a price, and nothing that tells you when one site falls behind the other.
A translation plugin on an existing site. You add a module that translates pages, often automatically. It is quick to start. The trade-off is another moving part to update and pay for, and automatic translations that may go live without anyone reading them, which matters when quality is the point.
One site with both languages built in. Each page has a French and an English version, side by side in the same editor. Changes happen in one place, and both versions share the same structure. The trade-off is that you depend on the tool doing translation well, so it is worth checking how it handles addresses, search engines and review before you commit.
What matters is how much effort it takes to keep French complete for years.
Keeping both versions in sync
Most bilingual sites start in good shape and drift. You change your hours in French and forget the English. A small routine helps:
- Edit in French first, then bring the English up to date.
- Change facts (prices, hours, dates, addresses) in both languages in the same sitting.
- Batch longer changes once a week and have the translation read before it goes live.
- Check the parts people forget: page titles, search descriptions, menu labels and image texts.
Separate addresses and hreflang
Each language should have its own address, such as /fr/services and /en/services, or translated addresses like /fr/nos-services. A separate URL per language helps search engines index each version, so someone searching in French finds your French page.
Hreflang is a small tag that tells search engines which language a page is in and where its translation lives. Search engines can then show each visitor the right version instead of guessing.
Quebec French, not France French
Machine translation needs a human check, and in Quebec there is one more thing to watch: many tools default to the French of France. Your customers will notice. A few common differences:
- "Courriel," not "e-mail" or "mail."
- "Fin de semaine," not "week-end."
- "Magasiner," not "faire du shopping."
- "Souper" for the evening meal, where France says "dîner."
- "Stationnement," not "parking."
When you choose a tool or a translator, ask for French (Canada) specifically, and have someone local read the key pages.
How FolioPress handles it
FolioPress is a website builder with translation built in, so there are no plugins to add. You write a page once, AI drafts the other language, and nothing publishes until you approve it. French (Canada) is available, so drafts can follow Quebec usage, and you can make French your primary language. Each language gets its own translated address, hreflang and a language switcher.
You also get themes with dark mode, photo galleries, a blog with scheduled posts, a contact form on any page, site search and visitor statistics without cookies. The Bilingual plan is €12/month for two languages, billed in euros, and sites are hosted in the EU. You can try it free for 30 days.