A good Arabic website is designed right-to-left from the start, written by native speakers, takes local payments, shows the trust details Gulf customers look for, and is optimised for Arabic search. Use the 15 checks below before you launch — or before you hire someone to build it.
Arabic speakers in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain notice immediately when a website was built for someone else and “translated” at the end. Mirrored layouts that break, English punctuation in Arabic sentences, a checkout without mada or Apple Pay — each one costs trust and sales. Here is the checklist we use on every Gulf project.
Design and language
1. A real right-to-left (RTL) layout
The page must be built right-to-left, not just right-aligned: navigation starts on the right, columns are mirrored, and directional icons such as arrows point the other way. Technically this means setting dir="rtl" on the Arabic pages and using layout code that adapts to direction.
2. Proper Arabic typography
Use a font designed for Arabic (for example IBM Plex Sans Arabic or Noto Naskh/Kufi), give Arabic text a little more line height than English, and never add letter-spacing — it breaks the joined Arabic letters.
3. Native copywriting, not machine translation
Machine-translated Arabic reads unnaturally and hurts credibility. Use a native writer, choose Modern Standard Arabic for most business content, and decide deliberately when a Gulf-dialect tone suits your brand (for example in social campaigns).
4. Mixed Arabic and English text that displays correctly
Phone numbers, email addresses, prices and English brand names inside Arabic sentences can jump to the wrong position. Mark them up so they display in the right direction, and test every page with real content.
5. Numbers, currencies and dates
Decide whether to use Western (1, 2, 3) or Eastern Arabic (١، ٢، ٣) numerals and be consistent. Show prices in the local currency (SAR, AED, QAR, KWD, OMR, BHD) with the correct symbol position, and use date formats your customers expect — including the Hijri calendar where relevant.
Conversion and payments
6. WhatsApp and click-to-call everywhere
In the Gulf, many customers prefer to message rather than fill in a form. A visible WhatsApp button with a pre-filled message, plus tap-to-call on mobile, often brings more leads than the contact form.
7. Forms that work in Arabic
Inputs should be right-to-left, error messages in Arabic, and phone fields should accept local formats with country codes (+966, +971, +974, +965, +968, +973).
8. The payment methods your customers actually use
For Saudi Arabia that means mada, Apple Pay and STC Pay; across the region, buy-now-pay-later with Tabby and Tamara is widely used; Kuwait relies on KNET and Bahrain on BenefitPay. Choose a payment gateway that supports the methods for your market.
9. VAT-ready prices and invoices
Show whether prices include VAT (15% in Saudi Arabia, 5% in the UAE). Saudi online stores also need invoices that meet ZATCA’s e-invoicing (Fatoora) requirements.
10. Mobile-first speed
Most Gulf traffic is mobile. Keep pages light, compress images, load Arabic fonts efficiently and test on a mid-range phone, not just a new iPhone on office Wi-Fi.
Fixed prices — websites from $300, custom sites from $1,000, stores from $1,500. Free call and a proposal within a week.
Trust and compliance
11. Clear trust signals
Display your company name, Commercial Registration or trade licence number, address, contact details, return and refund policy, and terms and conditions — in Arabic as well as English. Customers look for them before they pay.
12. Privacy and cookies
Saudi Arabia’s Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) and the UAE’s federal data-protection law set rules for collecting personal data. Publish a clear privacy policy, ask for consent where required, and only collect what you need.
Search visibility
13. Arabic SEO, not translated keywords
People search differently in Arabic. Research Arabic keywords (for example “تصميم مواقع الرياض” rather than a literal translation of your English keywords), and write Arabic page titles and meta descriptions.
14. Correct language signals for Google
Give each language its own URL (for example /ar/), set the lang attribute, and link the English and Arabic versions with hreflang tags so Google shows the right version to the right person.
15. Local listings and testing
Create a Google Business Profile with consistent name, phone and website details, and test the finished site in both languages on real devices — including forms, checkout and emails.
Want a website that gets all 15 right?
We design bilingual Arabic and English websites and stores for businesses across the Gulf, with right-to-left design, local payments and Arabic SEO built in from the first wireframe. See our Middle East services, read how much a website costs in Dubai, or request a quote.
Frequently asked questions
Should my website be Arabic-first or English-first?
If most of your customers are Saudi or Emirati nationals, lead with Arabic. If your audience is mainly expatriates or international, lead with English and offer a complete Arabic version.
Can I just translate my English website?
You can start from the same structure, but the Arabic version needs its own layout direction, typography, copywriting and SEO to work well.
Does an Arabic version help SEO?
Yes. Many searches in the Gulf are made in Arabic, and Arabic pages can rank for keywords your English pages cannot reach — often with less competition.