Chinese Help Center Translation: Complete Guide for SaaS Teams

China represents the world's largest potential market for SaaS products - but reaching Chinese customers requires more than just translation. The language choices you make signal which markets you're serious about serving.

This guide covers everything you need to translate your help center for Chinese-speaking customers: the Simplified vs Traditional decision, character density planning, cultural adaptation, and practical implementation steps.

Why Chinese Translation Matters

The numbers tell a clear story:

• 1.4 billion people in mainland China (Simplified Chinese)
• 48 million in Taiwan and Hong Kong combined (Traditional Chinese)
• 50 million Chinese speakers in Southeast Asia
• Chinese is the #2 language on the internet by users

For B2B SaaS, China's tech sector is growing faster than any other major economy. Chinese companies increasingly adopt global tools - but they expect support in their language.

The business case: Chinese customers who can self-serve in their native language convert at higher rates, require less support overhead, and have higher lifetime values than those struggling with English documentation.

The Critical Decision: Simplified vs Traditional

This is the most important decision you'll make, and getting it wrong signals you don't understand the market.

Simplified Chinese (简体中文)

Use Simplified Chinese for:

• Mainland China - 1.4 billion speakers
• Singapore - 3 million Chinese speakers
• Most overseas Chinese communities (varies by generation)

Simplified Chinese was introduced in the 1950s to improve literacy. Characters use fewer strokes than Traditional, making them faster to write and read. Examples:

Traditional	Simplified	English
學習	学习	Learn
語言	语言	Language
電腦	电脑	Computer

Traditional Chinese (繁體中文)

Use Traditional Chinese for:

• Taiwan - 24 million speakers
• Hong Kong - 7.5 million speakers
• Macau - 700,000 speakers
• Older overseas Chinese communities

Traditional characters are the historical form, used for over 2,000 years. Taiwan and Hong Kong take pride in preserving this heritage.

The Recommendation

Start with Simplified Chinese in most cases. Here's why:

1. Market size - Mainland China is 30x larger than Taiwan + Hong Kong combined
2. Growth trajectory - China's B2B SaaS market is expanding rapidly
3. Practical reach - Taiwanese and Hong Kong readers can often read Simplified (the reverse is less true)

Exception: If your current customer base skews heavily Taiwan or Hong Kong, or your product isn't available in mainland China, start with Traditional.

Avoid: Machine conversion between variants. While tools exist, they produce awkward results because the variants differ in vocabulary and phrasing, not just characters. "Computer" is 電腦 (diànnǎo) in Traditional but 计算机 (jìsuànjī) in some Simplified contexts.

Planning for Character Density

Unlike European languages that expand during translation, Chinese contracts.

The Text Contraction Factor

English to Chinese typically results in 25-40% shorter text:

English (characters)	Chinese (characters)	Reduction
"Getting Started with Your Account" (34)	"账户入门指南" (6)	82%
"How to reset your password" (26)	"如何重置密码" (6)	77%
"Contact customer support" (25)	"联系客服" (4)	84%

This affects:

• UI layouts - Chinese versions may look sparse with existing designs
• Help center formatting - Headers appear shorter, text blocks more compact
• Screenshots - Chinese UI will look different than English
• SEO - Meta descriptions have more room for keywords

Layout Implications

Design with both extremes in mind:

1. Short Chinese text may leave awkward white space in buttons or cards
2. Flexible containers work better than fixed-width elements
3. Consider adjusting visual balance for the Chinese version

Cultural Adaptation Beyond Translation

Translation captures meaning. Localization captures context. Chinese communication has distinct patterns:

Indirect Communication

Chinese business culture values indirect communication to preserve "face" (面子).

Instead of:

"This feature doesn't work that way."

Use:

"This feature is designed for a slightly different purpose. Here's how to achieve your goal."

Hierarchy and Formality

Chinese maintains clearer formal/informal distinctions than modern English:

• 您 (nín) - Formal "you," used for customers
• 你 (nǐ) - Informal "you," used among peers

Recommendation: Use 您 throughout your help center. It shows respect and professionalism.

Examples and References

Localize your examples:

Instead of	Use
"John Smith"	"李明 (Lǐ Míng)"
"$99/month"	"¥699/月 or $99/月 (US$)"
"Acme Corp"	"明星科技 (Míngxīng Kējì)"
US date: 02/08/2026	Chinese: 2026年2月8日

Concepts That Need Reframing

Some Western concepts don't translate directly:

• Privacy - Chinese consumers have different expectations around data; emphasize security over privacy
• Free trials - The concept exists but may carry skepticism; emphasize value instead
• Self-service - Highly valued for efficiency, but some users still expect phone support

Four Translation Approaches

1. Machine Translation Only

Process: Run your content through Google Translate or DeepL.

Cost: Free (basic) or $25-50/month for API access

Quality: 60-70% accurate. Readable but clearly machine-generated.

Best for: Internal documentation, rough drafts, getting started.

Watch out for: Technical terminology errors, unnatural phrasing, character variant mistakes (mixing Simplified and Traditional).

2. AI-Powered with Human Review

Process: Use DeepL or specialized tools, then have native speakers review key articles.

Cost: $500-1,500 for a 50-article help center

Quality: 85-90% accurate. Professional with occasional awkward phrasing.

Best for: Growing SaaS companies with Chinese customers.

How TranslateDesk helps: One-click translation with DeepL's neural engine, designed specifically for help center workflows. Start with 5 free translations, then pay-as-you-go from $79 for 100 articles. See our deep dive on whether Intercom natively supports translation (spoiler: it's complicated).

3. Professional Translation Agency

Process: Work with a localization agency or freelance translators.

Cost: $3,600-5,400 for 50 articles ($0.12-0.18/word)

Quality: 95%+ accurate with proper briefing and terminology management.

Best for: Enterprise companies, regulated industries, premium brands.

Timeline: 2-4 weeks for initial translation, ongoing maintenance required.

4. In-House Chinese Translator

Process: Hire a full-time or part-time translator on your team.

Cost: $40,000-70,000/year (varies by location)

Quality: Highest possible - they learn your product deeply.

Best for: Companies with significant Chinese revenue (>$1M annually) or complex products.

Consideration: One person can't cover both Simplified and Traditional at native quality.

Step-by-Step Implementation

Week 1: Preparation

Day 1-2: Decide Simplified vs Traditional

• Review customer geography in your analytics
• Check support ticket languages
• Survey current Chinese customers if possible

Day 3-4: Content Audit

• Identify your 20 most-viewed articles (80/20 rule)
• Mark articles with screenshots that need re-shooting
• Flag content with cultural examples needing localization

Day 5: Setup

• Enable Chinese in your help center platform
• Set up the Chinese language section structure
• Create a terminology glossary (product terms, brand names)

Week 2: Core Translation

Priority articles:

1. Getting started / onboarding guides
2. Account management (billing, settings)
3. Core feature documentation
4. Common troubleshooting articles

Translation workflow:

1. Export English content
2. Translate using your chosen method
3. Review for terminology consistency
4. Upload to help center platform

Week 3: Quality Check

• Native speaker review of all translated content
• Verify links work in Chinese context
• Check screenshots and visual elements
• Test search functionality in Chinese

Week 4: Launch and Monitor

• Announce Chinese support to customers
• Monitor search queries for missing content
• Track article performance (views, helpfulness ratings)
• Establish update workflow for ongoing maintenance

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Mixing Character Variants

Nothing says "we don't understand Chinese" like mixing 简体 and 繁體 in the same article. Use a single variant consistently.

Fix: Set translation tools to output one variant only. Review for consistency before publishing.

2. Using Taiwan Chinese for Mainland Customers

Beyond character differences, Taiwan and mainland China use different vocabulary:

Taiwan	Mainland	English
軟體 (ruǎntǐ)	软件 (ruǎnjiàn)	Software
網際網路 (wǎngjìwǎnglù)	互联网 (hùliánwǎng)	Internet
資料庫 (zīliàokù)	数据库 (shùjùkù)	Database

Fix: Match your terminology to your target market, not just the character set.

3. Ignoring Mobile Experience

Chinese users access content predominantly on mobile. WeChat browser behavior differs from standard Chrome.

Fix: Test your help center in WeChat's in-app browser. Ensure mobile-responsive layouts work with Chinese text.

4. Forgetting to Update Translations

Help centers change. Translations that fall behind create support confusion.

Fix: Build translation into your content update workflow. TranslateDesk detects changes and flags articles needing re-translation.

5. Translating Screenshots

Screenshots with English UI confuse Chinese readers. But re-shooting every screenshot is expensive.

Fix: Prioritize screenshots for critical onboarding flows. For other images, add Chinese captions explaining the UI.

6. Ignoring Chinese SEO

Chinese users search differently. Baidu (dominant in China) and Google (used elsewhere) have different algorithms.

Fix: Research Chinese keywords for your product category. Include them in article titles and meta descriptions.

What's Next

Once your Chinese help center is live:

1. Monitor engagement - Which articles do Chinese customers read most?
2. Track deflection - Are support tickets from Chinese customers decreasing?
3. Gather feedback - Ask Chinese customers to rate translations
4. Iterate - Improve based on search queries showing content gaps

Start Translating Today

TranslateDesk makes Chinese help center translation practical for SaaS teams. One-click translation, automatic change detection, and seamless Intercom integration.

Try TranslateDesk free and see how fast you can serve Chinese customers in their language.

More language guides

Expanding to other markets? Explore our complete guides for each language:

• Spanish Help Center Translation Guide: Spain vs LATAM, formal/informal, largest market reach
• German Help Center Translation Guide: DACH market, Sie/du formality, text expansion planning
• French Help Center Translation Guide: France vs Quebec, vous/tu, Bill 96 compliance
• Portuguese Help Center Translation Guide: Brazil vs Portugal, LATAM expansion
• Japanese Help Center Translation Guide: Keigo formality, character systems, premium market

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Have questions about Chinese localization? Contact our team. We've helped dozens of SaaS companies launch Chinese support.