This guide covers the French store language, French punctuation and spacing, why French text needs more room, what to translate, choices to keep consistent, and how to enter the text in Steamworks.
One French store language for every French reader
Steam's language list has a single French entry. Unlike Spanish and Portuguese, which each have two store languages, there is no separate Canadian French or Belgian French, so the same French text is shown to every player who browses Steam in French:
| Steam language | Native name | API code | Share of Steam users |
|---|---|---|---|
| French | Français | french | 2.1% |
Code: Steamworks documentation, Languages Supported on Steam. Share: Steam Hardware & Software Survey, language section, September 2026. The shares move from month to month.
Because one text reaches France and Quebec alike, write standard French and avoid words that only one region uses. Players in both places read standard French every day, so this is the usual choice.
French punctuation and spacing
French punctuation looks different from English, and French readers notice English-style punctuation at once:
| What | English | French (France) |
|---|---|---|
Before ! ? ; : | Survive! | Survivez ! |
| Quotes | "Run" | « Courez » |
| Decimals | 1.5 | 1,5 |
| Thousands | 10,000 | 10 000 |
| Percent | 50% | 50 % |
- In France, put a space before
!?;:and inside« ». Quebec usage usually keeps the space only before the colon and inside the quotation marks. Pick one style and use it on the whole page. - Use a non-breaking space (U+00A0) for these spaces, so an exclamation mark or a closing quotation mark never wraps onto a new line on its own.
- Keep accents on capital letters:
É,À,Ç. A heading in capitals without its accents looks like a mistake to French readers.
French text runs longer
French usually needs more words than English to say the same thing, often around 15 to 20 percent more text. On a store page this matters in a few places:
- Short description: Steamworks limits its length, so a French version translated word for word may not fit. Shorten it in French rather than cutting it off.
- Headings: a heading that fit on one line in English may wrap onto two in French. That is fine in the text, but check headings drawn inside images.
- Images with text: leave room in banners and screenshots for longer French words before you add the text.
French headings and titles use sentence case: only the first word and names start with a capital letter. A heading written in English Title Case looks translated.
What to translate
- Short description: the short text under your header image at the top of the page. Players read this first, so translate it carefully.
- About This Game: the long description, including headings, lists and links.
- Images with text: screenshots or banners with English words in them can be uploaded again with French text.
- Trailers: if your trailer has narration or text on screen, you can upload a separate trailer for a language.
- Game name: Steamworks lets you set a localized name for each language. Many games keep their original title in French, which helps players match the game to videos and posts they have already seen.
Writing French text that reads naturally
- Choose tu or vous to address the player and use it everywhere. Vous is the safe, polite choice; tu suits a casual or playful tone. Mixing them on one page reads as careless.
- Keep names that should stay the same: your game's title, character names, and mechanics with a fixed name. Use the same French term every time.
- English game words such as roguelike, boss and co-op are common in French store pages. Use the words French players search for, not a literal translation nobody uses.
- Keep every formatting tag exactly as it is:
[h2],[img],[url=…],[list]and the links inside them.
Entering the French text in Steamworks
- In the Steamworks partner portal, open the store page text you want to translate.
- Choose French with the language drop-down at the top right of the text editor, paste the text and save.
- For many languages at once, export the store page text as JSON from your store page's localization tools, add the translations, and import the file back in the same place.
- Open the store page preview with Steam set to French and read it before you publish. On a public store page you can also add
?l=frenchto the end of the URL.
For the full steps for every language, see How to Translate Your Steam Store Page into Other Languages.
If you translate with AI
Valve's Content Survey in Steamworks asks you to disclose AI-generated content that players consume, and its examples include localization. To be safe, disclose AI-made store page translations there too, before you publish them. If your game is already released, some survey answers can only be changed by contacting Steam Support.
AI translation does well on plain descriptive text. Check the punctuation spaces, tu or vous, character names and fixed terms, and if you can, ask a player who reads French to read your short description.
Check whether your page has French
Store Page Localizer checks any public Steam store page for free. Enter the store page URL or the app ID and it lists every Steam store language, French included: whether your page is translated, partly translated or still in the original language, the share of Steam users who use that language, and which of them your game already supports. It needs no account and no Steamworks login.
If you want every missing language filled at once, upload the JSON you exported from Steamworks. Each missing Steam store language, French included, is translated by AI from your own text, languages you already translated stay exactly as they are, and you get files to import straight back. You can read a free sample in two languages before you pay. One payment of JP¥5,800 (about US$39) per game, for up to 40,000 characters of store page text.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add French to my Steam store page?
In Steamworks, choose French with the language drop-down at the top right of each store page text editor, paste the translated text and save. You can also export the store page text as JSON, add the translations and import it back. Check the store page preview in French before you publish.
What do French players see if my Steam page has no French?
They see the text you entered for English, because Valve names English as Steam's fallback language. French was 2.1% of Steam users in the September 2026 Steam Hardware & Software Survey.
Do I need a separate French for Quebec on Steam?
No. Steam has one French store language, shown to every player who browses Steam in French, in Quebec as well as in France, Belgium and Switzerland. Write standard French that readers in all of these places use, and keep one punctuation style on the whole page.
How much longer is French than English?
French often needs around 15 to 20 percent more text than English. Shorten your short description in French so it fits the Steamworks limit, and leave room for longer words in images that contain text.
Does my game have to be in French to have a French store page?
No. Store page text is entered separately from the languages your game supports, and the language table on your store page shows players which languages the game itself supports. A French store page for a game without French is fine, as long as the text does not suggest the game itself is in French.
Should I use tu or vous on my French Steam page?
Vous is the safe, polite choice; tu suits a casual or playful game. Either works, as long as you use the same one on the whole page and in the game.
Related
- How to Translate Your Steam Store Page into Other Languages
- How to Translate Your Steam Store Page into Chinese (Simplified and Traditional)
- Store Page Localizer: free check of your Steam store page languages
- Steamworks documentation: Languages Supported on Steam
- Steam のストアページを英語・中国語などに翻訳する方法 (in Japanese)
- All GRAMSHIFT guides