diff --git a/pagerite/api.py b/pagerite/api.py
index 3b387c5..c02fb1b 100644
--- a/pagerite/api.py
+++ b/pagerite/api.py
@@ -553,7 +553,9 @@ async def editor_ws(ws: WebSocket) -> None:
                     # shows real cards, not the literal tag. No translation
                     # context: the preview has no lang of its own, so cards
                     # render in their originals.
-                    directives: dict = {"contact": views._contact_tag}
+                    directives: dict = {
+                        "contact": lambda args, _env: views._contact_tag(args, _env, data)
+                    }
                     if node is not None and has_cards_tag:
                         directives["cards"] = (
                             lambda args, _env, node=node, path=path: views._cards_tag(
diff --git a/pagerite/data.py b/pagerite/data.py
index 1f3fd4b..53e5c8b 100644
--- a/pagerite/data.py
+++ b/pagerite/data.py
@@ -210,6 +210,21 @@ class Data(msgspec.Struct):
     #: Visitor contact threads (docs/messages.md), keyed by the blake3
     #: hash of the visitor's session token (never the token itself).
     contact: dict[bytes, ContactThread] = {}
+    #: Messaging on/off: when False, {contact:} buttons do not render,
+    #: visitors get no corner ✉️ icon and sends are rejected (admins keep
+    #: the inbox for the existing threads).
+    contact_enabled: bool = True
+    #: Site-wide default label for the {contact:} button and the visitor
+    #: dialog title (a per-button {contact: Label} arg wins). Empty = the
+    #: built-in "Contact us". Translated per language in Data.trans, keyed
+    #: by chunk hash like titles (i18n.site_string).
+    contact_label: str = ""
+    #: Contact email shown as a mailto link in the visitor dialog (with
+    #: the subject prefilled). Empty = no link.
+    contact_email: str = ""
+    #: Subject for the mailto link; empty = the (localized) label.
+    #: Translated like contact_label.
+    contact_subject: str = ""
 
 
 def node_markdown(data: Data, node: Node) -> str | None:
diff --git a/pagerite/i18n.py b/pagerite/i18n.py
index 55d7c92..e2dd6b0 100644
--- a/pagerite/i18n.py
+++ b/pagerite/i18n.py
@@ -407,6 +407,36 @@ def set_title_translation(data: Data, node: Node, lang: str, title: str) -> bool
     return True
 
 
+def site_string(data: Data, lang: str, text: str) -> str:
+    """A site-level settings string (not article content — the contact
+    label/subject) in ``lang``: its translation from the trans store,
+    chunk-keyed like titles (the translator service picks these up via
+    pending_items), falling back to the original. The site default
+    language always gets the original."""
+    if not text or not lang or lang == primary_lang(data.menu, ""):
+        return text
+    return data.trans.get(chunk_key(text), {}).get(lang) or text
+
+
+def set_string_translation(data: Data, lang: str, original: str, text: str) -> bool:
+    """Record (or drop) a site-string translation (i18n.site_string): a
+    fragment in ``Data.trans`` keyed by the original's chunk hash — the
+    same storage machine translations use, overriding them. Empty or the
+    original's text drops the override. Returns True when anything changed.
+    Pure data ops — the caller wraps in a transaction and invalidates."""
+    key = chunk_key(original)
+    current = data.trans.get(key, {}).get(lang)
+    if not text or text == original:
+        if current is None:
+            return False
+        del data.trans[key][lang]
+        return True
+    if current == text:
+        return False
+    data.trans.setdefault(key, {})[lang] = text
+    return True
+
+
 def clear_translations(data: Data) -> None:
     """Drop all machine translations (``Data.trans``) and rebuild the
     availability index (``node.langs``) from the surviving user overrides —
diff --git a/pagerite/messages.py b/pagerite/messages.py
index 92062e1..2e9f0c5 100644
--- a/pagerite/messages.py
+++ b/pagerite/messages.py
@@ -242,6 +242,11 @@ async def visitor_frame(ws: WebSocket, raw: dict) -> None:
     if len(text) > MAX_MESSAGE:
         await ws.send_json({"type": "contact-error", "detail": "message too long"})
         return
+    if not data.contact_enabled:
+        # Messaging off in the site settings: sends are rejected (the UI
+        # is already hidden); existing threads and admin replies stay.
+        await ws.send_json({"type": "contact-error", "detail": "messaging is disabled"})
+        return
     # The first message must introduce the visitor (name; email optional,
     # unvalidated). The stored identity is fixed from then on.
     thread = data.contact.get(key)
diff --git a/pagerite/views.py b/pagerite/views.py
index f3dd843..515c0b8 100644
--- a/pagerite/views.py
+++ b/pagerite/views.py
@@ -337,6 +337,7 @@ def _layout(
     canonical: str = "",
     alternates: list[tuple[str, str]] = (),
     markdown_url: str = "",
+    contact: dict[str, str] | None = None,
 ) -> Template:
     """Page layout template with standard assets and ES-module scripts.
 
@@ -369,6 +370,9 @@ def _layout(
     ``alternates`` ((hreflang, href) pairs) are the page's language URLs
     (see docs/localization.md), emitted right after the viewport and before
     the social tags: canonical first, then the hreflang alternates.
+
+    ``contact`` carries the localized contact-messaging strings
+    (_contact_config; None = messaging disabled) into the asset config.
     """
     doc = Document(
         E.Title, lang=lang, dir="rtl" if lang in i18n.RTL_LANGUAGES else "ltr"
@@ -428,6 +432,15 @@ def _layout(
         config["pagerite:contact-css"] = ",".join(contact_css)
     if editor_css:
         config["pagerite:editor-css"] = editor_css
+    # Localized contact-messaging strings (label = the {contact:} buttons'
+    # default and the visitor dialog's title, mailto address + subject).
+    # Absent entirely when messaging is disabled: pagerite.js then shows
+    # the corner ✉️ icon to admins only.
+    if contact is not None:
+        config["pagerite:contact-label"] = contact["label"]
+        config["pagerite:contact-subject"] = contact["subject"]
+        if contact["email"]:
+            config["pagerite:contact-email"] = contact["email"]
     if vite_url:
         for key, value in config.items():
             doc.meta(name=key, content=value)
@@ -904,7 +917,14 @@ def page_content(
     # A {cards} tag places the card rows itself (possibly several);
     # without one the children are appended after the content as before.
     has_cards_tag = _CARDS_TAG_RE.search(content) is not None
-    directives = {"contact": _contact_tag}
+    # Messaging disabled: {contact:} tags render nothing at all.
+    directives = {
+        "contact": (
+            (lambda args, _env: _contact_tag(args, _env, data, lang))
+            if data.contact_enabled
+            else (lambda _args, _env: "")
+        )
+    }
     if has_cards_tag:
         directives["cards"] = lambda args, _env: _cards_tag(
             menu, data, node, path, args, translation, link_lang, lang
@@ -986,15 +1006,31 @@ def _cards(
 _CARDS_TAG_RE = re.compile(r"^\{cards(?::[^{}\n]*)?\}[ \t]*$", re.MULTILINE)
 
 
-def _contact_tag(args: str, _env: dict) -> str:
+def _contact_config(data: Data, lang: str) -> dict[str, str]:
+    """The localized contact-messaging strings for the page's asset config
+    (pagerite:contact-*): the {contact:} buttons' default label doubling as
+    the visitor dialog's title, the mailto address and its subject (the
+    label when no separate subject is configured). Translations come from
+    the chunk-keyed trans store (i18n.site_string)."""
+    label = i18n.site_string(data, lang, data.contact_label) or "Contact us"
+    return {
+        "label": label,
+        "email": data.contact_email,
+        "subject": i18n.site_string(data, lang, data.contact_subject) or label,
+    }
+
+
+def _contact_tag(args: str, _env: dict, data: Data | None = None, lang: str = "") -> str:
     """Expand a ``{contact: Label}`` directive: the button that opens the
-    visitor contact panel (docs/messages.md). The args are the button
-    label ("Contact us" when empty). pagerite.js binds the click and
-    lazy-loads the panel bundle; in the editor preview it stays inert."""
+    visitor contact panel (docs/messages.md). The args are a per-button
+    label overriding the configured site label (Data.contact_label,
+    localized here). pagerite.js binds the click and lazy-loads the panel
+    bundle; in the editor preview it stays inert."""
     return str(
         E.button(
             E.span("✉️", class_="icon"),
-            args.strip() or "Contact us",
+            args.strip()
+            or (_contact_config(data, lang)["label"] if data else "Contact us"),
             type="button",
             class_="contact-trigger",
         )
@@ -1420,6 +1456,7 @@ def render_page(
             alternates,
             # The page's Markdown counterpart (pages.show_page's .md mode).
             f"/{path}.md",
+            contact=_contact_config(data, lang) if data.contact_enabled else None,
         )(
             Title=f"{title} – {brand}" if brand else title,
             Brand=_brand_link(brand, brand_html, link_lang),
@@ -1483,6 +1520,7 @@ def render_category(
             favicon,
             lang=lang,
             alternates=alternates,
+            contact=_contact_config(data, lang) if data.contact_enabled else None,
         )(
             Title=f"{title} – {brand}" if brand else title,
             Brand=_brand_link(brand, brand_html, link_lang),