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How To Translate A Website: 4 Easy Methods To Try

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You could be interested in translating a website for a number of reasons.

It could be when you visit a webpage with content that is written in a language you don’t understand.

Or, you may own a blog that has an international audience, and you want to make your website multilingual to better serve your readers.

To translate your content, you can use either human translators or machine translation software.

Human translators will avoid common grammar mistakes that would be jarring to a local reader, but they are slower and more expensive.

Machine translators offer automatic translation and they are often free to use.

They are not perfect, but you can get an entire website translated in a couple of minutes with just a few clicks.

A process that could take weeks with human translation.

In this article, I will focus exclusively on showing you how to translate a website using machine translators.

You will also discover how to use plugins to make your WordPress website multilingual.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are the popular questions websites owners are asking about this topic on search engines:

What Is The Easiest Way To Translate A Website?

The most convenient method is to translate the web page using the native Translate feature on your Chrome, Safari, or Microsoft Edge web browser.

By default, the platforms will often allow you to translate any web page you visit that isn’t in your native language.

How Much Does It Cost To Translate An Entire Website?

A human translator can charge between $20 to $100, while online translator tools powered by artificial intelligence are usually free.

Premium machine translators are only necessary when you need advanced features.

What Is Needed To Translate A Website

Here are the platforms and resources you will need to get your web page translated:

  • URL of the Target Web Page — online translation tools like Google Translate will require that you input the domain of the web page or website you want to translate.
  • Web Browser — depending on the operating system of your device, you will need the Chrome, Safari, or Microsoft Edge browser to be able to instantly translate and edit your web page using the in-built page translation feature.
  • Translation Plugin — if your website is in WordPress, you can easily make your blog multilingual using a tool like the TranslatePress plugin.

How To Translate A Website: Step-By-Step Instructions

There are several website translation tools, the best tool for your needs will depend on the type of device you are using and your goals for this activity.

To help you easily find the right translation tool for your needs, here are four ways to translate pretty much any language.

  1. Translate webpages in the Chrome browser
  2. Translate webpages in Safari
  3. Translate webpages in Microsoft Edge
  4. Use a WordPress plugin to create a multilingual website

Method 1: Translate Web Pages In The Chrome Browser

This is the method you will use if you are accessing a single web page on an Android phone or tablet.

The method is also relevant if you are using Google Chrome on a Windows or Apple device.

Here is how it works:

When you open a webpage that is written in another language on your Chrome app, Google will automatically offer to help translate the content into your native language.

The translation box will be at the bottom of your page for mobile devices.

01 chrome translation

You can click on your native language in the blue or tap the three-dot menu at the bottom-right of your screen to access other languages.

02 translation box three dot menu

Once you have clicked the menu, a pop-up box should appear.

Click More Languages and then select the language you want to translate to.

03 chrome more languages option

The page will then be translated. Refresh your page if it doesn’t work.

If it’s still not responding, that means Google may not have the language in its database.

If you want Chrome to always translate your pages into that language, tap the three-dot menu again, and select Always translate pages in “language.”

04 chrome always translate language option

When the language options box fails to appear, you can still request a translation.

Click on the three-dot menu at the top-right of your page and scroll down to click on the Translate link text.

05 chrome settings Translate

If you are accessing Chrome on your desktop, the language box will be directly under the Translate icon at the top of your page.

06 chrome google translate on desktop

The translation process is the same as what’s applicable on your mobile device.

The only difference is the location of the box.

Method 2: Translate Webpages On Safari

This is relevant to people who use devices powered by macOS or iOS.

If you open the webpage with the Safari app on your iPhone or iPad, tap the Translate aA icon located to the left of the address bar.

07b translate icon on iOS devices

From the drop-down menu, select Translate to “your native language.”

Another pop-up menu may appear on your screen if you are using the Translate feature for the first time.

Select Enable Translation.

08 enable translation on IOS devices

One major issue is that the browser will only give you the option to translate to your device’s language.

If you want to translate the page into a different language, you must launch Settings to see if the language you are targeting is one of Apple’s supported languages.

09 settings language and region on iphone

On the Settings page, select General > Language and Region > Add Language.

After adding the language you want, go back to the web page and click on the Translate icon.

You should see the new language among the translation options in the dropdown menu.

If you are accessing the page on Mac, the Translate icon will be located at the far-left side of the Smart Search field at the top of your page.

The translation process is also the same as what’s applicable on your iPhone or iPad.

If you have any reason to view the web page in its original language, click on the Translate icon and select View Original from the options in the dropdown.

Method 3: Translate Web Pages On Microsoft Edge

This method is for people using the Edge browser on Windows devices.

I believe it is also available on Android and Apple devices.

Similar to Chrome, the translation options box will appear when you open a webpage with content that is written in a foreign language.

10b translate icon the microsoft edge browser

Select the language you want from the Translate To dropdown, then click Translate.

Edge will translate the page and you should see the Translated status in the address bar.

11 translated status on edge browser

If you don’t see the translation box on your page, this usually happens when you have set the browser to never translate the language on that web page, you can click on the Translate icon in the address bar to access the box.

You should also know that the Microsoft Translator is not available on Internet Explorer.

To translate web pages on the browser, you must download the Google Toolbar.

Also, if you want to translate a Google Doc or portions of text no matter the word count, the best approach is to upload your content to either Google Translate or Bing Translator.

Google supports more than a hundred languages, while Bing supports over 70 languages.

Method 4: Use A Plugin To Transform Your WordPress Site Into A Multilingual Website

All the tools I covered above let you get one-time translations for a single web page or an entire website.

You will need another tool if your goal is to translate your web pages into multiple languages to create localized content for your international audience irrespective of their location.

The TranslatePress plugin lets you create a multilingual website.

You won’t have to create new content for each language, the tool will use the combination of Google Translate and DeepL to create multiple static versions of your web pages.

Also, translation is another way of repurposing content, so you will be getting some multilingual SEO juice.

Similar Tutorial Types To Check Out

  • How to Cite a Website: this article will show you how to cite authoritative sources properly in your content without running the risk of plagiarism.
  • How to Update Website Content: discover a foolproof method for keeping your content and statistical data relevant without expending too many resources.
  • How to Submit a DMCA Takedown Request: this article guide you on how to file a takedown notice to the relevant service provider anytime someone infringes on your copyright.

Wrapping Up

Whether you want to translate someone else’s webpage or build a multilingual website, this article has provided you with all the information you need to translate your content.

One major browser I didn’t cover is Mozilla.

The platform doesn’t have any in-built translate feature, so I recommend downloading the To Google Translate add-on to translate pages when using the browsers.

If you have any questions about anything I covered in this article, please feel free to ask me in the comments section.

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