WordPress Multilingual Plugins

With over 6000+ languages in the world, there’s a lot of websites out there that contain multiple languages to choose from, in order to read the site. Since WordPress powers about 43% of websites that exist online, there are multilingual plugins to help site owners translate their content in most languages.

What is a WordPress Multilingual plugin?

A WordPress multilingual plugin is a tool to help you translate your site to whatever language you wish. The plugin is designed to sort through your content in your primary language, and then you can translate them word-by-word, and line-by-line.You can offer as many translated versions of your site to your visitors.

Now, there are also automatic translation plugins too, that produce a fast translated content, but it may not be as accurate as manually creating the content, and could be seen as spam by search engines. Most of them use translation services like Google Translate, to quickly convert your written content to another language.

Additionally, this is different from installing WordPress in your own language, as that only deals with how you choose to use the WordPress admin area, not the final content that you write. Multilingual plugins, in the terms of this article, are strictly for the frontend content on your site, from your posts and pages, and navigational menus.

In having a site translated into another language, you open up more opportunities in welcoming new business and visitors, which means potentially more money.

What is better - automatic translator plugins or using a multilingual plugin?

While you’ll probably get a more authentic feel with your site by manually translating your site, and be able to use local common slang, it will take a lot longer to translate your website, especially if you have a lot of content. The benefit is the quality of the translated content, versus something generated by a machine.

Sure, Google Translate is nice and does well, but there are still issues like accurate translation for nouns and verbs that may either be too formal or informal, depending on your website’s intentions.

Automatic translator plugins may appeal to saving you time, but it could hurt you if the quality is poor.

Best WordPress Multilingual Plugins

Below are some of the best WordPress multilingual plugins out there. Most of these have a free version, but not all of them.

• GTranslate

• TranslatePress

• Polylang

• WPML

• Google Website Translator

• Weglot Translate

GTranslate

Automatically translate your WordPress site in over 103 languages with GTranslate. In the free version you can tap into the Google API for free, and quickly have your site translated in moments. The plugin works well with all post types and taxonomies, and even offers some support for widgets and menus.

GTranslate offers support for sites that are structured to read right to left, and can even translate your plugins and themes. All the user needs to do is select what language to view the site in via a dropdown tool.

However, if you need to edit the translations that need correcting, you will need to purchase the GTranslate premium plugin for as little as $9.99 per month. In the premium version you also benefit from SEO friendly URL structure by language, WooCommerce compatibility, image and media translation, and much more.

TranslatePress

TranslatePress is probably one of the best looking and in-depth WordPress multilingual plugins on the market. In the free version, you can translate from the frontend in real time, so you can see your changes as you make them. You can opt to hook up the plugin with the Google API that is used in Google Translate, and produce automatically translated content.

In a way, it’s the best of both worlds, where you can auto-generate your content to other languages, and then edit where anything didn’t translate well. Total timesaver!

If you need support for SEO in multiple languages, offer more languages, ability to allow users to offer translation suggestions, and other advanced add-ons to offer better translated pages, you can purchase the premium version of TranslatePress for as little as €79 per year.

Polylang

Polylang is a simple WordPress multilingual plugin that will help you produce content. Its simple interfacing is easy to use, and supports all post types, taxonomies, widgets, and even menus. While the free version gives a lot of great features for users, if you need support, you’ll need to purchase a premium plan for €99 with their PolylangPro version.

If you’re using WPML, and it’s either too expensive or not for you, then Polylan offers a way to convert their plugin over, called WPML to Polylang.

Additionally, if you need an automatic translation service, Polylang is compatible with Lingotek Translation.

WPML

WPML is solely a premium plugin that costs as low as $39 per year, for one site. This plugin offers automatic translation services for about 40 languages, and includes an advanced translation editor, glossary, multilingual SEO for friendly URL structuring, and even a spell checker. WPML also offers extensions for compatibility with WooCommerce.

Additionally, you can translate any post type, taxonomy, image, menu, and even the backend of your WordPress admin area with WPML.

Google Website Translator

The Google website translator plugin allows you to sync with Google Translate services and produce content in any language. This plugin claims to produce little to no impact on the site load, as well as the database, as it doesn’t add any extra bulk loading scripts.

Simply configure the plugin for the languages you want to offer, and then place the widget or shortcode on your site. When your visitors select the languages they desire to read your site in, Google will automatically translate the page for them.

Weglot Translate

Weglot Translate is an auto-translation plugin. There’s a free version of Weglot Translate in the WordPress plugin directory, but you have to sign up for their cloud-based service, and pay, in order to take advantage of it. Weglot auto translator services start at €9.90 per month and only include 1 translated language.

With Weglot, you manage all of your translated content, before you can push it to your live production site. The plugin works well with WooCommerce and is seo-friendly. Aside from WordPress, Weglot offers services for BigCommerce and Shopify too.

In Summary

If you’re interested in reaching a more global audience with your WordPress website, you might want to consider a multilingual plugin. With the options for either manually translating your site or using an auto-translator service, delivering a site in any language is easy to achieve. If you choose this route, good luck, or as they say in Spanish - ¡Buenas Suerte!

Frequently Asked Questions