Ultimate Guide to Website Translation in Any Web Browser
If you know where to look, it's not hard to read websites written in another language.
In our big world with many languages, there are billions of pages on the internet. You can still read a website even if it isn’t in your language. The main browsers, like the ones on your computer and phone, have tools that can translate websites. This means you’re not stuck reading only in your language. Using four popular web browsers, let’s see how this works.
Google Chrome
Chrome will check if the website is in a different language than your computer. If you click on the address bar, a pop-up will appear. You can click on ‘English‘ to translate the page. If the pop-up goes away, find a small translate icon on the address bar and click on it.
You can make Chrome always translate pages in that language without clicking. For more options, click the three dots on the pop-up. You can choose not to translate the current site or say it’s in a different language than what Chrome thinks.
Open Chrome and look for three dots on the top right. Click them and choose ‘Settings.’ Then, click ‘Languages.’ Here, you can choose the language for translating websites and manage lists for always translating or never translating certain languages. If you want, you can turn off the translation feature altogether.’
If you are using Chrome on your phone, a little box may appear asking if you want to translate the page. If you do, just tap ‘Translate,’ or if you want more choices, tap the gear icon. Select ‘Translate’ by tapping the three dots in the top right (on Android) or bottom right (on iOS).
Microsoft Edge
If you’re using Microsoft Edge as your browser and open a page in a language you don’t understand, a small box will appear asking if you want to translate it. Simply select ‘Translate’ to display the page in your preferred language. If you can’t find the box, that’s okay. In the address bar you will find a small translate button that you can click at any time to translate the page.
If you see ‘More‘ instead of ‘Translate‘ in the little box, you have a few options in Edge. You can set it to always translate pages in that language itself, or you can tell it to never be asked to translate pages in that language. You can also choose to never be asked to translate pages from that particular website.
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You can only find these choices when a little box shows up on websites that are in a different language. If you click the three dots on the toolbar, go to Settings, and then select Languages, you can enable or disable translation. Unfortunately, you can’t decide which languages should always be translated or never translated.
If you open a website in another language using the Edge mobile apps, a window will appear asking you to decide if you want to translate it. Just tap ‘Translate‘ to say yes, or tap the gear icon to change translation settings (like which languages get translated automatically). To find these choices, just tap the three horizontal lines at the bottom right, swipe left on the icons, and then tap ‘Translate.
Mozilla Firefox
Firefox’s translation feature is still being tested, but it works fine. When you visit a web page in a language other than your computer, a window will appear asking if you want to translate it. You can click “Translate” now or use the Translate button in the address bar and click “Translate” to do it later.
In the box that pops up, you can pick the languages you want to translate from and to if Firefox doesn’t get it right. Click the gear icon in the same box, and you can choose various settings, such as which languages should be automatically translated and which should not. You can also choose specific websites that shouldn’t be translated.
Open the menu by clicking the three horizontal lines on the right side of the toolbar. Then, select Settings and go to General. Here, you can make changes to how the translation feature works. You can also choose which languages can be translated without needing to send any data back to the web, making it more private.
Right now, you can’t translate webpages on Firefox for Android or iOS. The translation feature is currently in testing for the computer version, but will be added to the mobile versions in the future.
Apple Safari
If you’re using Safari and find a website in a language you don’t know, a Translation Available message will appear in the address bar. Look for a small translate button and click on it. Then, select Translate to English to view the site in English. If you want more language options, click on Preferred Languages to access your Mac’s language settings.
If you’re using Safari on your iPhone and come across a website in a different language, you’ll see a Translation Available message in the address bar, just like on your computer. There’s also a button there—tap it. Then, choose Translate to English to see the site in English. Whether you’re using your computer or phone, the first time you translate a page, a message will ask if it’s OK to send the page’s content to Apple’s servers. Just confirm that you are ok with it.
