Translating your WordPress website into multiple languages can be difficult. Many plugin solutions are complex and hard to configure. In fact, many require manual translations which can prove costly unless you are fluent in many languages. And if you are, this task of manually translating content can become time-consuming and frustrating.
There are many multilingual plugins available today claiming to make your website translations a breeze. However, very few actually follow through on those claims.
Nonetheless, today I am going to share with you a freemium WordPress plugin that is almost perfect when it comes to ease of use and translation accuracy.
Enter Weglot Translate.
What is Weglot?
Weglot Translate is a powerful translation plugin that approaches multilingualism differently than the typical translation plugin. Using an intuitive translation API to detect any content that is published on your website, Weglot quickly translates any published content fast. Like, within minutes.
Weglot’s Main Features
Though Weglot boasts being a simple plugin, there are some notable features that make it stand out amongst its competition.
General Use
One of the most enticing features that Weglot provides website owners is the ease in which it is set up on your website. Simply download the plugin or add a simple script to your website and Weglot will start translating immediately. Because of this there is no stress when it comes to installing or configuring a complex plugin. And, it only takes an estimated 2 minutes to complete from start to finish saving you lots of time.
Included in this easy setup is the fact that Weglot comes SEO ready and following Google’s best practices. This means that there are no additional plugins required to make your content indexed by Google and found by visitors.
Weglot is compatible with many other themes and plugins so the likelihood of a conflict is slim. Plus, Weglot does not sacrifice your website’s speed or performance in any way. This includes the back-end admin area as well, which other translation plugins are known to do. The same cannot be said about many translation plugins on the market today.
Supporting over 60 different languages, and now actively working on over 3,000 websites, Weglot is definitely a front-runner when it comes to its core plugin features.
Personal Dictionary
Whenever Weglot detects a phrase to translate, it first browses your personal dictionary. It then searches for a good match and returns the correct translation.
Stored on Weglot servers, your dictionary is accessible via your Weglot dashboard. You can modify any translations you feel are incorrect and save those changes. Then, the next time Weglot comes across that phrase, your newly corrected phrase will display on your website. This lends to the accuracy of your translation and makes your content consistent.
In addition, if there is a phrase on your website that is not currently in your dictionary and is in need of translation, Weglot will use its powerful machine-automated translator to return the best translation to your website. This phrase is then automatically saved to your dictionary for use next time.
Real Time Translations
Another great feature Weglot provides users is its ability to translate automatically and in real-time. Weglot does this by sending your website’s content to the Weglot API, translating it, and sending it back in its translated version for your visitors to see. You can also set translation exclusions to certain content if you want.
Weglot Account
To use Weglot, you must register for an account. Though some feel this is annoying, it does offer some nice benefits. For example you can access all of your account information including your API Key and plan information. Here you can easily upgrade to another plan if you find your website growing. Scaling with your business is a definite must when it comes to a quality translation plugin.
In addition, you access your personal dictionary from your Weglot account. The intuitive dashboard provides you every means for accurate translations. Using both manual and machine-automated translations, there is never be any doubt that your website is translated correctly.
Using Weglot
There are 2 ways to integrate Weglot onto your website for use. For today’s review I will be using the third-party integration since I am working with a WordPress website.
Step 1: Register an Account
The first step is to create an account on Weglot’s official website to start using it.
Next, check your email for confirmation of your account and click the required link. Then follow the instructions for setting up Weglot.
Step 2: Install and Activate Weglot
Now that you have your API Key, install and activate the Weglot plugin. From your WordPress dashboard, navigate to Plugins > Add New and search for ‘Weglot Translate’.
Select Install Now and then click on Activate Plugin.
Step 3: Configure Your Plugin
Notice that a new menu item labeled Weglot appears in your WordPress dashboard. Click on it to configure the plugin.
First enter your API Key found on your Weglot dashboard. Then select your website’s original (or current) language and the language(s) you would like to translate your content into.
Next, configure how you want your language button to appear:
- Choose the language switcher to be a dropdown or separate buttons.
- Configure your language flag appearance.
- Choose how to display language names.
- Enter custom CSS for optional button styling.
You also have the option to display your language button in menus, as a widget, anywhere else on your website, or even in the source code of your HTML.
Save your changes and wait for the pop-up with further instructions.
Weglot is now successfully integrated onto your WordPress website and will begin translating immediately.
Step 4: Test Your Translated Content
After configuring the Weglot plugin, check to make sure your language button has been installed properly. Also check that the content translates when the languages are switched.
This is what my website content looks like in its current language:
On the other hand, after selecting another language, here is what my content looks like:
Step 5: Edit Translations in Your Weglot Account
Now that your content is successfully translating when the language button is accessed, it is time to ensure the accuracy of your translations using your Weglot account.
From the Weglot dashboard dropdown menu, choose Translations. This is where all of your website’s content is displayed in an organized way for you to check phrase translations.
Remember the personal dictionary I mentioned earlier? Well, this is it.
First filter your site’s content by content that has been machine-translated or manually reviewed. You can also filter by word. Each phrase will display in your site’s current language and as it appears translated on your website.
I like the fact that Weglot provides website owners two ways to translate content: manually and machine-automated. And, by starting with a solid foundation of machine-automated translations (though not always 100% accurate) Weglot saves you the time of having to start from nothing and translate every piece of content. From there, manually translate any errors you find by accessing your dictionary and making the appropriate changes. Or, if satisfied with the machine translations, simply leave the content as is.
As an added bonus, the Weglot dictionary allows you to mark each correctly translated phrase as reviewed. This is helpful for those who have lots of content that must be manually reviewed over a long period of time.
In the end, having two ways to translate content and utilizing a mix of the two enables you to save the most time while providing the most accurate translations possible to your readers.
Documentation and Support
Weglot’s documentation is nothing special but it is very concise. It is easy to understand and follow along with. I had no problems setting up my website to be multilingual using their instructions. Especially since it literally took me a couple of minutes, just as promised.
As far as support is concerned, Weglot has a live chat option which is a standout support feature. This way any pressing issues you have can be addressed immediately with a member of Weglot’s support team. Live chat is available during business hours (CET).
I would like to see the live chat availability listed on the website. This way visitors would know right away when live support was available. That being said, I was impressed that I could directly email support from the offline live chat screen. This makes contacting support that much easier.
I will mention that the support team’s outreach emails are nice. I recently received a personal email from the support team answering all of my questions. In addition, the email provided me information for upgrading my Weglot plan if I wanted to, though this was purely optional. I was made aware that my trial period was ending and that if I wanted to stay on with the Free Plan I could which made me happy. There was no additional work to be done on my part which is always welcome.
In addition, I like the fact that contact information is located directly in the plugin’s configuration section. This makes emailing support very easy to do.
In the end, as can be seen in the WordPress Repository, there is a general consensus that the support offered to all users of Weglot is impressive. To top it off, this was something that I experienced first hand.
Pricing
There are 4 pricing plans available to choose from that you pay for yearly or monthly. If you pay yearly you will enjoy two months free which is a nice surprise.
You also have the option to create a custom plan if you have more than 3 websites needing translation.
Offering a free plan to users of small websites is a great idea. In fact, the same cannot be said of many other translation plugin solutions. For small business owners that have a simple landing page and are not content driven, the Free Plan works perfectly as an alternative to the paid translation plugins available on the market.
If however, your website exceeds the 2,000 word mark, there are 3 premium versions of the plugin available. And, all three are available for a reasonable annual price. Plus, the larger your website becomes, the more features you receive. For instance, in the Business and Pro versions you receive unlimited languages and translated words. This makes reaching your global audience a cinch and well worth the price. And don’t forget, this comes with premium support as well so all of your questions and concerns are addressed quickly and efficiently.
Final Recommendations
In the end, I love the ease of use that Weglot provides. The setup was beyond easy, as was the plugin configuration. And, I find that the translations are very accurate despite being machine-powered. I also love the fact that glaring errors can be corrected via manual changes so my multilingual readers will have a better user experience.
Having the chance to take advantage of both machine-automated and manual translations is my favorite feature. This assures me that my global readers are given the most accurate translations in their native language as possible.
Have you tried using Weglot to translate your WordPress website’s content? Were you impressed with its easy setup and unique features? I would love to hear all about it in the comments below!
This is an analysis that was written to provide a valuable outside perspective to the creators of this product. They paid for a 100% honest, no-holds-barred break-down of all they are doing, both good and bad, because they want their product to be as good possible. In the interests of sharing that knowledge with the larger WordPress community, we also give them the option of publishing it here on WPMayor.com … but with the vital condition that the content cannot be altered or spun in any way: our readers expect and deserve the same 100% honesty.
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