The Best Translation Apps of 2023

When determining the best translation apps, we looked for features such as real-time voice translation, text translation, camera translation, and pronunciation guides. We also prioritized providers that offer affordable pricing. Many of the options listed below won’t cost you anything at all. 

When choosing a translation app, consider your specific needs. The best option for one user isn’t necessarily the best one for another. For example, some apps are designed for travel use, while others are more focused on helping you learn a new language.

If you are looking for a translation solution to use while traveling, then offline mode is an absolute must-have feature. Many areas of the world don’t offer access to fast internet, but that won’t matter if your translation app doesn’t require internet connection. For this reason, you’ll find that most of the apps featured in this guide include at least some level of offline functionality.

Download: Android ★★★★★★★★★★ | iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

With this app, you can translate text and voice content in over 70 languages. You can also download languages, which allows you to translate content without an internet connection — this is an especially useful feature when you’re traveling. Other features include split-screen mode, phrasebooks, and pronunciation guides. Best of all, you can access all of these features for free.

Notable features:

Download: Android ★★★★★★★★★★ | iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

With the free version of iTranslate, you can translate content into over 100 languages, listen to translations in a male or female voice, and switch between different dialects. By upgrading to the premium version of this app, you’ll get access to extra features such as verb conjugations in different tenses and offline translation mode for over 40 languages. The Pro version’s Lens feature allows you to use your device’s camera to instantly translate menus, signs, etc.

Notable features:

Download: Android ★★★★★★★★★★ | iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

With over one billion downloads, Google Translate is by far the most popular translation app covered in this guide. And it’s easy to see why this app is so popular — Google Translate’s features include text and voice translations for 108 languages, a phrasebook, handwriting translations, instant camera translation, and offline mode for 59 languages.

Notable features:

Download: Android | iOS

TripLingo offers many features that will help you learn how to speak a new language, including a 10,000-word offline dictionary, audio lessons, built-in flashcards, and quizzes. There are also features for traveling, such as an intelligent tip calculator, currency converter, and an instant voice translator for 19 languages. But what really separates TripLingo from your other translation app options is that you can access a live human translator whenever you need it (this service will cost you $3 per minute).

Notable features:

Download: Android ★★★★★★★★★★ | iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

With a size of just 11 MB, SayHi is one of the most lightweight apps covered in this guide, which has enabled it to offer exceptionally fast loading time and performance. The app is completely free to use, and it allows you to translate content into dozens of languages. There’s also support for several specific dialects, including USA, UK, and Canada English; France and Canada French; and Mandarin and Taiwan Chinese.

Notable features:

Download: Android ★★★★★★★★★★ | iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

Papago offers all the translation features you’ll ever need, including text translation, image translation, voice translation, handwriting translation, a dictionary, and offline mode. All of these features are included for free as well. The only downside to Papago is that it only allows you to translate 13 languages — most of the other options in this guide let you to translate many more languages than that.

Notable features:

Download: Android ★★★★★★★★★★ | iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

As you may have been able to guess from its name, TextGrabber only allows you to translate text. But if you just need text translation, TextGrabber is a useful tool — all you need to do is point your camera at a piece of printed text and the app will quickly translate it for you (no internet connection is required). Unlike most of the other apps listed in this guide, TextGrabber offers live phone support that you can contact whenever you need assistance.

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Download: iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

Waygo allows you to translate Chinese, Japanese, and Korean without an internet connection. With Waygo’s camera feature, you can point your phone at a piece of text and get your translation without even taking a picture. Waygo allows you to see and hear the pronunciation of translations as well. If you only need to translate one of the three languages that Waygo offers, this is an excellent choice.

Notable features:

Download: iOS ★★★★★★★★★★

Speak & Translate allows you to translate text into 117 languages, which is more than any of the other apps covered in this guide (you can access voice translations for 54 languages). But you’ll need to find another solution if you have an Android device, as Speak & Translate is only available on the Apple app store.

Notable features:

Download: iOS

If you need to communicate with people who speak another language over social media, consider using iHandy. This free app, which is capable of translating content into 52 languages, offers built-in integrations for Facebook and Twitter. iHandy’s history feature is also helpful as it allows you to save time by searching through your history for recently-used translations.

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