There are many reasons that you might want to steer away from Google Translate. Sure, the translation service might be one of the most prevalent in the world, but it isn’t always the most accurate or feature-rich translation service to exist.
Or perhaps you just want to distance yourself from Google’s ecosystem, and who could blame you?
Regardless of why you may want to look for an alternative, there are so many online translation services out there that are simply not very good. Fortunately, here are four of the very best for you to consider.
First on this list comes DeepL, an online translation service that has been gaining popularity over the last couple of years.
DeepL began life as a project created by a German start-up, but has since taken off as potentially the single most accurate and reliable translation service to currently be available.
Although DeepL only supports 26 languages at the time of writing this article, the languages that it does support are done so with an incredible amount of accuracy. The key here is an AI and deep-learning centered approach to language translation as opposed to more traditional methods.
Apart from just more accurate translations than those that Google provides, DeepL also features a number of handy features that are worth noting. Though it may not be a browser tool to translate web pages, instead existing only online, it is still incredibly useful.
For example, DeepL provides multiple translations to any phrase, which might be more or less correct given the context of what you’re translating. You can rate translations on accuracy, as well as listen to them in order to get an idea as to how the translation would sound if a native speaker might say it.
If you do a lot of translating and disagree with one reoccurring phrase, you can manually override in your own personal glossary so that DeepL will always translate the text how you prefer. You can also set the tone of the translation between formal and informal, though this feature is only available for users who purchase a premium subscription.
If you want to translate whole documents, DeepL can help you with that as well, and supports PDF, DOCX, and PPTX file types for automatic translation.
Next up on this list comes Reverso, one of the longest-running competitors to Google Translate. Reverso exists as a complete language translation suite, including dictionary and grammar checking functionality, though the focus here is on its instant translation service.
As you can imagine, Reverso functions much like Google Translate does. You choose your language pairs and then type or copy out some text for the service to translate.
Reverso only supports 18 languages in its app, but diversity of translation isn’t where Reverso shines. Instead, ease of use is where Reverso dominates.
For example, if you’re translating a language such as French with plenty of accents that may be missing from your own keyboard, Reverso provides those for you to access easily at the bottom of the translation window.
If you’re unsure about getting your grammar correct, there’s a grammar checking function to make sure that you haven’t made any simple mistakes.
What’s really cool here is that Reverso includes a rephrase option that gives you a list of alternative phrases that may sound more natural than what you’ve written.
If you’re confused about the translation that Reverso has provided, then you’ll be pleased to know that it also features an automatic context dictionary that will show you instances that the translated or original phrase were used in actual texts so that you can have a better idea of the language behind the phrase.
3. Microsoft Translator
While Google Translate may be popular and useful as an online translator, there are plenty of times when you might find yourself needing translation services in your pocket. Despite many options existing for online translators you can use in the real world, Microsoft Translator excels on iOS and Android.
The app itself is largely broken up into a couple of functions. If you need to translate a phrase, you can type or paste text into the text translator, which will automatically detect your language. There are options to then have the app speak this out loud if you need it as well.
Where Microsoft Translator stands out is in its other features, however. You can use your microphone to translate your speech if you need, and can even set up the phone so that you can have a conversation entirely through the app with others in the real world.
You can do this by hitting the split option here, which will automatically translate phrases back and forth as if you were having a real conversation. Microsoft Translator can also do this automatically with its auto mode.
Furthermore, Microsoft Translator has options for an image translation service where you can take photos from your camera roll or take new ones for the app to automatically translate, and also has support for a conversation feature between people of many languages.
There’s also a phrasebook if you need help while traveling or just want to brush up.
Download: iOS | Android | Amazon (Free)
Finally, Yandex Translate makes it onto this list. If you’re looking for the translation that probably behaves the most like Google Translate does, then Yandex Translate is a great choice to do just that.
Yandex Translate’s interface is incredibly similar to Google Translate’s, so there should likely be little problems learning how to use it. You can select your languages from a drop-down menu, and with synchronized translation options for 100 languages, you’re not missing out on much here compared to Google Translate’s own range of 109.
Similarly, you can use Yandex Translate to translate entire websites if you’re browsing a website in another language, a feature that Google Translate uses to great effect but that other alternatives often overlook.
There is also support for document and image translation, so if you need to convert a PDF or DOCX file, you can easily change the whole document that way instead of having to rely on copy and paste.
Google Translate Isn’t the Only Solution
As you can see, there are plenty of alternatives to Google Translate, no matter the reason for your wanting to switch. If you’re looking for more accurate translations, more eclectic features, or more, then there are plenty of alternatives just waiting for you out there.
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