How to Quickly Translate Text in Any Web Browser
The Internet is a truly international platform – did you know that Wikipedia has about 3 million articles in German and almost 2 million in Spanish? — and thanks to the built-in translation tools now built into the most popular browsers, a language barrier doesn’t have to come between you and what you want to read online.
Using your browser’s translation feature can be a useful way to broaden your horizons, discover new publications, and make new friends. These tools can also come in handy if you’re trying to learn another language too.
Increasingly, web browsers will automatically detect a website written in a language other than English and either instantly translate the pages or display a dialog box asking if you want to do so, but there are still a few customization options available if you dig deeper into the tools.
Here’s how to find translation features in the major browsers—Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari—on both desktop and mobile devices.
Google Chrome
Chrome translates sites automatically by default; you can use the pop-up window to the right of the address bar if you want to revert to the original language. You can also click the small Google Translate button to the right of the address bar to switch the language, and select the three dots to adjust the settings to always translate a certain language or never translate it in the future.
You also have the option to Never translate this site if you don’t want the translation to run automatically (you can still run it manually from the same dialog). Another option is to highlight a block of text and then right-click on it. You can then select “Translate Selection to English” to translate only the text you have selected.
In Chrome on Android and iOS, every time you load a page in a foreign language, a pop-up appears asking if it should be translated. You can get this popup back by tapping the three dots (top right on Android, bottom right). on iOS), then Translate . Tap the gear icon in the pop-up window to access additional translation options for that specific page and that specific language.
Microsoft Edge
Open a web page in a foreign language using Microsoft Edge, and a dialog box at the top of the screen will ask if translation is required. Click Translate to continue or More for more options (including automatic translation or never translating that specific language in the future). You can return this dialog box at any time by clicking the translate button to the right of the address bar, which looks like the letter “a” next to a Japanese character.
You can switch between translations, fix Edge if it doesn’t detect a foreign language correctly, and turn off translation for a specific site. There’s also a right-click option here, just like in Chrome: select text on the screen, right-click it, then choose Translate Selection to English from the pop-up menu.
As for the Edge app on Android and iOS, when you load a foreign website, a small translation bar will appear at the top: tap Translate to accept the translation. Click on the listed languages (Android) or the gear icon (iOS) to access other options, such as turning off translation for this site). To bring the panel back later, tap the three horizontal lines (bottom right), swipe left, then tap Translate .
Mozilla Firefox
Using Firefox, when you load a page in a foreign language, you’ll see a pop-up asking if you want to translate it, and all the translation is done on your local device for added privacy. Click Translate to confirm or the gear icon to access more options: you can disable this pop-up, always or never translate this language, or never translate this website, for example.
The pop-up window and its parameters can be returned using the translate button (two small symbols) to the right of the address bar). If you just need to translate a specific section of the website you’re viewing, highlight the relevant text, right-click it, then choose Translate Selection to English from the menu.
In Firefox on Android, you’ll see a similar translation prompt pop up on your screen when viewing a website in a foreign language. Just like on the desktop, tap the small translate button in the address bar to bring that field back, and tap the gear icon to see more options for that specific page and language.
As of this writing, this feature unfortunately hasn’t arrived in Firefox for iOS, but it’s likely coming in the near future.
Apple Safari
When using Safari on macOS, when you open a web page written in a language other than English, nothing automatically happens. You will need to click on the small icon to the right of the address bar (two small bubbles with a message on it) and then select “Translate to English” . Click the same icon again if you want to return to the original language.
You don’t have as much room for experimentation as other browsers, but you can translate individual blocks of text as well as entire pages: highlight the text, right-click it, then select Translate to see the text. the translation will appear on the screen.
Translating text in Safari on iOS is just as easy: Click the little AA icon to the left of the address bar at the bottom of the screen and select the Translate to English option. If you need to go back, tap the same icon again and select View Original from the menu.