I’ve been wanting to try WeGlot, a web translation service I’ve heard about, seen several articles and even talked to people at the company, but I haven’t found enough time to give it a thorough overhaul, which is what I wanted to do.
I take translations very seriously, so I am very skeptical of automatic translation systems, but – and without wanting to spoil it – this Weglot thing is another level.
Table of Contents
What is it about? Is it an automatic translation? Is it really free?
Yes, you can use Weglot for free, because it has a free version for small businesses and websites with 2,000 words at most, but I’ll tell you later.
How do I start using Weglot?
Easy, just go to the registration page (free) and sign up, at this link.
Once registered and all that stuff now is when the good stuff starts.
Create a Weglot project
The first, almost unique, thing you have to do is create your first translation project.
The requirements are minimal, just give it a name and indicate that your web technology is WordPress.
You hit the button and on the next screen you are done.
It will show you an API, you just have to copy it to use it later and we are almost done.
How do I install Weglot on my WordPress?
Now that we have an account in Weglot, the first thing is to install the plugin, which is in the official WordPress repository so you just have to go to the WordPress Plugin Installer and look for it, there it is.
It installs like any other plugin, and once it is active go to its settings page, in the Weglot menu.
That’s where we have to put the API key that we just copied after creating the project you must also select the original language, in which your previous content is already, and the target languages, being able to select several.
Is there anything to configure in WordPress?
The only thing that is mandatory is the previous step, although you can customize the design of the translation button in the same settings page and where it will be seen.
If you want it in your current menu just go to Appearance > Menus and add it.
But we also have a widget and the shortcode [weglot_switcher] that you can put wherever you want, or even the following code in case you prefer to place the language changer at will in the theme:
<div id="weglot_here"></div>Code language: HTML, XML (xml)Also very interesting is the exclusion tool, which allows you to exclude whole pages or simply blocks that you do not want to be automatically translated.
From here it takes you to Weglot’s desktop, where you can exclude blocks that you don’t want to be translated automatically in a simple way.
And some very relevant adjustments…
I recommend you to leave it configured as in the previous capture, it is the best combination according to my tests.
Also, you should know that in Weglot’s desktop you also have all the WordPress settings, in case you prefer to do it there instead of in the plugin’s settings section.
Is that it? Does he do the translations himself?
Yes, indeed.
Are they perfect? No, but they are very close, surprisingly.
It translates text, image goals, products with all their elements, even content from visual layout artists like Divi or Elementor, a power that very few possess.
Can I add multiple languages?
Of course, from the WordPress settings page as well as from the Weglot desktop, as many as you want, and the translations are all automatic, as soon as you add the language will be available. It seems incredible but it’s that easy.
If it mistranslates something, how do I change it?
It happens sometimes, that the automatic translator does not have the context, or simply that you prefer to use another word.
From the Plugin settings in your WordPress you have a button to go directly to your Weglot.com desktop
Once there, in the Translations section, do a search for the term you think is mistranslated and adapt it to your taste if you know how to do it.
And the text will automatically translate on your website, without having to do anything on your WordPress.
You can also hire a professional human translation, from the same results.
You can also create translation rules.
Weglot’s visual translation editor
But that’s not all, because if you prefer to edit the translations directly on the web you have the visual translation editor of Weglot, a virginity, indescribable.
It is very easy to activate, just go to the “Visual Editor” section of the Weglot desktop, where you will find a single button to start editing the translations directly on the web.
Once on the page you’ll see that in the translatable parts there are some pencils, so you just have to click there and start translating.
What about SEO? Because of automation.
No problem.
Weglot creates a structure of URLs with permanent links to each translation you add, such as https://mysite.com/en/postname/ .
In addition, it adds the corresponding hreflang tags in the code of the pages, so that everything is perfect from this side as well.
Does it work with Divi and other visual layout?
I doubted too, as this is often a disaster with other translation plugins.
But yes, it is powerful, it translates everything, no matter what it is created with: Divi, blocks, whatever.
Is Weglot for everyone?
Well, the truth is, yes, but you must keep this in mind:
- Weglot is free for small sites, with less than 2,000 words.
- Any small business can take advantage of machine translations, they are better than many human translations I see every day.
- Multi-country sites should really edit the translations or hire a professional to adapt the terms to the local.
Otherwise, it is really amazing how good the translation engine is, a simple and automatic solution for sites with multilingual needs that do not have a large budget to hire translators.
And the best thing is that you can try it out and use it completely free of charge.
Is it better, worse, is it compatible with other translation plugins?
Let’s start at the end. Is it compatible with other translation plugins?
Of course, and it couldn’t be easier:
- Deactivate the previous plugin.
- Activate Weglot = Automatic Translation.
As for whether it is better or worse than other translation plugins, let’s go by parts…
Quality of translations
A good human translation, adapted to local use, will always be better than any automatic translation.
As the rest of translation plugins, such as WPML, Polylang, etc require manual translation.
Easy to use
Here Weglot wins by a landslide.
With any standard translation plugin, the workflow is tedious, with multiple and delicate configuration decisions, and then you have to translate each content, not always with interfaces as friendly and understandable as they should be.
In this sense WPML is especially confusing for the novice user.
On the contrary, Weglot is practically installed and ready, you put the API in it, add languages and you’re done, your web is in several languages, it recognizes the visitor’s language, it offers a language changer, everything is automatic and simple.
Web performance and speed
The ability of translation plugins to slow down websites and consume huge resources is sadly famous, due to the amount of JavaScript they use for most of their functionality.
And in this sense, too, Weglot has proven to be surprisingly lightweight. It loads scripts, yes, but it is much more efficient, as it delegates many of the translation and resource loading tasks from Weglot’s servers.
Can I try it out without any obligation?
Of course, simply register at this link and install the plugin, as I explained at the beginning. You don’t have to pay anything unless your website has a lot of content or you use professional services.
I’ve been running away from automatic translators for years, until now. Weglot is a real breakthrough, perhaps not perfect for sites with very specific local and professional requirements, but it is a really viable solution for small and medium businesses with concerns or needs for internationalization.
How much are payment plans worth?
As you can see, it’s free for sites requiring up to 2,000 words, and then it depends on the amount of languages and size.
You can also try the Pro plan for free and see its full potential.
Read this post in Spanish: Weglot ¿Traducciones automáticas en WordPress? Esta vez sí
