WordPress holds 59.4% share of the CMS market and, more importantly, 41.9% of websites across the world run on WordPress. From personal blogs to enterprise marketing sites, WordPress is an integral part of a site’s tech stack.
So, how do you translate a WordPress site? How do you make it multilingual?
With Smartcat, you can translate your WordPress website in two ways:
Plugin-based approach: You install a WordPress translator plugin that works alongside WPML (WordPress Multilingual Plugin).
Smartcat Website Translator approach: You don’t install any plugin, but connect your website to Smartcat and translate the site through the Smartcat interface..
Let’s look at how to translate your WordPress website using both of these approaches.
Method #1: Using a WordPress Plugin
Here is the step-by-step guide to translate your WordPress site using a plugin.
Step 1: Set Up WPML
Install the WPML plugin on your WordPress website, and then configure WPML. You will be asked to set the default language and target languages, and URL format for different languages.
You also have to register for WPML to complete the setup. Once configured, your website is now ready to support multilingual content.
At this stage, you haven't translated any content yet. Instead, you've prepared the website infrastructure necessary for creating and managing translated pages. You can now install a translator plugin for website translation, which in this case is Smartcat.
Step 2: Create a Smartcat account
Before installing the Smartcat plugin, you need to create a Smartcat account. Head over to the Smartcat website to sign up.
If you already have an account, you can skip this step.
Step 3: Install the Smartcat plugin
Next, install the Smartcat plugin on your WordPress website.
From your WordPress dashboard, navigate to Plugins. Then, click add new plugin and search for Smartcat. You’ll find the Smartcat Translator for WPML plugin. Install and activate the plugin.
Once activated, the Smartcat integration settings will become available. The plugin acts as a bridge between your website and your Smartcat workspace. You can send content for translation and get completed translations to the site directly.
Step 4: Connect WordPress to Smartcat
After installing the plugin, you'll need to connect your website to Smartcat.
Open the Smartcat plugin settings and authenticate your Smartcat account.
Depending on your configuration, you can connect through the built-in authentication process or by using an API key. You can create an API key for the plugin in Smartcat under Settings > API > Create New KeyI.
Once you have connected Smartcat to WordPress, you're now ready to start translating content.
Step 5: Select content for translation
Now that you have activated the Smartcat plugin on your WordPress site, you can choose the pages and posts you want to localize.
Open the page, post, or custom content type that you want to translate. On the right side panel, you’ll have the Smartcat translation option.
In the Smartcat panel, select the options based on your translation requirements. You’ll be able to:
Select target languages - one or more
Translation workflow - AI only, manual, AI+human
Choose a project - an existing Smartcat project or a new one
Add project notes or instructions
Specify deadlines if necessary
Step 6: Send content to Smartcat
Once you have selected the translation options, click Send to Smartcat.
The plugin integration automatically transfers your website content to the Smartcat platform.
Step 7: Review translated content
You can check and review the content on the Smartcat platform. Click the project on your Smartcat profile to review the translation.
Review the content and make any changes or edits if necessary. Any changes you make will be sent to your WordPress site to reflect those translation changes automatically.
Once you're satisfied with the translation quality and content, approve the translation and synchronize it back to WordPress if required by your setup.
Step 8: Bulk translate pages or posts
In case you want to bulk translate multiple pages on your site, simply head over to your posts list dashboard. Select the pages you want to translate, and click on Bulk actions to Translate selected posts.
Similar to the single post content we discussed above, you can select the translation options and review the content once translated.
Method #2: Use the Website Translator directly
Here’s the step-by-step guide for a WordPress site translation with minimal setup:
Step 1: Set up a Smartcat account
Open the Smartcat website translator and continue to log in/sign up.
Smartcat offers a free trial. So, if you’re still unsure about the project, you can test it out with the free trial.
Step 2 : Choose Website Translation in the Menu
Select the ‘Translate a website’ option on your account homepage.
Step 3. Fill out the website and language details
Enter your website URL and select the source language - the language your website is in. Next, select all the target languages you want your website to be translated into.
Step 4: Complete project creation
Smartcat creates a project and gives you the translation options.
Step 5: Start Translation
Once you select the language and click on ‘Start Translation,’ Smartcat translates your site into the target language. All in just one click.
Step 6: Edit and review translated content
In addition to automatically translating your website, Smartcat allows you to edit the translation. You can customize for a particular vocabulary or the cultural and social preferences of the specific target audience.
Step 7: Publish the translated content
Once you’re happy with the translation, hit Publish. A message will appear with a script.
Step 8: Insert the JavaScript snippet onto your site
Copy the code and paste it into your site’s section. Once the code has been added, click Validate and continue.
Smartcat then verifies the script is correctly installed and activates the translations on your site.
Final Thoughts
So which method should you actually use?
If you already run WPML on your site, the plugin method is easy. Quickly install the Smartcat plugin, set it up, and you’re ready to go. This method also works great for those who want to edit their translations like any other WordPress page. This is the way to go if you want to keep everything within WordPress .
If, on the other hand, you want a multilingual version of your site up with minimal setup, using the Smartcat Website Translator on their platform is a much more efficient solution.
