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How to translate audio with google translate.

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Translate audio with google translate on desktop, translate your voice with google translate for mobile.

Google Translate isn't limited to translating text on websites and documents . You can use this service to translate your audio as well. We'll show you how to do that on your desktop and mobile phone.

Note that you can't directly translate your recorded audio files with this service. You must play your files when Google Translate is listening to translate your content from its source language to the chosen target language.

Related: How to Translate a PDF

If you're on a Windows, Mac, Linux, or Chromebook computer, then first, open your preferred web browser and launch the Google Translate website. You don't have to sign in to the site to access its features.

When the site opens, in the box on the left, choose the source language. This is the language in which your audio is.

In the box on the right, choose the language in which you want to translate your audio.

After selecting both source and target languages, click the microphone icon on the screen. If your browser asks to access your computer's mic , allow it to do so.

Speak into your computer's mic and Google Translate will translate your audio and display the result on your screen. To play the translated version, click the sound icon.

To translate an audio file saved on your computer, then play that file after clicking the mic icon on the Google Translate website. Make sure your speakers are turned up enough for your mic to pick it up.

To translate voice on an Android , iPhone , or iPad , then first, download and launch the free Google Translate app.

In the app's bottom-left corner, tap the displayed language.

From the "Translate From" menu, select the language in which your original audio is.

Tap the language on the right and choose the target language.

After selecting both languages, at the bottom of the app, tap the microphone icon. If the app asks to access your phone's mic , let it do so.

Now speak into your phone's mic and the Google Translate app will translate your speech in real-time.

You can hear the translated content by tapping the sound icon.

If you'd like to translate a saved audio file, transfer that file to another device and play it when Google Translate is listening.

In case you want to translate a real-time conversation in two different languages, then at the bottom of the Google Translate app, tap the "Conversation" option. On the following page, both you and the other party can speak to have your talks translated.

And that's how you use this excellent translation service for your audio content. Very useful!

Did you know you can even translate a picture with Google Translate ? We have a guide showing you how to do just that.

Related: 10 Google Translate Features You Should Be Using

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How to Use Google Translate for Text, Images, and Real-time Conversations

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Jonathan Fisher is a CompTIA-certified technologist with more than 10 years of experience writing for publications like TechNorms and Help Desk Geek.

• Wichita Technical Institute
• Translate Text With Google Translate
• Translate Images
• Translate Words and Speech
• Translate Real-Time Conversations

How Many Languages Does Google Translate Support?

• Get Google Translate

What to Know

• For text: Select a language > Tap to enter text > begin typing > Enter .
• For spoken word: Select a language > tap the mic > begin speaking at the beep. Tap the Speaker icon to hear the translation.
• For conversations: Select a language > tap Conversation > begin speaking. Watch the screen for the translation.

This article explains how to use Google's Translate tool, which can handle text, images, speech, and even real-time conversations.

How to Translate Text With Google Translate

Translating text is the easiest and most well-supported function of Google Translate. Here's how to translate any text you come across.

Select the name of the source language you want to translate from in the top-left of the screen. In this example, we're using English .

Then select the name of the destination language you want to translate to in the screen's top-right. In this example, we're using Spanish .

Select the field that says Tap to enter text and either type or copy and paste (press and hold) the text you want to translate into this field.

You can also use the predictive text function to help write what you want to translate quicker.

The Google Translate app will continually translate what you're writing in the field underneath. At any time during this translation process, you can tap the Speaker icon to hear what it sounds like in your chosen translation language.

When you're finished typing you can use the right arrow or Enter key to return to the previous screen, then if you want to copy the translation, tap the three-dot menu icon and select Share .

How to Translate Images

Translating a foreign language from an image or picture using your camera or previous images is super handy when you're out and about. In our example, we'll use a food menu.

Select the source language and the translation language at the top of the screen. In this example, we are using Chinese to English .

Select the Camera icon.

Align what you want to translate in your camera window and select Instant .

If you want to translate an image you already have, select the Import button and then locate and select the image on your device. Then skip to Step 4 .

Google will translate the image on your device. It may take a moment for the translation to complete, but once it does, you'll be able to select individual words in the image to highlight their translation.

Some languages offer live translation, but others require a saved image. To scan and save a selection for translation, select the Scan button.

How to Translate Words and Speech

Translating what you say into a different language is one of the most useful features of Google Translate when traveling or just trying to learn a new language . Here's how to do it.

Select the source language and the translate to language at the top of the screen.

Tap the microphone icon and when prompted with a beep, begin speaking. Google will automatically translate your voice into text form.

Select the Speaker icon to hear the translation spoken back to you.

If you want to dictate what you say into a different language instead, select the Transcribe icon. Then begin speaking as before, and what you say will be translated into your destination language on screen.

Transcribing is different than dictating. When you're dictating, you're just using your voice instead of a keyboard or stylus to input data to be translated. When you're transcribing, you're creating a written output of your voice. Transcribing is especially useful if you need to send a message or write an email.

Tap the microphone and then begin speaking as before..

What you say will be translated into your destination language on screen. When you're finished speaking, tap the microphone again to end the transcription.

How to Translate Real-Time Conversations

You can also use Google Translate to facilitate a live conversation between you and someone who speaks a language you don't understand.

Select the source and destination languages at the top of the screen.

Select the Conversation icon. 

You can manually select the speaker's language at any one time to force the app to use that as the source or select the Auto button to allow the app to determine who is speaking at any one time.

Begin speaking. The translation of what you're saying will appear on screen, as will a translation for any replies from the person you are speaking to. This lets you both see what's being said in real-time.

Google Translate can translate about 103 different languages for text translation. Although not all of them are as natural as each other, and 59 are supported offline, it covers much of the world and its most populous languages.

New languages can often be added, so you can check out the complete list of languages supported on the Google site.

Real-time speech conversations support 43 distinct languages, while camera image translation is available in up to 88 languages. You might think handwriting is more challenging, but it supports 95 different languages.

How to Get Google Translate

To make the most of Google Translate, you'll need to download and install the app on your compatible Android or iOS device . Before beginning any of the instructions below, make sure the app is open and functioning.

Download for:

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How to translate live conversations with google translate.

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Key Takeaways

• Google Translate offers multiple options for live audio translation, making it convenient for various situations.
• You can use Google Translate's audio translation features to translate short utterances, but also much longer lectures and even conversations.
• Some of the features support only a few selected languages, while others are much more universal.

Thanks to the wonders of online translators, the barriers between various languages are starting to slowly disappear. Even now, you can easily go to a website in another language, and in just a few clicks Google Translate will quickly and quite correctly translate it for you.

However, even though translating the written word seems to be quite easy nowadays, there is still another, much bigger problem -- translating live audio. It comes with its own set of much bigger challenges - people speak with different accents and different speeds, and they can also make mistakes when talking. That’s why translating speech is so much more difficult and not as widespread.

How to use Google Translate in various useful ways

Google Translate is a great tool for quickly understanding someone else's words in a language you don't speak.

That said, if you go on a vacation abroad, and want to order something in a local restaurant or are asking the locals for directions, you have a way to translate audio on your phone. Google Translate has quite a few audio translating features that can help you communicate and understand. Here's how to translate live audio with Google Translate.

Can Google Translate translate live audio?

Google Translate not only has the ability to translate live audio for you -- it even offers multiple ways of doing it so that it fits well in different situations. Admittedly, some of them are still a bit limited when it comes to the number of languages that they support, but still, having more options that make different situations much more convenient is a great plus. You can even use some of these features with your Google Pixel Buds , so the audio is translated in real-time straight into your ears, making for a near-seamless experience.

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Option 1: Live audio translation: Basic translation

Right now, you can find three different live audio translation modes within Google Translate. The first, a basic one, offers you the biggest versatility when it comes to languages, but it has limitations when it comes to the length of the sentences that it translates. The first time you pause, it'll translate what was said, and to continue with the translation, you'll have to ask it to translate once again.

Option 2: Transcribe mode: Translate and transcribe audio

The second mode is geared towards much longer translations. It's called a Transcribe mode, and it allows you to translate indefinitely, so time is no object here. You can also simultaneously get a text transcription that you can save and store for later use.

The downside, though, is that this mode does not support many languages -- for now, it only works between English and Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, and Thai.

Option 3: Conversation mode:Translate live conversations

The last translation mode is geared towards a two-speaker translation and is aptly named Conversation mode. You can use it to auto-detect speakers and translate what they're saying, helping you communicate with people without speaking their language.

No matter which of these translation modes is the most convenient for your use, you can use all of them in the mobile Google Translate app. If you do not yet have it, you can get it on both Android and iOS .

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How to translate live audio in Google Translate

Google Translate Live Audio Translation is great for quickly translating short phrases or questions. It's straightforward: speak, and the app translates and displays the text almost instantly. This feature is perfect for travelers or anyone needing a fast translation for simple things like directions or greetings. The only drawback is having to the mic again for each new translation, which can be a bit cumbersome for longer chats.

This basic audio translation mode is extremely quick and easy to set up, letting you start translating audio in a matter of seconds.

Here's how to use it on your phone:

Live audio translation

• Open the Google Translate app.
• Set the language that you want to translate from by clicking the language bar on the left .
• Set the language that you want to translate to by clicking the language bar on the right .
• At the bottom of the screen you’ll see a microphone icon . Tap it to start recording live audio and getting it translated.
• Once you finish speaking, the translation will appear on the screen . You can also tap the speaker icon on the left under the translation to play the translated version in the other language.

Note that you'll get the best results if you keep your phone as close to the source of the audio as possible . If your phone stops translating in this mode, you can just tap the microphone icon once again to turn translation on once again.

How to transcribe live audio with Google Translate

If you need to translate longer audio, transcription mode is the way to go. It takes things up a notch by handling longer pieces of audio, such as lectures or speeches, and turning them into translated text in real-time. It's a boon for students or professionals attending events in other languages, providing a way to follow along and save what's being said for later review.

Transcribe mode

• At the bottom of the screen you'll see a microphone icon . Tap it to start recording live audio and getting it translated.
• Don't start recording audio yet. Instead, at the bottom of the translation panel (just above the bars where you choose your languages) you should see a Transcribe option. Tap it.
• Now you should be in transcription mode. You can start transcribing the audio by tapping the microphone icon .
• Once you're done with transcribing, tap the Stop button.
• You can save your transcription by tapping the Star icon in the top right corner.
• In the pop-up menu, name your recording and tap Save to keep it for later.

One of the most convenient translation features in Google Translate is the ability to help you with conversations in different languages. It's all about making bilingual conversations smooth and natural, by detecting who's speaking and then translating on the fly.

This is handy in social situations or meetings where participants don't share a common language, enabling everyone to keep up without a translator.

Here's how to use the two-sided translation feature in the app:

Conversation mode

• On the bottom left of the screen you'll see a Conversation icon. Tap on it.
• Google Translate will automatically detect which of the two languages is being spoken and translate it to the other one on your screen. When the speaker changes, the app also changes the language it’s translating.
• You can also make the conversation even easier by splitting the screen into two translation sides -- one for your chosen language, the other for the other language. In order to do so, tap on the Speech bubbles icon at the top right of the screen.

Which Google Translate feature should you use?

The table below provides a quick reference to determine which Google Translate feature best fits your specific situation, whether you're looking to translate short-term interactions, attending longer lectures or seminars, or participating in bilingual conversations.

How to translate audio with Google Translate

Conversations in multiple languages are no longer out of reach

There are more than 7,000 languages spoken across the globe. Sooner or later, you’ll run into a situation in which you have to communicate with someone who speaks a different language. It’s inevitable, especially for those who live in a major metropolitan area or do a lot of traveling. Even the best linguists can only manage a dozen or so of these languages, which leaves a lot of need for a great translation tool you can use on the go.

Enter Google Translate. Google Translate works by using powerful AI and machine learning that helps it to learn and stay up-to-date on different languages as people correct its inaccurate translations. Since its release in 2006, it has helped millions communicate in other languages, and as of 2016,the AI processes an estimated 100 billion translation-related queries daily. 

And while you may have used Google Translate in the past, most don’t realize that it’s not just a text-based tool. You can actually have it listen and translate conversations in real time. Here’s how.

How to Use Google Translate’s voice translation

1. First, click this link to open Google Translate on your browser. Alternatively, you can type the address below on your browser’s address bar.

https://translate.google.com

2. Google Translate is divided into two main sections. One is the input text or voice, and the other is the output result. On the input side, select the language of your input voice . You can also let Google determine its language by leaving it to Detect Language. 

3. Select your preferred output language on the right side of Google Translate. 

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4. Next, click the Translate by voice icon . Click Allow if your browser asks you to provide permission to Google to use your microphone.

5. Speak into your phone or computer’s microphone . The translation for your voice should automatically appear in the output section of Google Translate. 

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Now you can transcribe speech with Google Translate

Mar 17, 2020

[[read-time]] min read

Recently, I was at my friend’s family gathering, where her grandmother told a story from her childhood. I could see that she was excited to share it with everyone but there was a problem—she told the story in Spanish, a language that I don’t understand. I pulled out Google Translate to transcribe the speech as it was happening. As she was telling the story, the English translation appeared on my phone so that I could follow along—it fostered a moment of understanding that would have otherwise been lost. And now anyone can do this—starting today, you can use the Google Translate Android app to transcribe foreign language speech as it’s happening.

Transcribe will be rolling out in the next few days with support for any combination of the following eight languages: English, French, German, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Thai. 

To try the transcribe feature, go to your Translate app on Android , and make sure you have the latest updates from the Play store. Tap on the “Transcribe” icon from the home screen and select the source and target languages from the language dropdown at the top. You can pause or restart transcription by tapping on the mic icon. You also can see the original transcript, change the text size or choose a dark theme in the settings menu. 

On the left: redesigned home screen. On the right: how to change the settings for a comfortable read.

We’ll continue to make speech translations available in a variety of situations. Right now, the transcribe feature will work best in a quiet environment with one person speaking at a time. In other situations, the app will still do its best to provide the gist of what's being said. Conversation mode in the app will continue to help you to have a back and forth translated conversation with someone.  

Try it out and give us feedback on how we can be better. 

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How to Translate Audio With Google Translate

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Google Translate is one of the most used translation tools on the internet. It works with dozens of languages, more than most of its competitors, and with impressive accuracy.

Unfortunately, when people think of Google Translate, they mostly think of it as a text-only tool. But it can do much more. You can use it to translate audio files or live speech from one language to another at an impressive speed. If you haven't tried it before, here's how to go about it.

Use Google Translate to Translate Audio on Mobile

One of the best things about Google Translate is that you can access it on all major computing platforms. Unlike some Google Translate alternatives , whether you are using a desktop, tablet, or mobile device, irrespective of the brand or operating system, as long as you can use a browser on it, you should be able to access the service.

If you plan to use it to translate an audio file, using your mobile device is a great option. Although you can access the service on a mobile web browser, the app is better suited for the job. To get started, head to the Google Play Store or Apple's App Store and download the Android or iOS version of the app.

Download: Google Translate for Android | iOS (Free)

So, say, you want to interpret an audio file into English from Spanish on the app, you'll need to:

• Launch the Google Translate app.
• You'll find two languages at the bottom of the screen. One on the left (English) and the other on the right (Spanish). If your target language is not the default option, tap on the language on the left and choose the one you want to translate From. Then, tap the language on the right and select the language you want to translate to.

Once you've set the app, do the following steps to begin translating.

• Tap the mic button at the bottom of the screen.
• Use another phone or any media player to play the source audio file or start speaking after the sound.
• After you're done speaking or playing the audio file, a screen showing an interpretation and transcription of your audio file or voice recording in both languages will come up.
• Tap on the tiny speaker icon above the interpreted text to listen to your voice recording in the new language.

To get the best result, hold your phone as close to the source of the playing audio file as possible. Also, try slowing down the audio file for more accurate results. A good app for slowing down the tempo of an audio file on your smartphone is the Music Speed Changer for iOS and Android .

Translate Audio Without Pauses

While the steps above will help you work with short bursts of audio conversations, the app will interrupt you intermittently to provide an interpretation of your speech or audio file once it notices a short pause in audio inputs.

Consequently, any short pause may trigger unnecessary interruptions even when you're trying to interpret a long speech or pre-recorded audio. This could be particularly annoying.

To fix this:

• Whenever you're working on any long speech or pre-recorded audio conversations, after tapping the mic button on the bottom of the Google Translate app screen, tap the Transcribe button that comes up just above it.
• This should activate the Google Translate transcription mode . When in transcription mode, you'll be able to take long pauses without interruptions. You'll also be able to save the transcribed text for future reference. Simply tap the star icon in the top right corner of the transcription result screen to save.

Using Google Translate to Interpret Real-Time Conversations

If you ever find yourself in situations where you'd have to use a language you're not familiar with in a real-time conversation, Google Translate can come in quite handy. For instance, to translate a real-time conversation from Spanish to English and from English to Spanish with Google Translate, you'll have to follow these steps:

• On your Google Translate app home screen, select the source language and the translation language. In this case, Spanish or English can be the source language or translated language since you'll have to translate from each to the other during a two-way conversation.
• Now, tap Conversation in the bottom left corner of the app screen.
• To translate the audio from Spanish to English, tap Spanish at the bottom of the screen then speak. Once you're done speaking, you'll get your results in English.
• Similarly, to work on English-to-Spanish tasks, tap English at the bottom of the screen and start speaking. Since you'll be having the conversation with someone, you can take turns in speaking depending on the language each user speaks.

Using Google Translate to Translate Audio Files on a Desktop

Whether you're using a Mac, Linux, Chromebook, or Windows PC, you should be able to interpret an MP3 or audio file of any kind using Google Translate from your desktop browser. To interpret audio files or live speech using Google Translate on a desktop:

• Visit translate.google.com from your desktop browser.
• Once the page loads, you'll find two boxes, one for the source language (on the left) and the other for the translation (on the right). Click on any of the languages on the left box that corresponds to the language of your audio file. Click the dropdown button to show more languages if you can't find your preferred language on the default options.

Once you've selected the source language, you need to set up the language you need to translate to.

• On the right box, click the language you want the audio file to be translated to. Similarly, click on the drop-down icon to open a larger list of languages if you can't find your preferred languages by default.
• Up next, click on the microphone button in the bottom left corner of the first box.
• Play the audio file you want to interpret from your smartphone or any other media player.

Google Translate Is More Than Text Translation

Interpretation of text, web pages, and documents is the most popular use case for Google Translate. However, it is not solely a text-based service. You can translate just about any audio file to a preferred language as long as Google Translate actively supports voice translation for that language.

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Start using Google Translate in your browser . Or scan the QR code below to download the app to use it on your mobile device.

Download the app to explore the world and communicate with people across many languages.

Google Translate can interpret more than just text. Here's how to use it with text, speech, and images in 100+ languages.

• Google Translate supports 133 languages and can translate text, audio, or images.
• You can type or speak into the Google Translate app, or even take a picture of foreign text.
• Google Translate uses a system called Google Neural Machine Translation, which learns over time.

When you think of traveling, a number of Google services come to mind — you might use Google Maps to plan your routes and Google Flights to book your trip. But it's Google Translate that will help you communicate.

With the ability to translate dozens of languages using AI within seconds, either through text or voice, Google Translate is one of the OGs of translation apps and certainly one of the most popular. 

Google Translate was first launched in 2006. It's been widely reported that the software was born out of a disastrous translation of an email a South Korean fan had sent to Google's founders . The company was licensing a translation service at the time, which translated the message as, "The sliced raw fish shoes it wishes. Google green onion thing!" The frustrating experience compelled Sergey Brin to lead the company in creating a product that could do better.

Now, nearly two decades later, Google Translate supports a whopping 133 languages, is used by millions of people every single day, and its Android app has racked up over a billion installs from the Google Play Store. In a 2018 Google earnings call, CEO Sundar Pichai said Google Translate translates some 143 billion words every single day.

Google Translate is powered by a system called Google Neural Machine Translation, which translates whole sentences at a time and contextualizes the words and phrases. GNMT is also an end-to-end learning system, which means the system learns and improves upon the process over time. 

In 2023, Google announced that Google Translate will use AI-powered features to further improve its services, such as offering context options during translations and incorporating Google Lens to translate images.

Here's everything you need to know about Google Translate and how to use it.

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Is Google Translate an app? 

Google Translate is available as an app for both iOS and Android devices.

You can type, write, or speak into the Google Translate app, and it will provide translations within seconds. Additionally, the app uses Google Lens image-recognition technology to translate text from images — just point your smartphone's camera at text in a foreign language (like a menu or a sign) and get a translation instantly.

Here's how to use it: 

Translate text

• Download the Google Translate app on your iPhone or Android.
• At the bottom of the screen, select input and output languages.
• Type the phrase or sentence you'd like to translate into the text field. The phrase will be translated in real time below.

Translate Images

• After choosing the languages or selecting Detect language , tap the Camera icon in the lower-right corner.
• Point your camera at any text you see so that it can be translated in real time.
• Tap the Shutter icon to take a picture of the text you would like translated. 
• To translate text from an image you've taken previously, tap the Gallery icon and select the photo from your iPhone's gallery. Google Translate will superimpose the translated words over the text in the image.

Translate with audio

• Tap the microphone icon at the bottom of the screen and dictate your sentence or phrase into the app.
• Wait a few moments for the app to translate your dedicated text and select the Speaker button to hear the translated audio.
• Tap the Speaker icon to hear the translation.
• As another option, tap the Transcribe icon and start speaking. You can then select and copy the transcription elsewhere. 

Quick tip: Offline translations are also available for many languages. Plus, you're able to save translated words and phrases for future use.

Is Google translate 100% right? 

Google Translate is not 100% accurate, nor is any other automated translation service. Google Translate has made some major mistakes, sometimes due to technology glitches and other times due to nuance or ambiguity in languages.

Google's accuracy can also vary greatly depending on the language pair. Research has indicated that Google Translate had a 94% accuracy rate when translating between English and Spanish but only a 55% accuracy rate when translating between English and Armenian. Research has also shown that Italian and German are among the hardest languages for Google to translate.

Can I use Google Translate to translate a name?  

Google Translate may help you translate a person's name — for instance, the name "George" plugged into Google Translate returns the name "Jorge" in Spanish — but use caution. Translations may not be contextually accurate, and rarer names may not be recognized.

Is ChatGPT or Google Translate better?

Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT have translation capabilities already and may well overtake Google Translate in the future. 

Early research has indicated that ChatGPT translations have better terminological accuracy than translations from Google Translate, however, Google Translate tends to be better than ChatGPT at translating less-common languages. Either way, both ChatGPT and Google Translate tend to be much less accurate than actual human translators.

Watch: These smartglasses use ChatGPT to help the blind and visually impaired

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7 simple ways to use google translate.

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Google Translate breaks down communication barriers by offering numerous ways to translate languages. For Android and iOS users, the Google Translate app is the best way to communicate on the go. Google Translate works with text, voice, or image inputs. While owners of the latest Google Pixel phone have access to the most features, any device has access to the fundamental tools that make Google Translate great.

We show you how to use the Google Translate app to translate text, images, or audio and explain extra features like Live Translate .

Does Google Translate work well?

Google Translate is constantly improving. While many people might consider it a shallow translation tool at best , unable to translate the meaning in a sentence, its progress over the years cannot be denied. While it can't grasp the subtle nuances of languages, it is more than adequate for everyday purposes.

Google Translate no longer performs a word-for-word match on text. Instead, it relies on machine learning to decide the most accurate translation. However, translation accuracy varies depending on the language. In a 2019 UCLA study based on medical instructions (where even the slightest ambiguity is unacceptable), they found a 94% accuracy rate for English to Spanish, compared to a 55% accuracy rate for English to Armenian.

However, since 2019, Google Translate has grown by adding more languages and features and improving its translation techniques. You may never run into issues if you use it to translate directions, menu items, or phrases. But if you're trying to translate a classical novel written in Armenian, find a human translator.

Where can I use Google Translate?

Google Translate is available as a mobile app for iPhones, iPads, and Android phones and as a Chrome extension. It comes preinstalled on most Android phones, so you shouldn't need to download it again from the Google Play Store. The app has the most features, but you'll need an internet connection to access all the features.

You can also access Google Translate through its web page or the Chrome extension . This extension allows you to translate web pages without copying the text into Google Translate.

Regardless of which platform you use it on, it provides multiple translation services.

How to translate conversations in real time with Google Translate

One of the most notable features of Google Translate is the translation of real-time conversations. In this situation, your mobile device works like a human translator. Speak a sentence, and the translated text appears on your screen as you speak. You can output the translation as audio, so the other party can listen to the translated version instead of reading it.

If you need offline translation, you must download the language pack beforehand.

• Open Google Translate.

• Tap the language heading above the lower-right microphone to choose a target language.
• Tap the microphone button under the Auto heading to use automatic translation.

How to translate text and speech in Google Translate

Google Translate's basic form of text translation can quickly and accurately translate single words or short phrases, which is handy if you're learning a new language and are stuck on a noun. You can type or speak your phrase, and Google Translate provides a text and audio translation.

• Tap the language button to the right of the arrows to choose a target language. You can tap the two arrow button between the languages to swap the languages.
• Tap Enter text to type a phrase.
• Tap the microphone button in the bottom center of your screen to speak a phrase.

How to use Google Translate with your camera

Google Translate can translate text that appears on images. This tool is helpful if you're reading signs, menus, or labels, and you can take a photo of the text or import an image.

• Tap the Camera icon in the lower-right corner of the screen.
• Tap the language in the upper-left corner of your screen to choose a source language.
• Tap the language in the upper-right corner of your screen to choose a target language. You can tap the two arrow buttons between the languages to swap the languages.
• Select Instant in the lower-left corner of your screen to translate an image in real time with your camera.

How to translate languages offline with Google Translate

If you're traveling, you may be unable to keep a constant internet connection. To avoid getting caught out, use Google Translate offline. Only a limited number of languages are supported offline . Here's how to download a language to use offline.

• Tap a language at the bottom of your screen.

How to translate handwriting in Google Translate

If you own a device with a stylus, like the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, you can use handwritten text instead of typing. However, everyone can also use this tool with their finger.

• Tap the handwriting button in the upper-right corner of your screen.

How to save phrases in Google Translate

If you regularly use a phrase, you can save it for easy access. These saved translations are saved across devices, and here's how to do it.

• Translate a phrase using text, voice, or handwriting.

To access your translations, go to Google Translate's homepage. Here, tap the star button in the upper-left corner of your screen. You can scroll to see all saved translations or tap the magnifying glass icon in the upper-right corner of your screen to search.

How to enable Live Translate on Google Pixel phones

Pixel phones have the best translation features of all Android phones. They can detect and translate languages in real time, creating a pop-up window showing the translation. You can start playing a video and see a translation within seconds. However, not all languages are compatible. Selecting a language shows compatible features.

• Open the Settings app.
• Scroll down and tap System .

• Toggle the Use Live Translate switch to on .
• Tap Add a language .
• Scroll down and tap the language you wish to translate.

When a conversation in a foreign language is detected, tap the Translate pop-up to translate the received text in real time.

Use Google Translate at home or on your next journey

Google Translate's powerful translation tools can make traveling a breeze, but language isn't the only obstacle to a safe trip. To ensure all your devices arrive safely, follow our guide to pack your electronics safely and securely .

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Google Translate 4+

Text, photo & voice translator.

• #1 in Reference
• 4.3 • 76.9K Ratings

Screenshots

Description.

Translate between up to 243 languages. Feature support varies by language: • Text: Translate between languages by typing • Offline: Translate with no internet connection • Instant camera translation: Translate text in images instantly by just pointing your camera • Photos: Translate text in taken or imported photos • Dictation: Translate spoken words and phrases • Conversations: Translate bilingual conversations on the fly • Transcribe: Continuously translate someone speaking a different language in near real-time • Handwriting: Draw text characters instead of typing • Phrasebook: Star and save translated words and phrases for future reference Permissions notice: • Microphone for speech translation • Camera for translating text via the camera • Photos for importing photos from your library Translations between the following languages are supported: Abkhaz, Acehnese, Acholi, Afar, Afrikaans, Albanian, Alur, Amharic, Arabic, Armenian, Assamese, Avar, Awadhi, Aymara, Azerbaijani, Balinese, Baluchi, Bambara, Baoulé, Bashkir, Basque, Batak Karo, Batak Simalungun, Batak Toba, Belarusian, Bemba, Bengali, Betawi, Bhojpuri, Bikol, Bosnian, Breton, Bulgarian, Buryat, Cantonese, Catalan, Cebuano, Chamorro, Chechen, Chichewa, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Chuukese, Chuvash, Corsican, Crimean Tatar, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dhivehi, Dinka, Dogri, Dombe, Dutch, Dyula, Dzongkha, English, Esperanto, Estonian, Ewe, Faroese, Fijian, Filipino, Finnish, Fon, French, Frisian, Friulian, Fulani, Ga, Galician, Georgian, German, Greek, Guarani, Gujarati, Haitian Creole, Hakha Chin, Hausa, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Hiligaynon, Hindi, Hmong, Hungarian, Hunsrik, Iban, Icelandic, Igbo, Ilocano, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Jamaican Patois, Japanese, Javanese, Jingpo, Kalaallisut, Kannada, Kanuri, Kapampangan, Kazakh, Khasi, Khmer, Kiga, Kikongo, Kinyarwanda, Kituba, Kokborok, Komi, Konkani, Korean, Krio, Kurdish (Kurmanji), Kurdish (Sorani), Kyrgyz, Lao, Latgalian, Latin, Latvian, Ligurian, Limburgish, Lingala, Lithuanian, Lombard, Luganda, Luo, Luxembourgish, Macedonian, Madurese, Maithili, Makassar, Malagasy, Malay, Malay (Jawi), Malayalam, Maltese, Mam, Manx, Maori, Marathi, Marshallese, Marwadi, Mauritian Creole, Meadow Mari, Meiteilon (Manipuri), Minang, Mizo, Mongolian, Myanmar (Burmese), Nahuatl (Eastern Huasteca), Ndau, Ndebele (South), Nepalbhasa (Newari), Nepali, NKo, Norwegian, Nuer, Occitan, Odia (Oriya), Oromo, Ossetian, Pangasinan, Papiamento, Pashto, Persian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Punjabi (Gurmukhi), Punjabi (Shahmukhi), Quechua, Qʼeqchiʼ, Romani, Romanian, Rundi, Russian, Sami (North), Samoan, Sango, Sanskrit, Santali, Scots Gaelic, Sepedi, Serbian, Sesotho, Seychellois Creole, Shan, Shona, Sicilian, Silesian, Sindhi, Sinhala, Slovak, Slovenian, Somali, Spanish, Sundanese, Susu, Swahili, Swati, Swedish, Tahitian, Tajik, Tamazight, Tamazight (Tifinagh), Tamil, Tatar, Telugu, Tetum, Thai, Tibetan, Tigrinya, Tiv, Tok Pisin, Tongan, Tsonga, Tswana, Tulu, Tumbuka, Turkish, Turkmen, Tuvan, Twi, Udmurt, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uyghur, Uzbek, Venda, Venetian, Vietnamese, Waray, Welsh, Wolof, Xhosa, Yakut, Yiddish, Yoruba, Yucatec Maya, Zapotec, Zulu

Version 8.16.493

• Text translation support for 110 more languages

Ratings and Reviews

76.9K Ratings

Now 5 Stars But Still Recommed Deepl

This is 1 of only 2 translator apps I will give 5 stars. It has gotten much better over time to the point that I can reasonable rely on it to doble check things. If you need real time transcription, Google Translate is the best. For anything else though including accuracy, definitely use Deepl. Google Translate has come a long way at figuring out Idioms, sayings, the right usage when something is ambiguous, etc. However, Deepl still gets things right more often, especially with the paid version when it can deep dive into things like verification of tone and level of formality for audience where what you have on paper may be 100% correct but may the verb usage is informal but a student is talking to a teacher. This is area Google Translate comes up short. Overall though, 5 stars and definitely far better than any of those other translator apps out there except Deepl.

Horrible Application Given the Size of the Company

The Google translate app is a joke. There are very few apps that can lead someone to yell expletives while sitting in their kitchen trying to enjoy a cup of tea. Editing something you’ve written on the Google Translate App is a pitiful process filled with tapping the screen of your phone over and over attempting to unselect individual words or sentences. Sometimes it selects the entirety of what you’ve written and won’t allow you to unselect it without a fight. It’s unconscionable that the process for editing what you’ve written doesn’t follow every other smart phone format. Not only that, when you’ve finished writing of considerable length, in my case an email, and would like to highlight, copy and paste it, you will quickly realize you cannot highlight and scroll at the same time like you can on any other apple app that includes type. Instead, you’re forced to go through a ridiculous process of highlighting as much as you can see, pasting it, returning to the app, copying more and then pasting that. I repeated that process six time before I had copied my email over to gmail. If I had more time I would go into detail about the “define” tool that pops up unprovoked and further adds to the absolute farce that is the UX of this application. For a company like Google to have produced such a dysfunctional infuriating UI is truly shameful.

This used to be excellent. Google lens made it terrible!

As usual an update makes the produce worse instead of better. I live in a foreign country because of my husbands job. I use this app everyday. ALL THE TIME! Before, I could use the camera option to translate in real time or take a picture and let it scan for text. Then I could choose which text to translate, it could be 1 word or 1 sentence or 1 paragraph or the whole thing. The lastest update removed this option. Now when I click on the camera option it says “Google lens” it automatically blocks out the original texts and puts the translation over it, like it did previously but now when I take the picture I can not scan the text and choose what part to translate. It simply takes a screen shot of the translation already made on the first screen. If I try to select a specific word, it selects the translation and then translates it back into the original language. This does work well! The meaning gets more and more mixed up until it just makes no sense at all. Translating a translation instead of just scanning the original text is a huge downgrade. I am so frustrated! I am going to start looking for other translators because this has caused a lot of issues for me, on a daily basis. I’ll keep checking back to see if they ever fix this issue or not.

App Privacy

The developer, Google , indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .

Data Linked to You

The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:

• Contact Info
• User Content
• Search History
• Identifiers
• Diagnostics

Data Not Linked to You

The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:

• Browsing History

Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More

Information

English, Afrikaans, Albanian, Arabic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Basque, Belarusian, Bengali, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Cambodian, Catalan, Corsican, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Filipino, Finnish, French, Gaelic, Galician, Georgian, German, Greek, Gujarati, Haitian, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Igbo, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, Kazakh, Korean, Kyrgyz, Laotian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malay, Malayalam, Maltese, Marathi, Mongolian, Nepali, Norwegian Bokmål, Pashto, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Shona, Simplified Chinese, Singhalese, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Tajik, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Welsh, Yiddish, Yoruba, Zulu

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Voice   Generator

This web app allows you to generate voice audio from text - no login needed, and it's completely free! It uses your browser's built-in voice synthesis technology, and so the voices will differ depending on the browser that you're using. You can download the audio as a file, but note that the downloaded voices may be different to your browser's voices because they are downloaded from an external text-to-speech server. If you don't like the externally-downloaded voice, you can use a recording app on your device to record the "system" or "internal" sound while you're playing the generated voice audio.

Want more voices? You can download the generated audio and then use voicechanger.io to add effects to the voice. For example, you can make the voice sound more robotic, or like a giant ogre, or an evil demon. You can even use it to reverse the generated audio, randomly distort the speed of the voice throughout the audio, add a scary ghost effect, or add an "anonymous hacker" effect to it.

Note: If the list of available text-to-speech voices is small, or all the voices sound the same, then you may need to install text-to-speech voices on your device. Many operating systems (including some versions of Android, for example) only come with one voice by default, and the others need to be downloaded in your device's settings. If you don't know how to install more voices, and you can't find a tutorial online, you can try downloading the audio with the download button instead. As mentioned above, the downloaded audio uses external voices which may be different to your device's local ones.

You're free to use the generated voices for any purpose - no attribution needed. You could use this website as a free voice over generator for narrating your videos in cases where don't want to use your real voice. You can also adjust the pitch of the voice to make it sound younger/older, and you can even adjust the rate/speed of the generated speech, so you can create a fast-talking high-pitched chipmunk voice if you want to.

Note: If you have offline-compatible voices installed on your device (check your system Text-To-Speech settings), then this web app works offline! Find the "add to homescreen" or "install" button in your browser to add a shortcut to this app in your home screen. And note that if you don't have an internet connection, or if for some reason the voice audio download isn't working for you, you can also use a recording app that records your devices "internal" or "system" sound.

Got some feedback? You can share it with me here .

If you like this project check out these: AI Chat , AI Anime Generator , AI Image Generator , and AI Story Generator .

Google Translate text-to-speech

The google_translate text-to-speech platform uses the unofficial Google Translate text-to-speech engine to read a text with natural sounding voices. Contrary to what the name suggests, the integration only does text-to-speech and does not translate messages sent to it.

Configuration

To add the Google Translate text-to-speech integration to your Home Assistant instance, use this My button:

If the above My button doesn’t work, you can also perform the following steps manually:

Browse to your Home Assistant instance.

Go to Settings > Devices & Services .

In the bottom right corner, select the Add Integration button.

From the list, select Google Translate text-to-speech .

Follow the instructions on screen to complete the setup.

All languages where the “Talk” feature is enabled in Google Translate are supported. The following is the current list of languages supported by Google.

Check the complete list of supported tld for allowed TLD values. This is used to force the dialect used when multiple fall into the same 2-digit language code(i.e., US, UK, AU )

You can also use supported BCP 47 tags like the below or the 2-2 digit format for your supported dialect( en-gb or en-us ). Below is a list of the currently implemented mappings:

Action speak

The tts.speak action is the modern way to use Google translate TTS action. Add the speak action, select the entity for your Google translate TTS (it’s named for the language you created it with), select the media player entity or group to send the TTS audio to, and enter the message to speak.

For more options about speak , see the Speak section on the main TTS building block page.

In YAML, your action will look like this:

Action say (legacy)

The google_translate_say action can be used when configuring the legacy google_translate text-to-speech platform in configuration.yaml . We recommend new users to instead set up the integration in the UI and use the tts.speak action with the corresponding Google Translate text-to-speech entity as target.

The google_translate_say action supports language and also options for setting tld . The text for speech is set with message . Since release 0.92, the action name can be defined in the configuration service_name option.

Say to all media_player device entities:

Say to the media_player.floor device entity:

Say to the media_player.floor device entity in French:

Say to the media_player.floor device entity in UK English:

With a template:

For more information about using text-to-speech with Home Assistant and more details on all the options it provides, see the TTS documentation .

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Translate by speech

If your device has a microphone, you can translate spoken words and phrases. In some languages, you can hear the translation spoken aloud.

Important: If you use an audible screen reader, we recommend you use headphones, as the screen reader voice may interfere with the transcribed speech.

Translate with a microphone

Important: Supported languages vary by browser. You can translate with a microphone in Chrome and there’s limited support in Safari and Edge.

• On a Mac: Microphone settings are in the System Preferences .
• On a PC: Microphone settings are in the Control Panel .

• On your computer, go to  Google Translate .
• Translation with a microphone won’t automatically detect your language.

• Speak the word or phrase you want to translate.

Listen to translations spoken aloud

• Go to Google Translate .
• Choose the languages to translate to and from.
• In the text box, enter content you want to translate.

Troubleshoot error messages

Need permission to use microphone, voice input isn't supported on this browser, voice input isn't available, we're having trouble hearing you.

If you get an error message that says "We're having trouble hearing you," try these steps:

• Move to a quiet room.
• Use an external microphone.
• Turn up the input volume on your microphone.

Related resources

Download & use Google Translate

Translate a bilingual conversation

Need more help?

Try these next steps:.

Feature Suggestion: Text-to-Speech for Selected Text

Dear OpenAI Team,

I would like to suggest an enhancement to the text-to-speech functionality within ChatGPT.

Currently, it seems that the platform only allows users to listen to the entire response. It would be extremely helpful if users could select specific portions of the text and have only that part read aloud. Right now, to achieve this, many of us copy the text and use external tools like Google Translator for the desired functionality.

Adding this feature directly to the platform would improve accessibility and make it much easier to engage with specific content without needing to listen to the entire response.

Thank you for considering this suggestion, and I look forward to your feedback!

Best regards, Mark Likvornik

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Speaker 1: Welcome to the quick start for Cloud Speech-to-Text, which converts speech into text using Google's AI technologies. In this video, we walk through how to convert an audio file to text using the REST interface and the curl command. To get started with Cloud Speech-to-Text, you need a Google Cloud project. You can use an existing project or set up a new one in the Google Cloud Console at console.cloud.google.com. Visit the APIs and Services section of the console and enable the Cloud Speech-to-Text API for your project. Next, you need to set up authentication. In the APIs and Services section, click on Credentials, create a new service account, and download the private key as JSON. You can use these credentials to access Google Cloud APIs, so make sure to keep this file secure and out of your code and public repositories. To securely access the credentials from your project, go to your terminal and set an environment variable to the path of your JSON file. If you don't yet have the Google Cloud SDK installed on your machine, then install and initialize it. Instructions are linked below. Create a new JSON request file, add the following text, and save it as a sync-request.json plain text file. This JSON snippet indicates that the audio file has a FLAC encoding format, a sample rate of 16,000 Hz, and is stored in a Google Cloud Storage bucket at the given URI. Next, use curl to make a request to the speech.googleapis.com endpoint. This curl command specifies sync-request.json as the file name of the JSON request you just created. Run the curl command, and you should see the following response. Here we can see the transcribed text, as well as a confidence value that estimates how likely it is that the transcription is accurate. And that's it. You now know how to make a call to the Cloud Speech-to-Text API using a curl command. Make sure to check out the rest of our Cloud Speech-to-Text documentation at cloud.google.com slash speech-to-text slash docs.