Teams look past DeepL when per-user character caps and a jump to €49.99 for unlimited use stop fitting, when they need translation inside a localization workflow, or when they want usage-based billing. Most go to Google Cloud Translation for an engine, or to Smartling, Crowdin and Lokalise for managed workflows.
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What each alternative does differently
1. Google Cloud Translation
Machine translation API on Google Cloud · United States
The like-for-like engine choice. It is metered per million characters on a Google Cloud account with a monthly free allowance, in Basic and Advanced editions plus LLM-based and custom models. Glossary and custom models need Advanced. It has no seat limits and no translator interface.
Switch from DeepL if you call translation from code and want usage billing instead of per-user plans.
Pricing: Usage-based pricing per million characters on a Google Cloud account, with a monthly free allowance and separate rates for advanced and custom models. (free plan)
Full review: #16 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Google Cloud Translation →
2. Weglot
Website translation layer for any CMS · France
Translates a website, not loose documents. Plans are set by translated words and languages, from a free plan of 2,000 words and one language to quoted enterprise. It includes AI translation, glossary rules and editing control, with professional translators on mid-tier plans.
Switch from DeepL if your main job is translating a website and you want a live language switcher.
Pricing: Free plan for 2,000 words and one language; paid plans priced by translated word count and number of languages, starting at $17 per month. (free plan)
Full review: #3 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Weglot →
3. Smartling
Enterprise translation platform with language services · United States
Enterprise translation management that sits above engines: it offers LLM translation, more than 20 machine translation engines through its AI Hub, and a network of over 4,000 professional linguists. Billed in tiers with services priced separately, so it fits marketing and product teams.
Switch from DeepL if you need machine and human translation in one governed workflow at enterprise scale.
Pricing: Core plan free to start for document translation, with Smartling's machine, AI and human translation billed per word (machine from $0.0075, human from $0.20); Enterprise sized and quoted by sales. (free plan)
Full review: #7 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Smartling →
4. Crowdin
Localization management for software, docs and content · Estonia
Localization management for software and content, priced by hosted words, meaning source words multiplied by target languages. It has translation memory, glossaries, an online editor and over 700 integrations. Free options exist for open-source and academic projects, and Enterprise is annual only.
Switch from DeepL if you translate app strings and docs with contributors, and want review and translation memory.
Pricing: Free plan including open-source projects; paid plans from $50 per month with unlimited translators, Team and Team+ tiers above, and Crowdin Enterprise on quote. (free plan)
Full review: #1 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Crowdin →
5. Lokalise
Localization platform built around product teams · Latvia
A product-team localization platform with published monthly plans, from Explorer through Growth and Advanced to quoted Enterprise, and a 14-day trial. Pages describe AI capabilities and automation. It covers strings and workflows, not the ad hoc paste-and-translate use that DeepL's apps serve.
Switch from DeepL if your translators and developers need shared workflows for product strings.
Pricing: Published monthly plans starting at $149 per month for Explorer, rising through Growth and Advanced, with Enterprise on quote; 14-day free trial. (free trial)
Full review: #2 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Lokalise →
6. Phrase
Translation management for documents and software strings · Czech Republic
Publishes team plans from $1,245 a month on annual billing, with a separate software UI/UX plan at $525 and a $27 freelancer plan. It bundles translation management and string localization, includes 24/7 support, and sells extra capacity for seats, words and AI units.
Switch from DeepL if you need a full translation management suite with integrations such as Zendesk and Drupal.
Pricing: Published tiers for the platform with enterprise contracts on quote; 14-day free trial of the full platform. (free trial)
Full review: #5 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Phrase →
7. Smartcat
AI translation platform with a linguist marketplace · United States
Sold as annual AI-agent packages, from $1,200 for Adapt to $60,000 for Anticipate, measured in Smartwords. Translation memory matches stay free, and higher tiers open a marketplace of over 500,000 experts. The entry package is a content platform, not a translation box.
Switch from DeepL if you want AI translation with a marketplace of human reviewers under one annual contract.
Pricing: Annual plans, with the entry package from $1,200 a year and larger packages quoted by sales; 15-day free trial. (free trial)
Full review: #11 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Smartcat →
8. memoQ
CAT tool and translation management for language teams · Hungary
Translator-grade tooling in three parts: memoQ TMS, the memoQ translator pro desktop app and AI translation. It lists automated quality checks, terminology management and machine translation integrations. It is built for language service providers and professional translators, not casual document use.
Switch from DeepL if you are a translator or agency that needs terminology control and quality checks.
Pricing: Desktop translator licenses plus a cloud TMS priced per year, with the starter package from €2,750 annually; 14-day free trial. (free trial)
Full review: #6 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit memoQ →
9. Weblate
Open-source, Git-integrated localization platform · Czech Republic
Open-source, Git-integrated localization with self-hosting and no licence fee. Hosted Weblate starts at €47 a month and scales by hosted strings, which are source strings multiplied by languages. Support plans cost extra, and you operate the server if you self-host.
Switch from DeepL if you want to self-host open-source localization tied to your Git repositories.
Pricing: Free open-source software under GPLv3 for self-hosting, with paid hosted plans and support contracts from the maintainers. (open source)
Full review: #15 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Weblate →
10. Tolgee
Open-source localization with in-context editing · Czech Republic
Open-source localization with a free cloud plan of 30,000 words and three seats. Paid cloud plans start at €58 a month annually, with unlimited seats and projects, and MT credits calculated from LLM token use. An on-premises option covers data residency needs.
Switch from DeepL if you want in-context editing for app strings and unlimited seats at a low entry price.
Pricing: Open-source core that can be self-hosted, a free cloud tier, and paid cloud plans published in euros starting at €58 per month billed annually. (open source)
Full review: #10 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Tolgee →
11. Localazy
Developer-friendly localization with automation · Czech Republic
Billed by source keys rather than characters: a free plan covers 200 keys, and translating into more languages does not raise key counts. Paid plans include monthly credits for machine translation and AI at one dollar per credit. It targets developers with 50+ frameworks.
Switch from DeepL if you ship an app in many languages and want pricing by source key.
Pricing: Free plan for small projects and published paid tiers that scale with source keys and languages; 14-day trial of the Business plan. (free plan)
Full review: #9 of 17 in our ranking ·
Visit Localazy →
Questions and answers
Does DeepL use my text to train its models?
On the free version, yes: the privacy policy says uploaded content and translations are used to train its neural networks. For paid subscribers, texts are deleted after the contracted service and are not used to improve it. If you move to a free tier elsewhere, check that vendor's policy.
Where does DeepL process my documents?
The privacy policy says document translation is provided exclusively by DeepL on its infrastructure in the EEA, and names DeepL SE and DeepL AI GmbH in Cologne, Germany as the main controller. Compare that statement with the data location of any replacement.
How many characters does a DeepL plan include?
Individual includes 300,000 characters a month, Team 1,000,000 per user, and Business unlimited characters. The free version allows 50,000 characters a month. Enterprise limits are custom. Compare these caps with your real monthly volume before you pick a metered alternative.
Can I take my DeepL glossaries with me?
We could not verify a documented bulk export, so assume you will recreate them. DeepL lists glossaries as a plan feature: one on Individual, five on Team and unlimited on Business. Keep your source term lists in a spreadsheet before you cancel.
Which alternatives are translation engines and which are workflow tools?
Google Cloud Translation is the engine, billed per character. Smartling, Crowdin, Lokalise, Phrase, Smartcat and Weglot wrap machine and human translation in workflows. Smartling says it exposes more than 20 machine translation engines, so many workflow tools sit on top of an engine rather than replace it.
Does DeepL still make sense after I add a localization platform?
Often yes, since a platform can sit on top of a machine translation engine, but we only verified this for Smartling's multi-engine AI Hub. Ask each vendor whether DeepL is an engine option and whether you would still pay DeepL for it.
