Frequently Asked Questions

You can translate PDF documents, Word documents (.docx, .doc), PowerPoint presentations (.pptx), Excel spreadsheets (.xlsx, .xls), and plain text files (.txt) - covering everything from contracts and resumes to academic papers, user manuals, marketing decks, and financial reports. Your translated file is returned in the same format you uploaded, so a PowerPoint comes back as a PowerPoint and an Excel file comes back as an Excel file. The one exception is PDF: when translating to a different language, you can choose to receive your translated PDF as an editable Word document (.docx), which is ideal if you need to revise or reformat the translation afterward.

We currently support translations between English (US), Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), and French - that's 12 directional language pairs in total, so you can go in any direction (English to French, French to Spanish, Portuguese to English, and so on). Every translation runs on DeepL, the engine widely considered the most accurate for European languages, and you can correct the auto-detected source language on the upload screen if it guesses wrong. We plan to add more languages over time; if there's a pair you need, let us know at [email protected].

Most documents are translated in under a minute. A 1-5 page PDF typically finishes in 15-30 seconds; a 20-page document usually completes in under a minute; and even a full 60-page file rarely takes longer than two minutes. You'll see a progress indicator while we work and the translated file is ready to download as soon as DeepL finishes. The download link is also emailed to you, so you can walk away from the upload page and come back when it's convenient - you don't need to keep the tab open.

Yes. The maximum file size is 10 MB and the maximum document length is 60 pages. If your document is larger, the best workaround is to split it into smaller files (for example, by chapter or section) and translate each piece separately - you'll still pay the flat per-document tier rate, which often works out cheaper than a single large job. For PDFs, we count the extractable text pages; scanned image-only PDFs cannot be processed at all because there is no selectable text (see Q13 for the OCR workflow). Files that exceed the limits are rejected before checkout, so you never pay for a file we can't process.

Pricing is a flat one-time fee based on your document's page count - no per-word charges, no subscriptions, no hidden fees. Our five tiers are: 1-5 pages for $4.99, 6-10 pages for $9.99, 11-20 pages for $17.99, 21-40 pages for $34.99, and 41-60 pages for $42.99. You see the exact price on the upload page before you commit to checkout, and you only pay if you decide to go through with the translation. All prices are in US dollars and are charged via Stripe.

Your satisfaction is our priority. If you're not fully satisfied with the quality of your translation for any reason, contact us at [email protected] and we'll issue a full refund - no questions asked. Refunds are processed back to your original payment method and typically arrive within 3-5 business days, depending on your bank. You keep the translated file either way, so there's no risk in trying us out for a single document before deciding whether to send more.

Our translations are powered by DeepL, which is widely benchmarked as the most accurate machine translation engine for European languages - it consistently outperforms Google Translate and Microsoft Translator on fluency and nuance in independent evaluations. It excels at business documents, technical writing, marketing copy, academic papers, and plain-language legal text. DeepL is less reliable for highly literary material, heavy idiom, poetry, or deeply specialized jargon, and it is not a substitute for certified or sworn translations required for court filings, immigration paperwork, or official notarized documents. For those cases, we recommend a human translator with the appropriate certification.

No. We use a simple one-time email verification (a 6-digit code sent to your inbox) to confirm you own the email address - that's it. There's no account to create, no password to remember, and no profile that tracks you across sessions or devices. It's the least-friction way to run a one-off translation, and it means there's no login for someone else to compromise. Your email is only used to send the verification code, the download link for the translation you paid for, and any support replies you ask for.

All files are transmitted over encrypted connections (HTTPS) and stored in private Supabase buckets that are not publicly accessible. Both the original and translated files are automatically deleted within 7 days, and download links expire 24 hours after upload. DeepL, our translation provider, does not train its models on your documents and does not retain the content after the translation is returned. We do not sell, share, or advertise against your data - your files are used only to deliver the translation you paid for. See our Privacy Policy for full details and a list of sub-processors.

After your translation is complete, you'll see a download button on the success page and you'll also receive the same download link by email. The link stays valid for 24 hours from when you uploaded the document, and you can re-use it as many times as you like within that window - re-download to a different device, share it with a teammate on the same project, or come back later the same day. After 24 hours the link expires for privacy reasons; if you need it reissued, contact us at [email protected] within the 7-day file retention window.

Yes. If you have a promo code, enter it on the verification page before checkout. Valid promo codes waive the payment step entirely and send you straight to your translation. Each code can only be used once per email address, and some codes have a maximum page limit (typically 5 pages for our free-trial lead codes). If a code doesn't apply to your document - for example, because your file exceeds the code's page cap - you'll see a clear message and can still proceed with regular paid checkout.

If you need to translate multiple documents, set up recurring service for your organization, or negotiate volume pricing for a larger project, reach out to us at [email protected] with a quick description of your use case, expected monthly volume, and language pairs. We typically respond within one business day and can put together a custom arrangement - including invoiced billing, dedicated support, and volume discounts - depending on your needs. We work with law firms, academic researchers, small businesses, and translation agencies.

Our service works with text-based PDFs - documents where you can select and copy the text directly. Scanned PDFs and image-based PDFs (photos or scans of pages) cannot be translated because there is no extractable text for DeepL to process. If your file is a scan, convert it to a text-based document first using a free OCR tool like Adobe Acrobat Online, Smallpdf, or OnlineOCR.net, then upload the OCR'd result here. Quality of the final translation depends on how cleanly the OCR step recognized the original text, so check the intermediate file before uploading.

No. Translate It Now uses DeepL machine translation and does not provide a signed Certificate of Accuracy, so our translations are not accepted by USCIS, immigration courts, or as 'certified translations' in the legal sense. Law firms, attorneys, and paralegals do use us extensively for internal working translations - reading foreign-language contracts, exhibits, depositions, and correspondence; drafting document summaries for client review; and preparing materials before sending the final version to a certified translator for signature. For filings that require a Certificate of Translation, use a dedicated certified translation provider such as ImmiTranslate, RushTranslate, or any ATA-member translator (see atanet.org for the American Translators Association directory). If you're unsure whether your use case needs certification, a good rule of thumb: any time a document will be submitted to a government agency, court, or licensing board, you need a certified human translator, not a machine translation.

Both are powerful machine translation engines, but they're optimized for different things. Google Translate covers more than 130 languages and is great for quick phrase lookups or text you'd otherwise understand nothing of. DeepL supports fewer languages but consistently outperforms Google on fluency and nuance for European languages - independent academic and human-preference studies rank it #1 for English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French (the four languages we support). DeepL also does not train on your uploaded documents and does not serve ads. We chose DeepL specifically because document translation demands formatting fidelity and a professional tone, which is exactly where it shines.

A 20-page PDF falls into our 11-20 page tier, which is a flat $17.99 - one payment, one download, no subscription. For reference, our full pricing is: 1-5 pages $4.99, 6-10 pages $9.99, 11-20 pages $17.99, 21-40 pages $34.99, and 41-60 pages $42.99. There are no per-word charges, no hidden fees, and no surprise add-ons. The upload page calculates your exact price automatically from the file you dropped in, so you always see the total before committing to checkout. Pricing is the same whether you're translating from English to Spanish, French to Portuguese, or any of the 12 supported language pairs.

Yes. When you upload a .docx file, the translated document comes back as a .docx with headings, paragraphs, bullet lists, numbered lists, tables, inline bold and italic, images, footnotes, and page breaks all intact. DeepL translates the text content while leaving the underlying document structure untouched, so complex layouts - resumes with multi-column designs, contracts with numbered clauses, reports with embedded charts - survive the round trip cleanly. Older .doc files work the same way. If you notice any formatting issue after download, contact [email protected] within 7 days and we'll investigate and reissue the translation or refund your payment.