I Spent Three Months Testing Free Translation Tools So You Don't Have To

Last year, I was building a SaaS app and needed to add Spanish and French support. My budget? Basically zero. I figured there had to be decent free options out there, so I went down the rabbit hole of trying every "free" translation management tool I could find.

Here's what I actually learned after using them on real projects.

The Honest Truth About "Free" in This Space

Before we dive in, let me be upfront: nothing is truly free. You're either paying with money, time, or limitations. The question is which tradeoff works for your situation right now.

Here's a quick breakdown of what you're actually getting:

Platform	What's Actually Free	The Catch	My Take
IntlPull	1,000 keys, 100 AI translations/mo	Hits limits fast on bigger apps	Great for MVPs and small projects
Crowdin	Unlimited for open source	Commercial? Pay up ($50+/mo)	If you're OSS, this is gold
Tolgee	Everything (self-hosted)	You run the servers	Worth it if you like DevOps
Weblate	Everything (self-hosted)	Steep learning curve	Overkill for most indie projects
Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

IntlPull	1,000 keys, 100 AI translations/mo	Hits limits fast on bigger apps	Great for MVPs and small projects
Crowdin	Unlimited for open source	Commercial? Pay up ($50+/mo)	If you're OSS, this is gold
Tolgee	Everything (self-hosted)	You run the servers	Worth it if you like DevOps
Weblate	Everything (self-hosted)	Steep learning curve	Overkill for most indie projects
Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

IntlPull	1,000 keys, 100 AI translations/mo	Hits limits fast on bigger apps	Great for MVPs and small projects
Crowdin	Unlimited for open source	Commercial? Pay up ($50+/mo)	If you're OSS, this is gold
Tolgee	Everything (self-hosted)	You run the servers	Worth it if you like DevOps
Weblate	Everything (self-hosted)	Steep learning curve	Overkill for most indie projects
Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

Crowdin	Unlimited for open source	Commercial? Pay up ($50+/mo)	If you're OSS, this is gold
Tolgee	Everything (self-hosted)	You run the servers	Worth it if you like DevOps
Weblate	Everything (self-hosted)	Steep learning curve	Overkill for most indie projects
Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

Tolgee	Everything (self-hosted)	You run the servers	Worth it if you like DevOps
Weblate	Everything (self-hosted)	Steep learning curve	Overkill for most indie projects
Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

Weblate	Everything (self-hosted)	Steep learning curve	Overkill for most indie projects
Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

Traduora	Basic features (self-hosted)	Development has slowed down	Simple but limited
DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

DIY with JSON	Zero cost	Zero features too	Fine until it isn't

What I Actually Tried (And What Happened)

IntlPull

I'll be honest, I work with the IntlPull team now, but I genuinely found this tool when looking for free options. The free tier gave me exactly what I needed for my side project: somewhere to store translations, a CLI that didn't make me want to scream, and AI translation that actually worked.

What I liked:

Setup took maybe five minutes. No joke.

The AI translations were surprisingly good for UI text

CLI felt natural if you're used to git workflows

Where it falls short:

1,000 keys sounds like a lot until you realize your app has 400 strings in just the settings page

100 AI translations per month goes fast when you're adding a new language

You'll probably hit the limit if your app grows

Real talk: This works great for side projects, MVPs, or small apps. If you're building something bigger, budget for the paid tier eventually. The jump to Pro at $29/month isn't bad, but it's something to plan for.

Getting started is straightforward:

npm install -g intlpull
intlpull init
intlpull push

Crowdin's Open Source Program

If your project is open source, stop reading and go apply for Crowdin's OSS program. I've seen major projects use it and it's legitimately generous.

The good:

Unlimited everything for qualifying projects

Huge community of volunteer translators

The platform is mature and stable

The reality check:

You need an actual open source license. Side projects with MIT license qualify, but your commercial SaaS? Nope.

The interface feels like it was designed in 2015 (because it probably was)

Commercial pricing starts at $50/month and goes up from there

Who this is actually for: If you maintain an open source library or tool and want community contributions for translations, Crowdin is probably your best bet. For commercial work, look elsewhere unless you have budget.

Self-Hosting with Tolgee

I spent a weekend setting up Tolgee on a DigitalOcean droplet. It was... an experience.

docker run -d -p 8080:8080 tolgee/tolgee

That command makes it look easy. In reality, I also had to:

Set up a proper database (the embedded one isn't for production)

Configure SSL because of course I did

Figure out backups

Maintain the thing going forward

What you get:

No limits on keys or languages

Full control over your data

Pretty nice UI, honestly

Good React integration if that's your stack

What it costs you:

Server costs ($10-20/month for a small droplet)

Your weekend to set it up properly

A few hours monthly keeping it updated

The mental overhead of running another service

My verdict: If you enjoy running your own infrastructure and have a few hours to spare, Tolgee is solid. If you just want translations to work so you can ship features, maybe not.

Weblate

I tried Weblate because it shows up in every "best free TMS" article. After three hours of configuration, I gave up.

It's powerful. It integrates deeply with Git. It has quality checks and suggestions. But it's also built for large community translation projects, not for an indie dev who just wants to ship Spanish support.

Best for: Linux distros, large open source projects with dedicated translation teams.

Not for: Solo developers who value their time.

The DIY Approach

Before trying any of these tools, I just used JSON files in my repo with i18next. It works! But it also meant:

Manually checking which translations were missing

No way to see translations in context

Hoping I didn't have typos in keys

Asking friends to translate and managing edits via GitHub PRs

If you have 50 strings and one language, this is fine. Beyond that, you're trading time for money in a way that probably doesn't make sense.

Real Advice for Bootstrapped Projects

Here's what I'd tell past me:

If You're Pre-Launch

Start with IntlPull's free tier or just JSON files. Don't overthink it. You'll probably rewrite half your strings anyway once you get user feedback.

If You're an Open Source Maintainer

Apply for Crowdin's OSS program immediately. It's the best deal you'll get in this space.

If You're a Small Team with Some Revenue

Pay for a tool. Seriously. I wasted probably 20 hours over a few months managing translations manually or debugging self-hosted setups. At any reasonable hourly rate, that's more expensive than just paying $29-50/month for a proper tool.

If You Love Running Infrastructure

Tolgee self-hosted is genuinely good. Just go in with realistic expectations about ongoing maintenance.

The Hidden Costs Nobody Talks About

Self-hosted "free" isn't free:

What You're Actually Paying	Realistic Estimate
Server (even a small one)	$10-20/month
Initial setup	A weekend
Monthly maintenance	2-3 hours
Debugging when it breaks	Priceless frustration

Server (even a small one)	$10-20/month
Initial setup	A weekend
Monthly maintenance	2-3 hours
Debugging when it breaks	Priceless frustration

Server (even a small one)	$10-20/month
Initial setup	A weekend
Monthly maintenance	2-3 hours
Debugging when it breaks	Priceless frustration

Initial setup	A weekend
Monthly maintenance	2-3 hours
Debugging when it breaks	Priceless frustration

Monthly maintenance	2-3 hours
Debugging when it breaks	Priceless frustration

Debugging when it breaks	Priceless frustration

DIY "free" isn't free either:

Task	Time Per Month
Finding missing translations	1-2 hours
Syncing files between languages	2 hours
Quality checking	1 hour
Context switching	Constant

Finding missing translations	1-2 hours
Syncing files between languages	2 hours
Quality checking	1 hour
Context switching	Constant

Finding missing translations	1-2 hours
Syncing files between languages	2 hours
Quality checking	1 hour
Context switching	Constant

Syncing files between languages	2 hours
Quality checking	1 hour
Context switching	Constant

Quality checking	1 hour
Context switching	Constant

Context switching	Constant

I'm not saying don't go free. I'm saying be honest about what you're trading.

Signs You've Outgrown Free Tools

You should probably start paying when:

You're spending more than 4 hours a month on translation tasks

You have more than 3 languages (complexity scales fast)

Translators or teammates are asking for better tools

You're losing track of which strings are translated where

Your app has more than 1,000 strings

At that point, the $29-50/month for a proper TMS pays for itself in time saved.

What I'd Choose Today

For my current situation (small SaaS, 2 languages, limited time), I use IntlPull's paid tier. The free tier was enough to validate that I needed multiple languages, and upgrading was painless.

For my open source side projects, Crowdin's free tier is perfect.

I don't self-host anymore. The maintenance overhead isn't worth it when I could be shipping features instead.

Bottom Line

There's no universally "best" free option. It depends on:

Your project type: Open source has way more free options

Your time budget: Self-hosted is free in dollars, expensive in hours

Your scale: Small apps can stay free longer

Start with something simple. You can always migrate later. Most of these tools let you export your translations as JSON, so you're not locked in.

Getting Started

If you want to try IntlPull (yes, it's what I use and I'm biased):

Run intlpull init in your project

Push your existing translations with intlpull push

Try the AI translation to see if it works for your content

The free tier gives you 1,000 keys and 100 AI translations monthly. That's enough for most side projects and early-stage apps. When you hit the limits, you'll know it's time to upgrade.

Or try one of the other options I mentioned. The point is to stop wasting time on translation mechanics so you can focus on building your actual product.

Best Free Translation Management Systems in 2025