Crowdin vs Smartling

A 2026 side-by-side comparison of Crowdin and Smartling — pricing, key features, platforms, API access, and the trade-offs of each, based on data collected from their official sites.

Tagline

Localization software for managing multilingual content, automating translation sync, and integrating with 700+ apps.

End-to-end localization and translation services for global growth

Pricing

Freemium
Paid

Rating

0.0 (0)
0.0 (0)

Platforms

WebAndroidiOS
Web

API

Yes
Yes

Open source

No
No

Description

Crowdin is a localization management platform that helps teams automate the translation of product UI, mobile apps, websites, marketing materials, and documentation. It integrates with tools like GitHub, GitLab, and Figma to synchronize content seamlessly, and supports AI translation tools, glossaries, translation memory, and over-the-air mobile SDKs.

Smartling is an all-in-one translation orchestration platform and translation management system. It enables enterprises to translate, automate, and manage content across platforms using 20+ LLMs, machine translation engines, and a network of over 4,000 professional human linguists.

Key features

  • Continuous localization with GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Figma
  • Context Harvesting CLI for automated string comments
  • Over-the-air content delivery with iOS and Android SDKs
  • Translation Memory (TM) and Glossaries
  • Real-time visual translation previews and screenshot tagging
  • Smart routing with multiple LLMs like OpenAI and Gemini
  • Customizable localization workflows
  • Online collaborative translation editor
  • Automated content sync via API, CDN, SDKs, and Webhooks
  • In-Context Overlay web app previews
  • Translation Orchestration
  • Linguistic Quality Assurance (LQA)
  • Workflow Automation
  • Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) Tool
  • Glossary and Terminology Management
  • Real-time Dashboards & Analytics
  • Visual Context
  • LLM and Machine Translation Engine Integration
  • Open APIs and SDKs
  • Secure MCP Server
  • 50+ Brand Integrations
  • Global Delivery Network (GDN) Web Proxy

Pros

  • Offers a completely free plan with essential features for translators and open-source projects.
  • Allows inviting an unlimited number of translators and proofreaders to projects on any paid plan.
  • Provides a 14-day free trial of the Team plan and a 30-day free trial of Crowdin Enterprise.
  • Features a 30-day money-back guarantee where refunds can be requested if canceled within 30 days of signup.
  • Connects seamlessly with over 700 apps and integrations including continuous integration tools.
  • Offers a badge program that lets users double their limits on personal plans or add 5,000 strings on organization plans for free.
  • Enables context-aware translation with visual screenshots, code comments, and automated context harvesting.
  • Supports academic licenses with unlimited projects, strings, and members for educational institutions.
  • Automates up to 99% of the translation process, including auto-detection of new content and auto-publishing.
  • Supports seamless integration with over 50 platforms including CMSs, CRMs, code repositories, and tools like WordPress, Contentful, and GitHub.
  • Provides a robust, RESTful API that covers 100% of the platform's functionality and supports real-time, AI-augmented machine translations.
  • Ensures enterprise-grade security with certifications including SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA, HITRUST, PCI DSS Level 1, and GDPR compliance.
  • Integrates with over 20 different LLMs and machine translation engines to deliver flexible, automated translations.
  • Access to a global network of over 4,000 vetted professional linguists for secure human translation and post-editing.
  • Customers retain total ownership of all translated content, glossaries, style guides, and translation memories.
  • Provides real-time visual context inside its computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools to help linguists minimize mistakes.

Cons

  • All listed subscription prices exclude VAT, GST, or other regional taxes.
  • International wire transfers are restricted to annual subscription purchases only.
  • The web application requires JavaScript to be enabled in modern web browsers to function.
  • No direct customer support phone numbers are listed on the pricing or FAQ page.
  • Specific enterprise security compliance certifications, like SOC2 or ISO, are not detailed in the provided pricing and features pages.
  • No free plan or trial option is listed on the pricing plans page.
  • Pricing details, exact estimates, and SaaS plan rates are not publicly disclosed and require direct contact.
  • The translation platform is cloud-based and does not mention any offline or local desktop applications.
  • Custom setups or advanced pipeline integrations might require specialized developer resources or Smartling Professional Services.
  • The platform utilizes AI automated routing and LLMs, which may still require human translation or review services depending on the content's visibility.

Pricing plans

  • Crowdin Enterprise
    • Enterprise-grade security
    • Advanced features
    • Custom workflows
  • Crowdin for Open SourceUSD0
    • Free option for open source projects
    • Unlimited number of projects, strings, and members
    • Academic License available for educational purposes
  • CoreUSD0
    • Basic workflow, user, and project management
    • Easy drag and drop
    • CAT Tool with visual context and in-platform communication
    • Essential reporting and automated quality checks
  • Enterprise
    • Everything in Core, plus advanced user and project management
    • Fully customizable and dynamic workflows
    • Broad suite of connectivity options
    • Advanced translation memory with unlimited storage
  • AI Hub
    • High-volume automated translation
    • Translations in minutes
    • Translate with 20+ LLMs and machine translation engines
    • Workflow automation with integrations
  • AI Translation
    • Cost-effective quality at scale
    • Translations in hours or days depending on requirements and volume
    • AI and machine translation services
    • Automated routing, context, and QA
  • AI Human Translation
    • For high-visibility content that needs human oversight
    • Human translation from Smartling’s network of 4,000+ linguists
    • AI-enabled human translation services from Smartling
    • Brand-consistent translations with human quality checks
  • Professional Translation
    • Professional translation
    • Starting at $0.12/word shown on page
    • AI-enabled human translation services from Smartling
    • Basic linguistic quality assurance tools

Which one should you pick?

  • Choose Crowdin if you need Continuous localization with GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Figma.
  • Choose Smartling if you need Translation Orchestration.
  • On budget: Crowdin is freemium, Smartling is paid.