Description
Iris Translate provides flexible website translation with two distinct methods to suit your needs:
Automatic Mode (Free) – Uses Google Translate’s client-side widget for instant translation with no setup required.
Google Cloud API Mode – Server-side translation with SEO-friendly translated URLs, hreflang tags, and full search engine indexability. Free for most websites (see below).
Key Features
Translation Methods
- Automatic Translation – Free client-side translation using Google Translate widget, no API key needed
- Google Cloud API Translation – Server-side translation for SEO-friendly, indexable translated content
- Configurable fade-in delay to hide flash of untranslated content (Automatic mode)
SEO & URL Translation
- SEO-friendly translated URLs (e.g.,
/fr/a-propos/instead of/about/) - Automatic hreflang tag generation for proper search engine indexing
- Translated URL management interface with bulk translation tools
- Individual URL path customization per language
Custom Translation Overrides
- Override any automatic translation with your own custom text
- Frontend translation editor for logged-in administrators
- Edit translations directly on the page while browsing your translated site
- Manage all custom translations from the admin dashboard
Language Selector Widgets
- Multiple widget styles: Dropdown, Dropdown with flags, List, List with flags
- Floating language selector with configurable position (corners of the screen)
- Widget support for sidebars
- Shortcode support:
[iris_translate] - PHP function support for theme integration
- Display language names in their native script (e.g., “日本語” instead of “Japanese”)
Supported Languages
Over 25 languages supported including: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese (Simplified & Traditional), Arabic, Hindi, Turkish, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Czech, Romanian, Hungarian, Thai, Vietnamese, and Indonesian.
External Services
This plugin connects to Google services to provide translation functionality. By using this plugin, you agree to Google’s terms of service.
Automatic Translation Mode
When using Automatic Translation mode, this plugin loads the Google Translate Widget from Google’s servers.
What this service does: Provides client-side (in-browser) translation of your website content.
When data is sent: When a visitor selects a language to translate to, their browser communicates directly with Google Translate servers to fetch translations.
What data is sent:
* The text content of the webpage being translated
* The visitor’s IP address (sent by their browser to Google)
* Browser cookies set by Google (including the googtrans cookie to remember language preference)
Service provider: Google LLC
Links:
* Google Translate
* Google Privacy Policy
* Google Terms of Service
Google Cloud API Translation Mode
When using Google Cloud API mode, this plugin sends content to the Google Cloud Translation API for server-side translation.
What this service does: Provides server-side translation of your website content, enabling SEO-friendly translated URLs.
When data is sent:
* When a visitor accesses a translated URL (e.g., /fr/your-page/), the page content is sent to Google for translation
* When an administrator uses the “Translate All URLs” feature to bulk-translate URL slugs
* Translations are cached locally to minimize API calls
What data is sent:
* The text content of pages and posts being translated
* URL slugs when using the URL translation feature
* Your Google Cloud API key (for authentication)
What data is NOT sent:
* Visitor IP addresses (translation happens on your server, not in the visitor’s browser)
* Personal visitor information
* User account data
Service provider: Google Cloud (Google LLC)
Links:
* Google Cloud Translation API
* Google Cloud Privacy Policy
* Google Cloud Terms of Service
* Google Cloud Translation API Pricing (includes free tier)
Cookies
This plugin sets the following cookie:
- googtrans – Stores the visitor’s selected language preference. This is a session cookie used by Google Translate to remember which language the visitor chose. No personal data is stored in this cookie.
Data Privacy
- In Automatic mode, translation processing occurs on Google’s servers via the visitor’s browser
- In Google Cloud API mode, translation processing occurs on Google’s servers but is initiated by your WordPress server, not the visitor’s browser
- Translated content is cached in your WordPress database to improve performance and reduce external API calls
- No visitor personal data is collected or stored by this plugin
- No visitor tracking is performed by this plugin beyond the language preference cookie
Installation
- Upload the
iris-translatefolder to/wp-content/plugins/ - Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress
- Go to Settings > Iris Translate to configure your options
Basic Setup
- Select your default language – The language your content is written in
- Choose enabled languages – Which languages visitors can translate to
- Select translation method:
- Automatic – Works immediately, no further setup needed
- Google Cloud API – Requires API key (see below)
- Choose widget style – How the language selector appears
- Enable floating selector (optional) – Shows language switcher on all pages
Google Cloud API Setup (Optional)
For SEO-friendly server-side translation:
- Go to the Google Cloud Console
- Create a new project or select an existing one
- Enable the Cloud Translation API
- Go to APIs & Services > Credentials
- Create an API key
- Copy the API key into the Iris Translate settings
- Select “Google Cloud API” as your translation method
Pricing Note: Google Cloud Translation API is free for up to 500,000 characters per month. Most small to medium-sized websites will never exceed this limit, making it effectively free. Google may require you to enter credit card details when setting up your account, but you will not be charged unless you exceed the free tier limits. You can also set up budget alerts in Google Cloud Console to notify you if you approach the limits.
Adding the Language Selector
Shortcode:
[iris_translate]
Widget:
Go to Appearance > Widgets and add the “Iris Translate” widget to any sidebar.
Floating Selector:
Enable “Floating Selector” in the plugin settings to show a language switcher on all pages.
PHP (for theme developers):
FAQ
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Does this require a Google API key?
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No, the Automatic translation mode works without any API key. However, if you want SEO-friendly server-side translation with translated URLs, you’ll need a Google Cloud Translation API key.
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Is the Google Cloud API free?
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Yes, for most websites. Google Cloud Translation API includes a free tier of 500,000 characters per month. Since Iris Translate caches translations, most small to medium-sized websites will stay well within this limit and pay nothing. Google may require credit card details when creating your account, but no charges will be made unless you exceed the free tier. You can set up budget alerts in Google Cloud Console for peace of mind.
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What’s the difference between the two translation methods?
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Automatic Mode: Uses Google Translate’s free client-side widget. Translation happens in the browser, is not indexed by search engines, and URLs remain unchanged. Best for sites where SEO for translated content is not a priority.
Google Cloud API Mode: Translation happens on the server before the page is sent to the browser. Creates SEO-friendly translated URLs (e.g.,
/fr/mon-article/), generates hreflang tags, and translated content is fully indexable by search engines. Best for sites targeting international audiences. -
Can I customize which languages appear?
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Yes, you can select exactly which languages to show in the language selector from the settings page.
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Can I override automatic translations?
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Yes! When logged in as an administrator, you’ll see an “Edit Translations” button in the admin bar while viewing translated pages. Click any text to provide your own custom translation. You can also manage all custom translations from the admin dashboard under Language Translation > Custom Translations.
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How do I translate my URL slugs?
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Go to Language Translation > URL Translation in your WordPress admin. You can manually edit URL translations or use the “Translate All URLs” button to automatically translate them using the Google Cloud API.
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Is the translation cached?
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Yes, when using Google Cloud API mode, translations are cached to improve performance and reduce API calls.
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Will this slow down my website?
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Automatic mode loads the Google Translate widget asynchronously and has minimal impact on page load. Google Cloud API mode caches translations, so subsequent page loads are fast.
Reviews
There are no reviews for this plugin.
Contributors & Developers
“Iris Translate” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.
Contributors
Translate “Iris Translate” into your language.
Interested in development?
Browse the code, check out the SVN repository, or subscribe to the development log by RSS.
Changelog
1.0.0
- Initial release
- Two translation methods: Automatic (free) and Google Cloud API (SEO-friendly)
- Multiple language selector styles with flag support
- Floating language selector option
- SEO-friendly translated URLs
- Automatic hreflang tag generation
- Custom translation overrides
- Frontend translation editor for administrators
- URL translation management with bulk translation
- Support for 25+ languages
- Translation caching for performance
- Widget and shortcode support