You have an English message, webpage, or document and need it in German. Start with pasted text, or choose the camera, microphone, or document tool for the content in front of you. These steps cover phones and computers, plus the language downloads you need for offline translation.
Start with Google Translate for text
For a passage you can copy, open Google Translate in a desktop or mobile browser, or use its Android or iPhone app. Set the source language to English and the target language to German.
Type or paste the English text into the input area. Use the speaker button beside the German result to hear it, or the copy button to take it into another app.
If Google Translate does not work, open DeepL Translator in your browser. Select Translate text, choose English and German, then paste the passage.
Use selected text on an iPhone or Mac
On an iPhone, select the English words in an app that supports text selection and translation.
If the translation command is hidden, tap Show More Items.
Tap Translate.
Choose German.
Tap Copy Translation to copy the result, or Replace with Translation to substitute it in an editable field.
On a Mac, select the English passage in a supported app.
Control-click the selection.
Choose Translate [text].
Select German as the output language.
If the app has no translation command, paste the passage into Google Translate.
Translate a whole webpage into German
Page translation handles an English website without making you copy each paragraph.
In desktop Chrome, click the address-bar Translate button.
Choose German.
In Chrome on Android, iPhone, or iPad, open More on the English page.
Select Translate.
Open Settings in the translation panel.
Choose More languages.
Select German.
If browser translation fails, open Google Translate in your browser; its website translation feature is unavailable in some regions.
Choose Websites.
Set the language pair to English and German.
Enter the page address in Website.
Select Go.
Follow links within the translated site to continue browsing.
Turn photos and camera text into German
For a sign or a picture, start with the camera tool. In Google Translate on Android, choose English and German, then tap Camera.
Point your phone at the English text. Tap the shutter button to freeze the image, or use All Images to import a saved picture.
On a supported iPhone, open Apple Translate and tap Camera. Set the target language to German, then point the camera at the English text. Use Take Picture to pause the view, or Photo Library to open an existing image.
If the phone’s camera method does not work, open Google Translate’s Images tab on a computer. Choose English and German, click Browse your computer, then select the image.
Speak English and hear the German translation
On an iPhone, open Apple Translate.
Choose English and German as your languages.
Tap Listen.
Speak the English phrase.
For a two-person exchange, open Conversation.
Tap Listen to begin the dialogue.
On a computer, open the Google Translate website in Chrome for full microphone support.
Set the languages to English and German.
Select Speak.
Allow microphone access when prompted.
Speak your English text.
Select Stop when you finish.
Use Listen for German playback.
Basic translation in Apple Translate works without Apple Intelligence.
Prepare your phone for offline translation
Download English and German before you need to translate without an internet connection. Google Translate’s language packs do not make every speech, document, or conversation feature available offline: Google documents offline live translation only for Pixel 9, 10, and 11 phones, and document translation only in a computer browser.
In Google Translate on Android, open the language picker.
Select Download beside English and German.
To manage those packs later, open Menu > Downloaded languages.
In Google Translate on iPhone or iPad, download English and German from the language picker.
To manage the iPhone or iPad downloads, open Settings > Offline translation.
For Apple Translate on iPhone, open Settings > Apps > Translate > Languages.
Download English and German.
On iOS 26, enable On-Device Mode in Translate settings to keep supported translations on the device. On iOS 27, Apple documents this control as On-Device Translation: set it to Always to process every translation on your iPhone with your downloaded languages, or Automatic to translate on the device whenever the languages are downloaded.
Create a German copy of a document
Google Translate’s document upload requires a computer and accepts DOCX, PDF, PPTX, and XLSX files up to 10 MB, with a 300-page limit for PDFs; text embedded in scanned images is not translated.
- 1.Open Google Translate and select Documents.
- 2.Choose English as the source and German as the target.
- 3.Click Browse your computer.
- 4.Select the file you want to translate.
- 5.Click Translate.
- 6.Select Download translation to save the result.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does installing a German keyboard translate my English messages?
No. Installing a German keyboard or changing your device’s display language does not translate English content. Gboard has a separate translation feature on Android, iPhone, and iPad. In a text field using Gboard, select Open features menu > Translate. Choose English and German, then enter your text. On Android, use Select to insert the translation; on iPhone or iPad, select the translated result.
Can I translate a document from my phone?
Yes. DeepL supports file translation in its iOS app version 26.7 and Android app version 26.6 or later, subject to account limits. On iOS, select German, tap the File icon, select your document, then tap Translate file. On Android, choose English and German, tap Document, then select the file. The Android workflow extracts text into the translation field, so the two platforms produce different outputs.
How can I choose the right German meaning for an English word?
Search for the English word in the Cambridge English–German dictionary. Use the definitions and examples to choose the German equivalent that matches your intended meaning.
Can I translate a Google Docs document without uploading it elsewhere?
Yes. Open the document on a computer. Select Tools > Translate document. Enter a name for the translated copy, select German, then choose Translate. This creates a separate document. If the command is missing while editing an Office file, convert the file to Google Docs first.
