Website translation in Waterfox

Waterfox translates web pages entirely on your device. The text you translate is never sent to a translation server. Once a language pack is installed you can translate without an internet connection at all.

Tip

Chrome and Edge send page text to Google or Microsoft to translate it. Waterfox does not send it anywhere. Only the language models themselves are downloaded, and only when you first need them.

Translate a full page

Visit a page in a supported language. The translation panel opens automatically.
- If it does not, select the translation icon in the address bar, or right-click the page and choose Translate page.
Waterfox detects the page language. Change it with the top dropdown if the detection is wrong.
Choose your target language in the bottom dropdown.
Select Translate.

To go back, select the translation icon and choose Show original.

Translate selected text

Highlight the text.
Right-click and choose the translate option. On macOS you can also hold Control while clicking.
The translation appears in a pop-up, with buttons to Copy it, Translate full page, or dismiss it.

You can also right-click a link without selecting anything to translate the link text.

Customize translation behavior

Select the translation icon, then the cog in the panel. From there you can:

Always translate a given language automatically.
Never translate a given language.
Never translate a particular site.
Stop the panel from opening automatically.

A checkmark confirms a setting is on; select it again to turn it off.

Manage installed languages

Click the menu button, then select Settings.
Select Languages.
Under Translations, select Install next to the languages you want available offline, or Remove to delete one.

Language packs are a few megabytes each. The first translation involving a new language pauses briefly while the pack downloads; after that it is instant.

Tip

Firefox puts these controls under an AI Controls pane. Waterfox does not ship that pane — the general-purpose AI surfaces it governs are not present — so translation settings live under Languages instead. See the LLM Usage Memorandum for why local, single-purpose models like these are treated differently from general-purpose LLMs.

Translate arbitrary text from the address bar

Start typing translate in the address bar and select the Translate quick action. This opens a page where you can pick languages, paste text and copy the result.

Frequently asked questions

Does it work on images or video?

No. Translation applies to text only.

Yes. Anything Waterfox can render, it can translate, because the work happens locally.

What about pages in more than one language?

Translation targets the page’s main language. Pages that genuinely mix languages may translate unevenly.

Why do I need to install languages?

Because translation runs on your machine rather than on a server, the model has to be on your machine. Waterfox fetches parts of a language pack as you need them, or you can pre-install complete packs from the Languages pane.

Adapted for Waterfox from the original Firefox article Firefox Translations. Original content by Mozilla Contributors. Licensed under the CC BY-SA 3.0.