Lingo Dev

What is Lingo Dev about?

Lingo Dev offers a suite of tools—Compiler, CLI, CI/CD integration, and SDK—to automatically translate strings in JavaScript/TypeScript projects (React, React‑Native, etc.) at build time or runtime, leveraging LLMs for high‑quality output.

How to use Lingo Dev?

1. Install the package

   npm install lingo.dev
   

2. Enable the compiler in a Next.js config (example shown):

   import lingoCompiler from "lingo.dev/compiler";
   const existingNextConfig = {};
   export default lingoCompiler.next({
     sourceLocale: "en",
     targetLocales: ["es", "fr"]
   })(existingNextConfig);
   

3. Run the CLI for one‑off translations:

   npx lingo.dev@latest run
   

4. Add CI/CD step to automate translations on push:

   - uses: lingodotdev/lingo.dev@main
     with:
       api-key: ${{ secrets.LINGODOTDEV_API_KEY }}
   

5. Use the SDK for per‑request dynamic translation:

   import { LingoDotDevEngine } from "lingo.dev/sdk";
   const engine = new LingoDotDevEngine({ apiKey: "your-api-key" });
   const translated = await engine.localizeObject(content, { sourceLocale: "en", targetLocale: "es" });
   

Key Features

• Build‑time localization via the Compiler – no code changes required.
• One‑command CLI that fingerprints strings, caches results, and only re‑translates changed content.
• CI/CD integration that auto‑commits translations on each push and can open PRs.
• Realtime SDK for translating user‑generated content on the fly.
• Pluggable LLMs – use your own model or the hosted Lingo.dev translation engine.
• Multi‑language support – ready to add new locales via a simple JSON configuration.

Use Cases

• Localizing a Next.js or Create‑React‑App website during the build process.
• Translating mobile app strings for React‑Native projects.
• Providing instant translation of chat messages, comments, or dynamic content.
• Automating i18n updates in a CI pipeline to keep documentation and UI in sync.
• Supporting multilingual SaaS platforms without maintaining separate translation files.

FAQ

Q: Do I need to modify my existing React components? A: No. The Compiler works as middleware and injects translations at build time.

Q: Can I use my own LLM instead of the hosted engine? A: Yes. Provide the appropriate API endpoint and key in the SDK/CLI configuration.

Q: How are translation costs managed? A: Only strings that change are re‑translated, reducing token usage. You can set usage limits via the API key settings.

Q: Is the solution compatible with other frameworks (e.g., Vue)? A: Currently focused on React/Next.js, but the underlying SDK can be integrated with any JavaScript project.

Q: Where can I get help? A: Join the Discord community, open an issue on GitHub, or consult the official documentation links provided in the README.

---

Meet the Compiler 🆕

Lingo.dev Compiler is a free, open-source compiler middleware, designed to make any React app multilingual at build time without requiring any changes to the existing React components.

Install once:

npm install lingo.dev

Enable in your build config:

import lingoCompiler from "lingo.dev/compiler";

const existingNextConfig = {};

export default lingoCompiler.next({
  sourceLocale: "en",
  targetLocales: ["es", "fr"],
})(existingNextConfig);

Run next build and watch Spanish and French bundles pop out ✨

Read the docs → for the full guide, and Join our Discord to get help with your setup.

---

What's inside this repo?

Tool	TL;DR	Docs
Compiler	Build-time React localization	/compiler
CLI	One-command localization for web and mobile apps, JSON, YAML, markdown, + more	/cli
CI/CD	Auto-commit translations on every push + create pull requests if needed	/ci
SDK	Realtime translation for user-generated content	/sdk

Below are the quick hits for each 👇

---

⚡️ Lingo.dev CLI

Translate code & content straight from your terminal.

npx lingo.dev@latest run

It fingerprints every string, caches results, and only re-translates what changed.

Follow the docs → to learn how to set it up.

---

🔄 Lingo.dev CI/CD

Ship perfect translations automatically.

# .github/workflows/i18n.yml
name: Lingo.dev i18n
on: [push]

jobs:
  i18n:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: lingodotdev/lingo.dev@main
        with:
          api-key: ${{ secrets.LINGODOTDEV_API_KEY }}

Keeps your repo green and your product multilingual without the manual steps.

Read the docs →

---

🧩 Lingo.dev SDK

Instant per-request translation for dynamic content.

import { LingoDotDevEngine } from "lingo.dev/sdk";

const lingoDotDev = new LingoDotDevEngine({
  apiKey: "your-api-key-here",
});

const content = {
  greeting: "Hello",
  farewell: "Goodbye",
  message: "Welcome to our platform",
};

const translated = await lingoDotDev.localizeObject(content, {
  sourceLocale: "en",
  targetLocale: "es",
});
// Returns: { greeting: "Hola", farewell: "Adiós", message: "Bienvenido a nuestra plataforma" }

Perfect for chat, user comments, and other real-time flows.

Read the docs →

---

🤝 Community

We're community-driven and love contributions!

• Got an idea? Open an issue
• Want to fix something? Send a PR
• Need help? Join our Discord

⭐ Star History

If you like what we're doing, give us a ⭐ and help us reach 3,000 stars! 🌟

🌐 Readme in other languages

English • 中文 • 日本語 • 한국어 • Español • Français • Русский • Українська • Deutsch • Italiano • العربية • עברית • हिन्दी • বাংলা • فارسی

Don't see your language? Add it to i18n.json and open a PR!