Choose by the text in front of you
| Your task | Start with | Main tradeoff |
|---|---|---|
| Use an entire app in your language | The app’s language setting | Depends on the app offering that language. |
| Read one selectable sentence | Select text, then Translate | Buttons and image text may not be selectable. |
| Read one saved screenshot | Photos and Live Text | You manage the capture and open the image. |
| Read several unselectable app screens | Onscreen Translate with Back Tap or Action Button | Requires setup; each new screen needs another trigger. |
| Read constantly changing content | Look for native language support; assess a dedicated live-translation tool | Onscreen Translate is not a continuous overlay. |
Selected-text translation: a good first step
Press and hold a word, adjust the selection, and choose Translate when the app makes that action available. This is convenient for a message or paragraph you can select. It does not require moving the words into another app.
It becomes less useful when the information is embedded in a picture or drawn as an app control. A product option, game menu, or image caption may be visible without being selectable.
Apple explains translation of selected text in apps.
Live Text: useful for a single image
If you already have a screenshot, open it in Photos, use the Live Text button, and choose Translate. This is a sensible starting point when you only need one screen. Supported devices, languages, and regions affect availability.
For repeated screens, the capture-and-open routine can interrupt what you are doing. Decide whether that extra step matters before adding a dedicated translation app.
Apple’s Live Text guide covers translation in photos and paused videos.
Onscreen Translate: useful for repeated app screens
Onscreen Translate is designed for visible text across other apps when copying each line is inconvenient. After Magic Tap setup, Double Tap, Triple Tap, or the Action Button can start the capture-and-translate workflow.
The translated image follows the original layout, helping you match words to their buttons, messages, or cards. You return to the original app to interact with it. You trigger another translation after scrolling or opening a new screen.
The app requires iOS 18.4 or later. Background screenshot previews require iOS 26 or later; earlier supported versions open the app. It is a free download with in-app subscriptions, with current prices shown in the App Store.
What about a floating live translator?
“Screen translator” can describe different products. Before downloading one, check whether it translates individual captures, periodically refreshes a floating result, or uses a screen-broadcast workflow. Those behaviors are not interchangeable.
If your priority is uninterrupted translation of moving content, Onscreen Translate’s on-demand workflow may not fit. If you want to understand one screen and then continue using the original app, its quick trigger is the relevant feature.
Check privacy as well as convenience
Consider what is visible before capturing a screen. Onscreen Translate recognizes text on the iPhone, and some translations send recognized text through Cloudflare to Google Gemini. Review the privacy policy before using sensitive screens. Avoid capturing passwords, payment details, or information you do not want processed.
A practical way to decide
Try the built-in option on a real screen you regularly need to read. If selection works and the result is easy to follow, you may already have what you need. If you keep stopping to capture menus or copy labels, try the shortcut workflow on the same kind of screen.
Start with Back Tap setup, Action Button setup, or the screenshot guide.
Try Onscreen Translate
Translate a captured screen with a quick trigger and read the result in its original visual structure.
Download on the App Store