Translation & language

comic-translate

Reads the speech bubbles, translates them, redraws them in place

Visit official page 日本語で詳しく見る

Popularity

★ 2.9k

Last update

August 2026

License / pricing

Apache-2.0

What it does

Detects text in comic panels, translates it with your choice of engine, and renders the result back onto the artwork — built for comics from anywhere rather than manga specifically, covering English, Korean, Japanese, French, Chinese, Russian, German, Dutch, Spanish and Italian. Images and PDFs. Translating someone else's work for private reading is one thing; distributing that translation is infringement, and the distinction matters legally. Sound effects and slang remain hard. Apache-2.0.

Summary based on the project's own description. The Japanese page has a fuller beginner guide: setup difficulty, what to prepare, and a step-by-step start.

Screenshots & visuals

Before you start

Setup difficultySome setup needed
Command lineRequired
API keyRequired
Sends data onlineYes

Judged automatically from the project's own metadata. Always confirm on the official page.

comic-translate FAQ

Is comic-translate free?: comic-translate itself is free, but it needs an API key for an external AI service. That service charges separately, though some have a free tier.
Do I need to install anything or write code to use comic-translate?: It needs the command line. If you are not comfortable typing commands, expect to get stuck during setup.
Does comic-translate work on a phone?: No. It needs a computer.
Can I use comic-translate commercially?: The licence is Apache-2.0, which permits commercial use. Conditions such as keeping the copyright notice still apply, so read the licence text before shipping it inside something.

How it compares

The conditions that decide whether you can actually use it, side by side.

Tool	Command line	API key	Sends data out	Phone	Commercial use
comic-translate (this page)	Required	Required	Yes	No	Yes
Translumo	Not needed	Not needed	Yes	No	Yes
koharu	Not needed	Not needed	No	No	Yes
normcap	Not needed	Not needed	No	No	Not verified

"Sends data out" means your input is uploaded to someone's server. Pick "No" when the material cannot leave your organisation.

Other translation & language tools

Translumo

Reads text off your screen and overlays a live translation

koharu

Translates manga pages end to end, on your own machine

normcap

Select any part of your screen and copy the text in it

MORT

Read text off the screen and overlay a translation in place

Browse all tools Home

What it does

Summary based on the project's own description. The Japanese page has a fuller beginner guide: setup difficulty, what to prepare, and a step-by-step start.

comic-translate FAQ

Is comic-translate free?

comic-translate itself is free, but it needs an API key for an external AI service. That service charges separately, though some have a free tier.

Do I need to install anything or write code to use comic-translate?

It needs the command line. If you are not comfortable typing commands, expect to get stuck during setup.

Does comic-translate work on a phone?

No. It needs a computer.

Can I use comic-translate commercially?

The licence is Apache-2.0, which permits commercial use. Conditions such as keeping the copyright notice still apply, so read the licence text before shipping it inside something.

How it compares

The conditions that decide whether you can actually use it, side by side.

Tool	Command line	API key	Sends data out	Phone	Commercial use
comic-translate (this page)	Required	Required	Yes	No	Yes
Translumo	Not needed	Not needed	Yes	No	Yes
koharu	Not needed	Not needed	No	No	Yes
normcap	Not needed	Not needed	No	No	Not verified

"Sends data out" means your input is uploaded to someone's server. Pick "No" when the material cannot leave your organisation.