Guides
App localization, explained for indie developers.
How to translate every mobile localization format, what it should cost, and how to turn 50 languages into downloads — without an enterprise TMS.
App localization
What app localization involves end to end, what it costs, and the order to do it in.
Localization file formats
Every mobile ecosystem invented its own string format. How each one handles plurals and placeholders, and how to translate it without breaking either.
.strings vs .xcstrings vs strings.xml vs .arb: Localization File Formats Explained
Every ecosystem invented its own localization format. A field guide to all five — and how to move strings between them.
Read the guide →How to Translate strings.xml (Plurals, Escaping, RTL and Qualifiers)
Quantity strings do not select on the number you pass them. That single misunderstanding causes more Android translation bugs than anything else.
Read the guide →JSON i18n Translation: i18next, react-intl and vue-i18n Compared
Three libraries, one file extension, three incompatible plural systems. What actually breaks when you move a translation file between them.
Read the guide →JSON Translator: How to Translate a Localization JSON File into Every Language
Nesting, interpolation syntax, and plural suffixes are the three things that break when JSON is translated badly. Here is how to keep all three intact.
Read the guide → Start hereiOS App Localization: The Complete Guide to Xcode String Catalogs
The happy path is three lines of Apple documentation. This covers what happens after it breaks: migration gaps, missing keys, and plurals that do not apply.
Read the guide →How to Translate an iOS .strings File into Every App Store Language
Stop copy-pasting between Xcode and a chatbot. Upload Localizable.strings once and download ready-to-import files for every App Store language.
Read the guide →How to Translate an Xcode String Catalog (.xcstrings) — and Migrate from .strings
String Catalogs are the modern way to localize iOS apps. Translate them into every language — plural variants included — or use them to leave .strings behind.
Read the guide → Start hereFlutter Localization: ARB Files, ICU Plurals and gen-l10n in Depth
Everyone documents the setup. This covers the failure modes: placeholder types, plurals that will not compile, undetected .arb files and escaping braces.
Read the guide →How to Translate Flutter .arb Files into Every Language Your Users Speak
You should be editing one grid, not N parallel .arb files. Here is how to translate a Flutter app without four tabs of app_xx.arb open.
Read the guide →Cost & ROI
What localization actually costs across agencies, subscription platforms, and one-time credits — and what it returns in downloads.
How Much Does App Localization Cost in 2026?
From $350-per-language agency quotes to $9 one-time credits: a realistic cost breakdown for translating an indie app.
Read the guide →How Much Does It Cost to Localize a Game?
A 2,000-word puzzle game and a 100,000-word RPG are not the same project. Word count by game type, the real per-language rates, and where the hidden costs are.
Read the guide →Does Localization Increase App Downloads? The Numbers
Localization is a growth lever, not a chore: the published numbers from developers who shipped extra languages and measured what happened.
Read the guide →App Store listings
Translating the app is half the job. Localizing the store listing is what makes it findable in local search.
How to Localize Your App Store Listing by Reusing Your Strings File
Your translated UI strings already contain your feature vocabulary in every language. That is the raw material for the listing — and where it stops being reusable.
Read the guide →All App Store Languages: Which Should You Localize First?
The App Store supports 50 localizations. Japanese, German, and Korean users pay the most and search in their own language — start there.
Read the guide →AI translation quality
Where machine translation is good enough for shipping app strings, where it still is not, and what closes the gap.
Tool comparisons
Honest comparisons of the localization tools an indie developer actually chooses between, with current pricing from each vendor.
The Best App Localization Tools for Indie Developers in 2026
A roundup written by one of the tools in it, which is why every entry says plainly when a competitor is the better buy. Real prices, checked on the vendors' own pages.
Read the guide →String Catalog Alternative: One-Time Credits vs a Monthly Subscription
The only true product twin in this market, priced as a subscription. The arithmetic runs both ways, and this page shows the case against credits too.
Read the guide →Phrase Alternative for Solo App Developers
Phrase will not show you a number without a sales call. That is information, not a insult — it tells you exactly who they built the product for.
Read the guide →Localazy Alternative: Pay Once, or Live Inside a Free Tier?
Localazy gives away 200 source keys with unlimited languages and seats. If your app fits inside that, nothing here is cheaper — including us.
Read the guide →SimpleLocalize Alternative for Solo App Developers
One of the few platforms that publishes its prices openly — in euros. Where its free tier and Developer plan beat paying once, and where they do not.
Read the guide →OneSky Alternative for Indie App Developers
OneSky sells human translation per word. We do not sell humans at all. That is the whole comparison, and it decides the answer for most readers.
Read the guide →Smartling Alternative: Enterprise TMS or a Pay-Once Tool?
Smartling and a one-time credit pack are not competing products. This page explains the mismatch quickly so you can stop comparing them.
Read the guide →Blend Alternative for Indie App Developers
An agency and a self-serve tool are different purchases, not competing ones. What you actually get for per-word agency rates versus doing it yourself.
Read the guide →What Is a One-Time Credit Localization Tool?
A definition, and an honest account of the trade: no renewal date, but also no CLI, no CI and no shared workspace, because the job is meant to end.
Read the guide →Lokalise & Crowdin Alternatives for Indie Developers (No Subscription)
Enterprise TMS platforms charge $450+/month for workflows a solo developer never uses. What to use instead when you just want your app translated.
Read the guide →