Verdict
DeepL gave the most accurate spoken translations in Which?'s 2025 test with native speakers, and Beebom rates it best for accuracy, mainly in European languages. The free version allows 50,000 characters a month and its privacy policy says free-tier text is used to train its models, which paid plans avoid. Through 2026 a run of user posts from translators complained that quality had dropped, and the company cut about 250 of its 1,000 staff in May.
Privacy note. Free-tier text is used for training with no opt-out short of paying (deepl.com/en/privacy); no incidents found; under-14s excluded.
Best for
Emails, letters and documents in French, German, Spanish and other European languages
Skip if
Travelling somewhere with a language DeepL does not cover, or wanting free translation without training
Key facts
- Made by
- DeepL SE
- Based in
- Germany
- Launched
- 2017
- Works on
- iPhone, Android, Web, Windows, Mac
- In the UK
- Yes
- Price from
- £7.99 a month
- Free plan
- Free version with 50,000 characters a month, 1 file translation a month (up to 5 MB) and 1 glossary
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Billed |
|---|---|---|
| Individual (billed annually) | €7.49 | month |
| Team (per user, billed annually) | €24.99 | month |
| Business (per user, billed annually) | €49.99 | month |
| Write Pro add-on (per user, billed annually) | €6.99 | month |
What it does
- translates text and full web pages
- translates documents while keeping their layout
- includes 30 minutes a month of DeepL Voice for spoken conversations
- applies glossaries and shared style rules
- offers Write Pro for AI writing help
- does not train on paid users text
Ratings
What people say
individual reviewers still call DeepL the best for formal European-language text and like that it needs no account, but through mid-2026 several threads in user reviews, user and user said its translations had become worse and that AI rewriting cannot be switched off. Store ratings (4.75 iOS, 4.58 Play) do not reflect that complaint wave. Trustpilot sits at 2.4 from 777 reviews, mostly about billing and renewals.
“Professional translators often prefer it over Google Translate. It’s really good. And it not being Google it is of course better for privacy. You don’t even need an account to use the free version”
Individual user review, 14 March 2026 · source
“it's as good or better than Google with more 'formal' or professional language … but Google had the edge with casual/slang/text-speak”
Individual user review, 14 March 2026 · source
“Deepl isn't useful anymore (since a month?) if it keeps arbitrarily changing the text I want to translate based on whatever its crappy AI decides! And there is no setting to shut AI off.”
Individual user review, 7 April 2026 · source
“I'm really sad about the recent quality drop on DeepL. I liked how accurate it was and also the fact that it is an EU product. But recently, I noticed that the translations are being inaccurate, to the point of being useless.”
Individual user review, 25 August 2026 · source
“i use DEEPL translator so it won't be 100% but i can probably get the story understood.”
Post on X, 4 October 2026 · source
Press reviews
- Which? 2025-07-17
Most accurate for spoken translation and more natural with colloquial language; "If your next holiday is somewhere unusual where English isn't widely spoken, then DeepL will be more useful than Google". Only 33 languages then, no conversation mode and no offline use.
- Beebom 2026-02-19
"The Best for Accurate AI Translation"; works better for European languages than Asian ones.
Privacy
- Trains on your data
- yes for the free version; the privacy policy says uploaded content and corrections are used 'to train and improve our neural networks'. Paid Pro texts are not used to improve the service
- Opt-out
- No setting for free users; paying for a Pro plan is the only way to stop training
- Retention
- Free-tier texts processed 'for a limited period of time' with no fixed period stated; document-translation metadata deleted after 14 days
- Age limit
- Not intended for children under 14 (privacy policy); App Store rating 4+
Official videos
FAQ
Is DeepL free?
Yes, up to 50,000 characters a month and one file translation a month. Paid plans on the UK App Store start at £7.99 a month.
Is DeepL better than Google Translate?
For European languages and formal text, Which? and Beebom both rated it more accurate. Google covers far more languages and is fully free, and some individual reviewers said in 2026 that DeepL's quality had slipped.
Does DeepL use my text to train its AI?
On the free version, yes, according to its privacy policy. Texts on paid Pro plans are not used to improve the service.
Does DeepL work offline?
Which? found in 2025 that it could not be used offline, so it needs a data connection abroad.
Scores are based on published evidence, not lab tests. How we score.
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