Guides & How-Tos
Practical, step-by-step guides for translating documents without breaking their layout — covering every file type and translation engine DocTranslating supports.
Getting started
How to translate a document without losing its formatting
DocTranslating translates PDF, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, code and subtitle files into 100+ languages while keeping the original layout, fonts, tables and images in place. Upload a file, pick a language and one of four translation engines (DeepL, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud or Gemini), then download a translated copy that looks like the original. This guide covers the full process plus the real-world edge cases — scanned PDFs, footnotes and text boxes, terminology consistency, file-size limits and right-to-left languages.
11 min read
How-to
How to translate a scanned PDF file
Scanned PDFs are images of text, not actual text — which is why most translators including Google Translate either reject them, return an empty result, or show a "can't translate this file" error. To translate a scanned PDF you need OCR (text extraction) before translation. DocTranslating runs OCR automatically as part of the translation pipeline, supports 100+ languages, and rebuilds the translated text into a copy of the original PDF. For accuracy on important documents, verify the OCR output first on PDFEquips so extraction errors don't compound with translation errors.
8 min read
How-to
How to translate a Word document
DocTranslating translates whole Word documents (.docx and legacy .doc) into 100+ languages in a single operation — no copying sections into Google Translate and pasting them back. Text boxes, footnotes, tables, hyperlinks and inline formatting are preserved in the output. Microsoft Azure gives the highest formatting fidelity for Office files, DeepL is best for natural-sounding output on European languages, and Google Cloud has the widest language coverage. Gemini does not accept Word files — convert to PDF first or use one of the other three engines.
9 min read
How-to
How to extract text from a scanned PDF
A scanned PDF is an image of text, so you can't select, search, copy or translate it. DocTranslating's OCR PDF tool converts a scanned or image-based PDF into a real, selectable text layer in a few clicks: open the tool, upload your scan, optionally set the document language for faster and more accurate results, and click Extract text. It supports 50+ languages, handwritten text and right-to-left scripts like Arabic and Hebrew. Once you have the OCR'd PDF back, you can translate it, search it, or copy from it like any normal document.
8 min read
How-to
How to translate a PowerPoint presentation
DocTranslating translates an entire PowerPoint presentation (.pptx, and legacy .ppt) into 100+ languages in one operation — no retyping text box by text box. Slide layouts, tables, charts and inline formatting are preserved in the translated deck. Microsoft Azure gives the best formatting fidelity for slides, DeepL produces the most natural output for European languages, and Google Cloud has the widest language coverage. Gemini doesn't accept PowerPoint files — convert to PDF first or use one of the other three engines.
9 min read
How-to
How to translate an Excel spreadsheet
DocTranslating translates an entire Excel workbook (.xlsx, and legacy .xls) into 100+ languages in one operation — every sheet, every cell — while keeping formulas, number formats and layout intact. Text in cells and headers is translated; formulas keep working and aren't broken. Microsoft Azure gives strong formatting fidelity, DeepL produces natural output for European languages, and Google Cloud has the widest language coverage. Gemini doesn't accept Excel files — convert to another format first or use one of the other three engines.
9 min read
How-to
How to translate subtitles (SRT and VTT)
DocTranslating translates a whole SRT or VTT subtitle file into 100+ languages in one operation, keeping every timestamp and sequence number exactly in sync — only the spoken text is translated. Use DeepL for fast, natural output, or the Gemini engine, whose larger context window is especially good at reading a whole line of dialogue in context. SRT files work with DeepL and Gemini; VTT files work with Gemini.
8 min read
How-to
How to Translate Code Files Without Breaking the Syntax
Inherited a codebase full of comments in a language you don't read? Here's how to translate the comments and text inside your source files while leaving the code itself untouched.
5 min read
How-to
How to Edit a PDF File for Free, Right in Your Browser
Need to fix a typo, update a date, or change a line in a PDF? You don't need expensive software or a round-trip through Word. Here's how to edit a PDF directly in your browser — and even build one from scratch.
5 min read
How-to
How to convert a PDF to Word without losing the formatting
You need to edit a PDF, so you convert it to Word — and the tables shatter, the fonts turn strange and every line becomes its own paragraph. Here's why that happens, how to get a clean editable Word file the first time, and what to do about scanned or password-protected PDFs.
6 min read
How-to
How to convert a PDF to EPUB for comfortable reading
Reading a PDF on a phone or e-reader means endless pinch-zooming and side-scrolling, because a PDF is locked to a fixed page size. Converting it to EPUB fixes that — the text reflows to fit whatever screen you're on. Here's how to do it, which PDFs convert well, and how to get the result onto a Kindle.
6 min read