Tools for language checking, terminology, and translation of technical documentation
Market overview of recommendable language checkers (spelling, grammar, style, terminology) and terminology databases, especially in connection with the creation of technical documentation and user assistance. Plus a market overview of recommendable tools for translating and localizing technical documentation and user assistance.
For information on the indicated price levels ● ● ● ● ● ●, see Price levels.
Spelling, grammar, and style checkers
Congree
Authoring assistance tool that helps to create rule-compliant and style-compliant text. Available for Microsoft Word and other editors.
Price level: ● not published
Grammarly
Web-based proofreader that corrects contextual spelling mistakes, checks for grammar errors, and enhances vocabulary usage.
Price level: ● free (freeware)
LanguageTool
Customizable proofreading software. Implements many checks in particular for English and for German texts. Can be used on a website, as a stand-alone desktop version, and with various editors via plugins – among them Word, OpenOffice, LibreOffice, Oxygen XML, LyX, TeXstudio.
Price level: ● diverse
https://github.com/languagetool-org/languagetool
InstaText (NEW ENTRY)
Aims to make you write like an English native speaker.
Price level: ● low
Vale
Command line based style checker.
Price level: ● free (open source)
Duden-Mentor
Excellent language checker for German. Both online and also available as a Microsoft Word add-in.
Price level: ● diverse
Microsoft Word
Better than some standalone spelling and grammar checkers, particularly for the English language.
Price level: ● medium
WordPerfect
Also comes with a fairly good syntax checker.
Price level: ● medium
ProWritingAid
Checks for a large number of issues.
Price level: ● medium
StyleWriter
Especially aims at improving the clarity of a text.
Price level: ● low
https://www.editorsoftware.com
Ginger
Grammar checker, sentence rephraser, and more.
Price level: ● medium
https://www.gingersoftware.com
ClearEdits
Performs some basic checks such as sentence length, repeated words, and wordiness.
Price level: ● low
Antidote
Provides a corrector, dictionaries, and language guides. Available for English and French.
Price level: ● low
After the Deadline
English grammar, style, and contextual spelling checker. Available for a variety of programs such as WordPress, Confluence, Firefox, Chrome, and OpenOffice.
Price level: ● free (open source)
https://www.afterthedeadline.com
Hemingway App
Highlights lengthy, complex sentences in English texts as well as some common grammar errors. There is also a low-cost desktop application available.
Price level: ● free (web application)
TextLab
Advanced analysis tool to improve the readability of German texts.
Price level: ● not published
Textanalyse-Tool
Basic analysis tool to improve the readability of German texts.
Price level: ● free (web application)
Additional online language checkers
https://www.grammar.com/grammar_check.php
Terminology checkers and terminology databases
PerfectIt
Ensures consistency with house styles and between multiple authors. Requires Microsoft Word.
Price level: ● low
https://intelligentediting.com
Term checker for Simplified Technical English (ASD-STE100)
Helps to make sure that text conforms to ASD Simplified Technical English (ASD-STE100). Uses LanguageTool.
Price level: ● medium
https://www.simplified-english.co.uk
termXact
Checks Word, FrameMaker, InDesign, Flare, and other documents for terminology defined in an Excel file.
Price level: ● not published
https://www.term-solutions.com/en/
Kalcium Checkterm + Kalcium Quickterm
Terminology checking and terminology management.
Price level: ● not published
AnyLexic
Simple terminology management system. Can import existing glossaries.
Price level: ● low
[i]-match
Terminology and consistency tools and checkers. For Word, FrameMaker and XML editors.
Price level: ● not published
https://www.itl.eu/de/i-match-terminologie-management
Lingo
Utility for creating terminology lists.
Price level: ● low
https://www.lexicool.com/soft.asp
evoTerm
Web-based terminology management system.
Price level: ● medium
TermWiki Pro
Enterprise terminology management system.
Price level: ● high
TermStar, WebTerm
Price level: ● not published
acrolinx
Guides writers to create content that’s accurate, consistent, search-ready, and translation-friendly.
Price level: ● not published
HyperSTE
Quality assurance software for standardized documentation. Ensures compliance with corporate terminology and style guide rules.
Price level: ● not published
https://www.simplifiedenglish.net
UniTerm
Software solutions for creating, managing, and disseminating corporate languages.
Price level: ● not published
Lexeri (NEW ENTRY)
Collaborative terminology management solution across the entire company.
Price level: ● medium
LogiTerm
Combines a full-text search engine with various translation and terminology tools.
Price level: ● medium
MAXit Checker
Monitors technical texts for compliance with Controlled English or ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English. There are versions available for FrameMaker, Microsoft Word, Arbortext, XMetal, and UltraXML.
Price level: ● not published
https://smartny.com/software.html
Finalyser TERM CHECK
Checks the consistent use of terminology in Adobe FrameMaker, Adobe InDesign, Microsoft Word, and Powerpoint. In other editors you can check terms via the included Finalyser Clipboard Listener. For the database, you can choose between an XML database and a UniTerm database. Also supports the inclusion of foreign languages.
Price level: ● not published
https://www.squidds.de/produkte/finalyser/finalyser/
TermWeb
Web-based terminology management system.
Price level: ● not published
https://www.interverbumtech.com
flashterm
Online database that helps you to collect, develop, and apply your organization's terminology.
Price level: ● not published
termXplorer
Web-based terminology management system.
Price level: ● not published
https://www.term-solutions.com/en/
SynchroTerm
Extracts terms and creates terminology records from source and target document pairs and from translation memories.
Price level: ● medium
TermSuite
Toolbox for terminology extraction and multilingual term alignment.
Price level: ● free (open source)
MY STE-BUDDY (NEW ENTRY)
Web Application that checks pasted text for compliance with ASD Simplified Technical English (STE).
Price level: ● medium
Miscellaneous language tools
Technical documentation knowledge base
Companion through all stages of a user assistance project, from the analysis of requirements through structuring the content and designing templates, writing, illustrating, proofreading, and translating.
Price level: ● low
https://www.indoition.com/en/products/technical-documentation-knowledge-base.htm
TextSTAT
Reads text files, Microsoft Word files, OpenOffice files, and HTML files, and then generates word frequency lists and concordances from these files. Can spider a whole website or browser-based help system.
Price level: ● free (open source)
https://neon.niederlandistik.fu-berlin.de/en/textstat/
AntConc
Corpus analysis toolkit for concordancing and text analysis.
Price level: ● free (freeware)
https://www.laurenceanthony.net/software/antconc/
Capitalize My Title
Automatically capitalizes an English heading according to AP style, APA style, Chicago style or MLA style.
Price level: ● free (web application)
CopyChar
Tables to copy special characters from. Categories include Letters, Punctuation, Math, Numbers, Currency, Symbols, Arrows, and Emoji.
Price level: ● free (web application)
Tools for rephrasing text with the help of AI
DeepL Write
Price level: ● free (web application)
ChatGPT
Price level: ● free (web application)
https://chat.openai.com/auth/login
QuillBot
Price level: ● free (web application)
Wordtune (NEW ENTRY)
Price level: ● low
UnFluffer (NEW ENTRY)
Price level: ● diverse
Tools for machine translation of technical documentation
DeepL
Automatically translates text between various languages. Achieves outstanding results.
Price level: ● free (web application)
https://www.deepl.com/translator
MachineTranslation.com (NEW ENTRY)
AI-supported aggregator for machine translations. Displays a clearly arranged comparison of the results of several translation services, which can be particularly helpful when translating problematic or highly important sentences.
Price level: ● free (web application)
https://www.machinetranslation.com
AI Transdlator (NEW ENTRY)
Another comparison of different AI translators. What is particularly nice here is that the differences between the translations are automatically analyzed, which makes it easier to decide on the best option in each individual case.
Price level: ● free (web application)
Some other generic neural machine translation systems:
https://www.modernmt.com/translate/
Specialized machine translation systems are offered by the following vendors, among others:
Translation memory systems and translation management
Trados Studio
Price level: ● not published
Déjà Vu
Price level: ● medium
Wordfast
Price level: ● medium
Transit
Price level: ● medium
Across
Price level: ● not published
MadCap Lingo
Price level: ● medium
https://www.madcapsoftware.com
MemoQ
Price level: ● medium
Soluling (NEW ENTRY)
Price level: ● medium
Phrase
Price level: ● medium
Fluency Now
Price level: ● medium
https://www.westernstandard.com
XTM Cloud
Web-based translation memory and translation management system.
Price level: ● medium
CafeTran
Price level: ● low
Swordfish Translation Editor
Price level: ● medium
Fluenta DITA Translation Manager
Tool designed to simplify the translation and localization of DITA projects combining the two open standards DITA and XLIFF.
Price level: ● medium
OmegaT
Price level: ● free (open source)
MateCat!
Price level: ● free (open source)
Anaphraseus
For OpenOffice / LibreOffice.
Price level: ● free (open source)
https://sourceforge.net/projects/anaphraseus/
Plunet BusinessManager
Translation management software.
Price level: ● not published
Wordbee
Web-based translation management software and CAT editor.
Price level: ● medium
Smartling
Centralized web-based translation platform.
Price level: ● not published
translate5
Translation management platform. Partially open source.
Price level: ● diverse
Miscellaneous translation tools
Sysfilter
Utility to transfer text from Visio, Excel, InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, or CorelDRAW into Microsoft Word. After translation, texts can automatically be re-transferred back into the original document.
Price level: ● medium
https://polmannshop.com/online/en/
ErrorSpy
Quality assurance software for translations. Can check for terminology, consistency, number errors, completeness, tags, acronyms, typography, and missing translations. Reads Trados, Transit, and XLIFF files.
Price level: ● medium
Okapi Framework
Set of components and applications that support localizing and translating documentation and software. Also provides many interesting features for technical writers, such as powerful find and replace, and various conversions.
Price level: ● free (open source)