If you sell a product in Germany, the instructions have to be in German. For small manufacturers and importers, a professional translation agency is often the most expensive step of a launch. A full machine translation of the manual gives your reviewer a finished German draft to correct instead of a blank page.
Translating a user manual
- Long manuals repeat the same terms hundreds of times. Machine translation keeps a button or part name consistent within one file, which is where human drafts often drift.
- Warnings and safety instructions need the same care as the original. Have someone who knows the product read the safety sections before you ship.
- Products sold in Germany must come with instructions in German. A translated draft gets you most of the way; the manufacturer stays responsible for the final text.
English to German
German text runs about 20 to 30 % longer than English. In a flowing document that just adds lines; in fixed boxes, table cells and slides it can make text tighter, so check those spots. The translation uses the formal "Sie", the default for business and official German.
How it works
- 1
Drop the file
Upload the original file. The source language is detected automatically, so you don't have to pick it.
- 2
Pick German
Choose German as the target. You can add more target languages and get one translated file per language.
- 3
Download the same file type
You get the same file type back with the layout kept, ready to open in the program you used before.
What happens to your file
noll is built for documents you would not paste into a free online translator. Files are processed in EU data centres, never used to train models and permanently deleted 30 minutes after the translation finishes, or as soon as you delete them yourself. There is no document history to leak later.
How your data is handledMachine translation, not a certified translation
noll gives you an accurate working translation fast. If an authority, court or university demands a certified or sworn translation, you still need a sworn human translator; our output is a good draft to hand them.
Pricing
Translation is billed by the page. See the current plans before you upload a large batch.
See pricingFrequently asked questions
Is a German manual legally required?
For most consumer products sold in Germany, yes: safety-relevant instructions must be provided in German. The manufacturer or importer is responsible for their accuracy.
Will part names be translated consistently?
Within one file, yes. Upload the manual as one document rather than in chapters so the same term gets the same translation throughout.
My manual is a large PDF with many images. Does that work?
Files up to 40 MB are accepted. Text inside illustrations is not translated; label those in your source files if you need them in German.
Do I still need a human review?
For safety warnings, yes. Have someone who knows the product and German read the warnings and any instruction that could cause harm if misunderstood.
Related translations
Prepare the PDF before or after translating
These PDF tools run in your browser, so the file never leaves your device.
