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website translations - English German translator for web content, SEO and GEO

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German website translation and localisation that converts.

Selling into Germany from Ireland, the UK, the US, Australia or Canada? A translated page isn't enough — German law expects a compliant Impressum, a GDPR Art. 27 representative and VAT-inclusive pricing. We localise your site to be legally sound, found in German search, and trusted by German buyers.

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Localised natively for the German market · straight into WordPress, TYPO3, Shopify & Magento · meta data and URLs translated too · free sample in advance

DIN EN ISO 17100certified · Reg. 7U517
German and Englishnative-speaker specialists
SEO & hreflangfound in the German market
Price up frontno back-billing

Website translation

Why replacing the text is not localisation: language, search, technology.

Reviewed by specialists · termbase editorial team

A translated website only sells if it is found, understood and believed in the German market. Literally translated text does not rank on Google, misses the tone and, at worst, breaks the layout. That is why professional website translation at termbase is the job of native-speaker specialists with IT and SEO expertise — not the nearest machine, and not a generalist with no eye for technology and market.

We combine three layers: language (native-speaker, brand-true, as transcreation on request), SEO (target-market keyword research, meta data, hreflang) and technology (straight in the CMS or via export/import, without breaking code). That turns your site into a version that actually works in the target country.

When you need a website translation

Corporate sites, online shops, SaaS products, agency relaunches.

From a multilingual corporate site to a large online shop or a SaaS product — the same care with tone, terminology and technology applies across every case.

Companies and marketing teams running multilingual campaigns

Multilingual corporate websites and campaigns — brand-true, SEO-optimised and terminologically consistent across every language and market.

Online retailers with large product catalogues

Product catalogues and shops in German ⇄ English — SEO-optimised down to meta data and categories, and scalable across large assortments.

SaaS and app providers localising UI and onboarding

UI, onboarding and store texts localised — with a clean separation of code and text, and terminology kept consistent across versions.

Agencies who need a translator on a relaunch deadline

A reliable language partner for relaunches and ongoing content care — under a framework agreement, on schedule, with kept terminology.

Documents we translate into German

What we localise: web copy, product data, UI strings and meta data.

Website, e-commerce, app or campaign: we localise the content that visitors read and the metadata search engines rely on — between German and English for the German market.

Websites and CMS: WordPress, TYPO3, Drupal, Wix

  • Corporate sites & blogs
  • Landing pages & campaigns
  • WordPress, TYPO3, Drupal, Wix

Shops and e-commerce: Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, Gambio

  • Product & category copy
  • Checkout & customer account
  • Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, Gambio

App and software: UI strings, app-store texts, onboarding

  • UI & app-store texts
  • Onboarding & help
  • Software localisation

Marketing and SEO: meta title, description, slugs, transcreation

  • Meta title & description
  • Keywords & slugs
  • Transcreation for campaigns

Canadians know localisation from the inside.

A bilingual country understands instinctively that a market is won in its own language, not in translation — and CETA has opened the German-speaking market to Canadian business. We help you take it: website, app and shop localised into German with the tone and payment conventions German-speaking buyers expect. (termbase specialises in German ⇄ English; French-language Canadian content is handled on request.)

Translated word-for-word — and no one in the target market finds you.

So: native-speaker SEO translation, clean technology and brand voice in every language.

International SEO & localisation

Keyword research, hreflang and slugs — so the page is actually found.

People in the target country search with different terms — a one-to-one translation of your keywords often goes nowhere. We research the actual search terms of the German market and carry page titles, meta data, headings and URLs across so your site ranks there instead of merely existing. Whichever of the Certified German ⇄ English translation your site goes into, we localise for that specific market.

Technically we watch for clean hreflang, consistent slugs and a language structure that helps search engines assign the right version. Where machine translations already exist, we lift them to publication quality by post-editing (MTPE) and specialist proofreading. On request we agree a glossary up front and keep brand voice and terminology consistent across every language.

Quality you only notice at the receiving end

Six places a straight translation breaks: keywords, hreflang, code, length, law, script.

A website looks like plain text to translate — and that is the trap: search behaviour, code, legal texts and script direction each carry their own risk. These pitfalls separate a localised site that performs from one that was simply run through. Each is specific and demonstrable.

Typical pitfalls in website localisation and how a specialist resolves them
PitfallWhy it goes wrongHow termbase solves it
Keywords translated one-to-onePeople in the target country search with different words. A literal keyword translation misses real demand, so the page ranks for terms nobody uses.We research the actual search terms of the German market and set titles, meta data, headings and URLs to what people really type.
Missing or wrong hreflangWithout clean hreflang and a consistent language structure, search engines serve the wrong version or treat translations as duplicate content.We set correct hreflang, consistent slugs and a clear language structure so the right version reaches the right market.
Broken layout or codeOverwriting placeholders, variables or HTML tags breaks buttons, shifts the layout or throws template errors on publish.We translate the text, not the technology: tags, variables and placeholders stay intact; the site returns structurally identical.
Text length & UI limitsGerman compounds burst narrow buttons; UI strings have character limits. Translated blind, the text is clipped or overflows.We flag length risks and deliver length-fit strings that fit the design, with claims freed up as transcreation where needed.
Shop legal & market rulesT&Cs, withdrawal and privacy texts must match the German market's law — a raw translation of the German version misses the local rules.We localise shop content including market law and route regulated documents to legal translation where a certified version is required.
RTL & CJK scriptsArabic and Hebrew run right-to-left and mirror layout and navigation; Chinese, Japanese and Thai bring their own line breaks and spacing.We deliver the translation so it fits your design, mark script and mirroring needs, and adapt claims freely as transcreation.

Why 'just translate the text' breaks at the checkout

None of these is a spelling mistake — most survive any spell-check. They arise at the seam of search behaviour, code, market law and script, and only surface at the receiving end: the search result, the checkout, the broken button. That is exactly where native-speaker specialist localisation earns its place.

Certified German translation

ISO 17100 four-eyes revision, plus certified German translation for a register filing.

Reviewed by specialists · termbase editorial team

Every website project runs through a native-speaker specialist for the German market, with a second qualified person revising language, terminology and SEO elements in the four-eyes principle — the DIN EN ISO 17100 process (certified, Reg. 7U517). Styleguides, glossaries and translation memories keep brand voice and naming constant across every page, and your data is handled to GDPR, with an NDA on request.

Most web content needs no certification. Where a shop or company has to submit a document to an authority or court — a company register extract, a certificate, contract wording — a court-authorised translator (in German, ermächtigter Übersetzer, authorised under the law of a German federal state (Land); under Section 142 (3) ZPO such a translation counts as correct and complete once the translator certifies it) issues a certified translation with stamp, signature and certification note. If an apostille is additionally required, we check that in advance; the apostille itself is issued by the competent authority — termbase does not issue apostilles.

Germany · Austria · Switzerland

If a shop document has to be certified: who signs it, under which law.

termbase covers all three — the certifying authority and the legal basis are not the same. Compare them before you order.

How a certified translation is produced and recognised — Germany, Austria and Switzerland compared
 GermanyAustriaSwitzerland
Certified byA translator authorised by a German court (ermächtigter Übersetzer)An allgemein beeideter und gerichtlich zertifizierter Dolmetsch (§ 190 (1) AußStrG; register and protected title under §§ 14, 14b SDG)Notarisation — a notary confirms the translator's signature and identity
Legal basis§ 142 (3) ZPO§ 14 SDGCantonal notarial law (no federal sworn-translator statute)

Use cases

Three localisation projects: SaaS checkout, cross-border shop, .ch domain.

System, target markets and SEO scope decide the workflow, terminology and integration. Three common jobs — from the starting point to the result.

German checkout, DDG §5 Impressum and PAngV gross pricing

Company

Dublin SaaS company launching a German checkout

Starting point
An Irish (or UK/US) SaaS company in Dublin's 'Silicon Docks' tech cluster wants its product site and checkout live in German.
Process
We research actual German search terms for titles/meta/URLs, set clean hreflang, and localise checkout copy around Kauf auf Rechnung — Germany's leading payment preference (~26–30% market share, Statista 2025) — while a DDG §5-compliant Impressum and PAngV-compliant gross pricing are built in.
Result
A German-language product page that ranks in German search, meets German legal-notice and pricing law, and checks out the way German buyers actually pay.

Inbound case

US/UK/AU/CA online retailer entering the German market

Starting point
A non-EU retailer (US, UK, AU or CA) wants to sell into Germany and simply translates its home-market shop pages and T&Cs.
Process
We flag that GDPR Art. 27 requires a written EU representative for German data subjects, localise the Widerrufsbelehrung to the statutory BGB §355 withdrawal-notice template rather than a translated home-market returns policy, and set PAngV-compliant Gesamtpreis display.
Result
A shop that is not just translated but legally structured for Germany — reducing the Abmahnung (competitor cease-and-desist) risk a literal translation leaves open.

Inbound case

Irish tourism business targeting Tourism Ireland's own the German-speaking market segment

Starting point
An Irish hotel or tour operator wants to reach the German-speaking travellers Tourism Ireland itself markets to as a unified the German-speaking market segment.
Process
We localise the site and booking flow with German-market keyword research, hreflang, and brand-true (not literal) copy for the German traveller.
Result
A booking site actually found by, and built for, the German-speaking market travellers Tourism Ireland is already spending marketing budget to attract.

Austrian consumer rules, de-AT hreflang and a Firmenbuch branch

E-commerce

UK/Irish e-commerce brand launching a German-language shop for Austria

Starting point
A UK or Irish retailer wants to sell into Austria and needs product pages, checkout and T&Cs in German that reflect Austrian consumer-protection rules, not a German-for-Germany copy-paste.
Process
Austrian-market keyword research feeds titles and meta data; legal pages are localised to Austrian law; hreflang is set for de-AT; export/import via the shop's CMS keeps code intact.
Result
A shop that reads native, ranks for Austrian search terms, and carries legal text that matches Austrian requirements rather than German ones.

Company

US or Irish company opening a Firmenbuch branch in Austria

Starting point
A US or Irish company setting up an Austrian branch must file a certified German translation of its certificate of incorporation and articles of association with the local Firmenbuch court.
Process
A translator sworn under §14 SDG produces the certified translation with stamp and certification clause, delivered alongside the company's new German-language site content.
Result
The Firmenbuch accepts the filing, and the branch's bilingual site can go live in step with registration.

Company

SaaS company needs an Austria-compliant Impressum and terms

Starting point
A Canadian or Australian SaaS provider onboarding Austrian customers needs an Impressum, terms and privacy notice in German that satisfy Austrian information-duty rules, plus a localised app-store listing.
Process
Legal pages are translated and checked against Austrian requirements; UI strings and store copy are localised with character-limit and placeholder checks; terminology is kept consistent via a glossary.
Result
A product that Austrian users can sign up to with confidence, with legal pages that hold up if an authority asks.

Swiss Standard German, nDSG, CHF pricing and TWINT at checkout

Market entry

UK/IE SaaS firm opening a Swiss go-to-market page

Starting point
An English-language SaaS product needs a German entry page that ranks on google.ch and reads as locally credible to Swiss B2B buyers, not as an imported German (DE) site.
Process
Copy is written in Swiss Standard German (no ß, correct Helvetismen), CHF pricing is displayed all-inclusive under the PBV, and Germany-only idioms that flag the page as foreign are removed.
Result
A page that reads as written for Switzerland and holds up under SECO price-transparency and UWG rules — credible in-market rather than an obviously ported German template.

E-commerce

US Shopify brand launching a Swiss storefront

Starting point
A US e-commerce brand wants a German storefront for Swiss consumers whose checkout and legal pages must hold up under Swiss, not EU, rules.
Process
Privacy notice and T&Cs are localized to nDSG Art. 19 multilingual adequacy, UWG Art. 3a non-discrimination/geoblocking rules are flagged for checkout logic, and TWINT is positioned in the checkout copy alongside cards.
Result
A storefront built to survive review by the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC/EDÖB) and SECO — not merely translated, but compliant and matched to Swiss buyer habits.

Company & register

AU/CA firm registering a .ch domain from abroad

Starting point
An Australian professional-services firm registers a .ch domain (SWITCH allows this with no Swiss residency) and assumes the domain alone gives it a compliant Swiss presence.
Process
The site is localized to Swiss Standard German with the right Helvetismen, and the privacy notice is built to nDSG so that, where the extraterritorial test applies, a Swiss representative is designated per the revised FADP.
Result
The .ch domain and the compliance layer line up — a site that holds if the FDPIC tests it, closing the gap between owning .ch and actually being lawful in Switzerland.

What a German translation costs

What a website localisation costs — with a free sample before you commit.

We review volume, target markets, system and SEO scope and name a binding fixed price — on request after a free sample translation. Longer content is priced per standard line; SEO, meta data, CMS handling and the four-eyes check are included.

Binding fixed price
from C$1.45 / standard linespecialist website translation · free sample on request
Price up front · no unannounced extra costs
Native-speaker SEO professional translation✓included
Meta data & hreflang carried across✓included
Export/import & CMS handling✓included
Four-eyes revision & final check✓included
Certification by an authorised translator on request✓included

As a guide, professional translation starts from C$1.45 per standard line (55 characters incl. spaces); we name the exact amount after a brief review. How the price is made up →

Request a quote

FAQ

Questions retailers, SaaS teams and agencies ask before a relaunch.

Which translators localise websites and online shops?

Native-speaker professional translators with IT and SEO expertise who are at home in the German market, so tone, buying culture and search behaviour all fit. On request a second qualified person revises the work in the four-eyes principle.

Will the translated pages rank in German search?

Yes. We research the actual search terms used in the German market and carry titles, meta data, headings and URLs across so your site is found there – including clean hreflang and a consistent language structure.

Which CMS and shop systems do you work in?

WordPress, TYPO3, Drupal and Wix, plus Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce and Gambio, among others. We work via export/import (XML, CSV, PO/XLIFF), through connectors or directly in the interface – placeholders, variables and code stay untouched.

Will the translation break my layout or code?

No. We translate the text, not the technology: HTML tags, variables and placeholders are preserved, and the site comes back structurally identical and ready to publish – timed to your relaunch on request.

Do you also localise apps and software interfaces?

Yes. We localise UI strings, onboarding, app-store descriptions and help texts with a clean separation of code and text and consistent terminology across all versions.

What does a website translation cost – is there a sample?

The price depends on volume, target markets, system and SEO scope; after a brief review we name a binding fixed price. On request you receive a free sample translation in advance. Professional translation from C$1.45 per standard line.
Our German pages were a faithful translation of pages written for Canadian buyers, which meant they answered the wrong questions well. The rewrite started from what German buyers ask before they order.
★★★★★

Josée Marchand · e-commerce lead, Montréal

Next

Next: marketing copy, interpreting, proofreading for German web pages.

By document

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Also translated

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By service

Certified translation into GermanGerman scientific translationGerman proofreading servicesCertified German translation price

Work with us

Become a website translator with SEO literacy and CMS nerve.

Website localisation rewards a rare mix: a native-speaker translator who also reads a target market's search behaviour and is not thrown by a placeholder, a variable or an XLIFF file. If you translate brand-true and keep the code intact, there is steady work here — employed or freelance, under framework agreements with recurring content.

The mix

Native tone, plus keyword research and CMS literacy

Native command of the target language is the starting capital; the market rewards what you build on top. Knowing how people actually search in your market — and carrying that into titles, meta data and URLs — is what makes a translation rank rather than merely exist. Add a working comfort with CMS exports, placeholders and resource files, and you deliver copy that is both brand-true and ready to publish, not a layout to repair afterwards.

Why it holds up

The judgement machine output misses: claims, demand, string length

Machine output translates strings; it does not weigh whether a claim lands in the target culture, whether a keyword matches real demand, or whether a compound will burst a button. Under DIN EN ISO 17100 a second qualified person revises the work in the four-eyes principle — a level of judgement, and accountability, that publication-grade web content still relies on. Careful human localisation here is not nostalgia; it is what a ranking, converting site requires.

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