Kindle Translate alternative โ for the languages Amazon doesn't cover
Amazon's Kindle Translate is free, and for English-to-Spanish fiction it is hard to beat. But it is an invite-only beta, it covers English and five European languages, and it only works on books already for sale on KDP. If any of those three walls blocked you, this page is the honest version of what to do next.
Use Kindle Translate instead of us ifโฆ
- โ You have been invited to the beta, and
- โ Your book is already for sale on KDP, and
- โ You want Spanish, German, French, Italian, Portuguese โ nothing else, and
- โ It is fiction or narrative non-fiction without complex layout
That is a genuinely good deal and we are not going to pretend otherwise. Everything below is for the authors it leaves out.
The eleven languages Kindle Translate can't do
Amazon's beta pairs English with Spanish, German, French, Italian, Portuguese. Everything here is outside it โ as a source language or a target one. Japanese and Korean authors reaching the US market are in exactly this gap.
Side by side
| Kindle Translate | BookTranslatorHub | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | From $29 |
| Languages | English โ 5 European languages | 17 languages, including Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic and Hindi |
| Access | Invite-only beta | Open to anyone |
| Book must already be on KDP | Yes โ must be currently for sale | No โ pre-launch and off-Amazon books welcome |
| Input formats | KDP eBooks | PDF, DOCX, EPUB โ including scanned PDFs |
| Content it suits | Fiction and narrative non-fiction | Also cookbooks, workbooks and illustrated non-fiction |
| Translated KDP listing + keywords | Not included | Included |
| Translated A+ Content guide | Not included | Included |
| Cover translation | Not included | Included |
| Where you can publish | Amazon | Anywhere โ you keep the files |
| Kindle Unlimited eligible | Yes | Yes, if you enrol the title yourself |
A translated book is not a translated listing
This is the part every translation tool skips. Your book can be flawless German and still sell nothing, because German readers search in German โ and your title, subtitle, description, backend keywords and A+ modules are all still in English. Every translation we deliver comes with a KDP listing guide and an A+ Content guide written in the target language, adapted to how people actually search there rather than translated word for word. Amazon's tool translates the book. It does not write your listing.
Questions
Is Kindle Translate free?
Yes. During the beta, Amazon provides Kindle Translate at no cost to invited KDP authors, and the translated titles are eligible for KDP Select and Kindle Unlimited. If your book and language pair qualify, it is the cheapest route available and we would genuinely recommend trying it first.
What languages does Kindle Translate support?
Kindle Translate handles translations between English and Spanish, German, French, Italian, Portuguese. It does not currently support Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, Hindi, Polish, Turkish, Dutch, Swedish, Danish or Norwegian โ as either a source or a target language.
Why can't I see the Translate option in my KDP Bookshelf?
Kindle Translate is an invite-only beta. The option only appears if Amazon has selected your account and the specific title is eligible โ the book must already be for sale in a supported language, must not be primarily public-domain content, must be one you hold translation rights to, and must not itself be a Kindle Translate edition. Amazon also reserves the right to decline or remove a translation at any time.
Can I translate a book that isn't published on Amazon yet?
Not with Kindle Translate โ it requires a book currently offered for sale on KDP. If you are translating before launch, publishing outside Amazon, or working from a manuscript rather than a live listing, you need a tool that works on files instead. That is what we do: upload a PDF, DOCX or EPUB and get publish-ready files back.
Does it work for non-fiction with images and tables?
Amazon states its service performs best with fiction and narrative non-fiction. Cookbooks, workbooks, textbooks and illustrated guides are where automated translation most often damages layout. Our pipeline preserves layout, fonts and images, and rebuilds scanned PDFs into cleanly typeset books.
What do I get beyond the translated book?
Every translation includes a KDP listing guide (title, subtitle, description and backend keywords written in the target language, not literally translated) and an A+ Content guide covering all ten marketing modules, plus cover translation. A translated book with an English listing does not sell โ the listing is what readers actually search.