Lokalise vs Smartcat
A side-by-side comparison of Lokalise and Smartcat, two Translation tools, drawn from Ignaite's continuously-verified listings.
Compared from listings verified as of
At a glance
| Attribute | Lokalise | Smartcat |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Translation | Translation |
| Pricing | FREEMIUM | FREEMIUM |
| License | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud |
| Platforms | Web, API | Web, API |
| Model support | Multi-model | Multi-model |
| Vendor (differs) | Lokalise | Smartcat |
| Capabilities (differs) |
|
|
The honest brief
Lokalise
Smart per-string LLM routing — cheap models for low-stakes copy, stronger where tone matters — in a software TMS.
- Per-string smart LLM routing
- Strong developer integrations
- In-context editing
- Glossaries + translation memory
- Enterprise-tier pricing
- Geared to software, not docs
- Complex for small teams
Smartcat
Bundles AI translation with a 500k-linguist marketplace and native vendor billing, so sourcing and paying humans stays in-tool.
- Integrated linguist marketplace + payments
- 280+ languages, translation memory
- AI translation plus human review
- Collaborative project management
- Marketplace pricing varies by linguist
- Less developer/API-first than rivals
- Can be complex for simple jobs
When to pick which
Both cover Translation and Localization (i18n).
Pick Lokalise if you need Trigger-action automation.
- Trigger-action automation (secondary capability)
Lokalise leans on Localization (i18n) as a headline capability; Smartcat treats it as secondary.
- Localization (i18n) (primary capability)