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Polylang Theme Strings

By Modeewine

Multilingual & Accessibility / Translation & Multilingual Management

Reviewed by Omar Dabbas

Trusted WordPress expert with 20+ years of experience evaluating plugins for the WP ecosystem.

Polylang Theme Strings Review - In-Depth Analysis

This plugin enhances Polylang by automatically scanning theme files for translatable strings. It simplifies multilingual project development by registering these strings for translation.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

6.92/10

User Rating

4/5 (based on 37+ reviews)

Active Installations

5,000+

Update Frequency

Below Average It is calculated using the weighted average of same category plugins.

Security Score

1 / 10 (Very Low Risk) It is calculated using the weighted average of all versions.

What It Does

This plugin gives additional features to the plugin Polylang. It automatically scans all templates files and scripts of the active WP theme and all plugins for available strings that can be translated. For example: pll__('...'); and pll_e('...');

It adds them to the Polylang registry, allowing you to manage the translation of found strings using the administration panel. This will make your life easier for the development of multilingual projects, as you will not need to enter the needed strings to translate manually – the plugin will do all the work for you.

To use this plugin, you must install both the Polylang and Polylang Theme Strings plugins on your multilingual WordPress CMS project, ensuring that they are both active. When in the settings of the Polylang plugin under the tab 'Strings translation', the Polylang Theme Strings scans the active theme of your project, finds all the code strings that need to be translated, adds them to the registry, displays them on that page, and gives users the ability to translate these strings.

From version 4.0, Polylang Theme Strings includes a settings page where you can configure the search for string translations more deeply.

Comparing to Alternatives

Polylang Theme Strings is one of several multilingual plugins available for WordPress, each offering different approaches to translation management.

Top alternatives

Strengths

Free to use with no paid version required
Integrates well with Polylang for theme string translations
Generally reliable for detecting and translating theme strings
Lightweight with minimal impact on site performance

Weaknesses

Occasional bugs causing site language to default to English
Inconsistent detection of plugin strings on some sites
Issues reported with WooCommerce translations
Lack of recent updates leading to compatibility problems

User Sentiment Analysis

With an 80% average rating and most users giving 5 stars, the plugin is generally well-received, though about 22% of users report significant issues.

Positive highlights

"Better than WPML… and free" - Mariela Zárate
"Works great most of the time" - Anonymous
"What I needed to translate, I got it with this free Plugin." - tiagopmartins

Common complaints

Plugin changes site language to English unexpectedly
Stops registering new strings for translation
Causes errors in debug logs
Interferes with WooCommerce default translations

Weaknesses

Bugs affecting language settings
Inconsistent string detection across different sites
Compatibility issues with WooCommerce
Lack of recent updates

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Users who need a free and straightforward solution to translate theme strings, especially those already using Polylang for multilingual support.

Not ideal for

Sites relying heavily on WooCommerce or requiring robust, frequently updated multilingual solutions may find this plugin insufficient or problematic.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version offers essential features for translating theme strings without limitations on usage.

Final Verdict

Polylang Theme Strings provides a valuable free tool for translating theme strings, especially for users of the Polylang plugin. It is generally well-liked for its ease of use and effectiveness in many cases. However, users should be aware of some reported bugs and compatibility issues, particularly with WooCommerce and string detection inconsistencies.

While there are several alternatives available, this plugin stands out for its integration with Polylang and free availability. Users needing more robust or frequently updated solutions might consider other options, but for many, Polylang Theme Strings offers a solid balance of functionality and cost.

Other Notable Features

Here are a few other notable features of this free Polylang Theme Strings plugin.

Polylang

Multilingual

Translation

Screenshots

FAQ

Make sure you are using WordPress 3.8 or later and that your server is running PHP 5.0 or later.
Install multilingual plugin «Polylang».
Install the plugin «Polylang Theme Strings».
Activate both plugins via the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress administration panel.
Go to the languages (Polylang) settings page.
When you are in «Strings translation» tab of plugin settings (Polylang) – «Polylang Theme Strings» starts scan the active theme of your project automatically, it finds all the code strings that needed to be translated, adds them to the register, displays them on that page and gives to user the ability to translate these strings.
Learn more in http://modeewine.com/en-polylang-theme-strings.