DeepL alternative
A DeepL alternative that translates where you are typing
A DeepL alternative for people who translate while they work. KeyShift translates selected text in place, in Slack, Outlook, WhatsApp or any app on Windows and Mac. 50+ languages, free plan.
DeepL produces excellent translations. The friction is not the quality; it is the trip. You copy the sentence, switch to DeepL, paste, read, copy the result, switch back, paste again. For one paragraph a day that is fine. For a chat with a supplier in Italian or a support inbox in three languages, it adds up to a lot of lost minutes.
KeyShift removes the trip. Select the text in the app you are in, press one shortcut, choose the language, and the translation is typed back in place of the original. You never leave the message you were writing.
What DeepL is built around
- A translation window: the website, the desktop app or the extension, where you paste text and read the result.
- A fixed list of supported languages, chosen from a menu.
- Translating documents and web pages as whole units.
- A second product, DeepL Write, for rewriting, as a separate step.
What KeyShift does instead
- Translate in place. Select a WhatsApp message, press Ctrl+Shift+A, choose Translate and the language. The reply is typed into the same field.
- Live translate for long chats. Turn it on in Settings, type in your own language, and every double space replaces what you typed with the translation. You chat in Albanian; they read English.
- Any language you can name. Type keyshift translate to Brazilian Portuguese, informal, then press space twice. The instruction is free text, not a menu.
- Translate then fix the tone in one go. "Translate to German and make it formal" is one action, not two tools.
- Text from screen. Press Ctrl+Shift+O, drag a box over an image, a PDF or a video subtitle, and translate the text inside it.
DeepL vs KeyShift at a glance
| DeepL | KeyShift | |
|---|---|---|
| Translate selected text | Copy, paste into DeepL, copy back | In place, one shortcut |
| Translate while chatting | Window switching | Live translate on double space |
| Languages | Menu of supported languages | 50+ with free-text instructions |
| Translate text in images or video | Documents and images in the app | Any region of the screen |
| Fix grammar, rewrite, summarize | Separate product | Same shortcut |
| Works in | DeepL's window, extension, add-ins | Any text field on Windows, macOS, Android |
| Free plan | Yes, with limits | Yes, 25 AI actions a month |
Based on each product's public features. Other products change; if something here is out of date, write to support@keyshift.ai and we will fix it.
How KeyShift works, in any app
- Quick Actions: select text, press Ctrl+Shift+A (⌘⇧A on Mac), pick an action. The result replaces the selection.
- The typed trigger: write normally, add keyshift plus your instruction, press space twice. No selection, no shortcut.
- Voice (Ctrl+Shift+M), text from screen (Ctrl+Shift+O) and clipboard history (Ctrl+Shift+V) for the text you do not have yet.
- Undo any replacement with Ctrl+Shift+Z, up to 20 steps.
Windows 10 and later, macOS 11 and later, and Android. See the getting started guide.
Questions people ask
Is the translation quality as good as DeepL?
KeyShift uses the current frontier models (OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, or your own choice on Pro). For everyday messages and emails the quality is on par, and you can add instructions like formal, casual or keep it short, which a translation box cannot take.
Can I translate text I did not write, like an incoming message?
Yes. Select the incoming message and run Translate; the result opens in a window if the app does not allow replacing someone else's text. For images or video, use Text from screen.
Does it work on my phone?
The KeyShift keyboard for Android translates inside WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram and any other app. iPhone is coming.
Try it in your own apps
Free plan, 25 AI actions a month, no card needed. Pro from €4 a month billed yearly.