What's the catch with locale.ly being free forever?

No catch right now. locale.ly is pre-launch and prioritising usage over revenue. When a paid tier eventually arrives (probably for teams with SSO needs or heavy AI usage), users who signed up during the beta will stay free.

How is locale.ly different from Crowdin, Lokalise, or Phrase?

Crowdin, Lokalise, and Phrase are mature, generalist translation platforms. locale.ly is opinionated for Flutter: your ARB files stay the source of truth, the CLI is the only way strings move in and out, and there is no proprietary file format.

Can I self-host locale.ly?

Yes. The full server source ships in the same monorepo as the CLI — Caddy, Postgres, systemd unit, and bootstrap script included. Everything needed to run a private copy on your own VPS is in the repository.

Does locale.ly work for non-Flutter projects?

Not today. The CLI parses ARB files and writes them back. Other formats (gettext .po, iOS .strings, Android XML) would need a new loader.

For Flutter teams • Built around your ARBs

Translations,
without the hand-off mess.

Q: Do my translation strings stay private on locale.ly?

Yes. Bundles are stored on the locale.ly backend and only accessible to project members the owner invites. AI context is generated via Anthropic with no training on your data. Self-hosting is available for teams who want to run everything on their own infrastructure.

Q: What happens if two reviewers edit the same translation string?

Last write wins on the server, but the change history records every edit and who made it. On the CLI side, a baseline lockfile detects when the server has changed since your last publish and warns before overwriting.

Send your Flutter app's strings to anyone who can write. They translate them in a web app. You pull approved changes back into your ARBs — with context, history, and zero spreadsheets.

$ dart pub global activate locale_helper_cli

Open-source CLI · Hosted backend at locale.ly

How it works

Three commands, one shared workspace.

No bespoke YAML, no proprietary file format. Your ARBs stay the source of truth.

Publish your ARBs

locale_helper publish uploads your strings with Claude-generated context for each key so translators understand intent.

Reviewers translate

Invite anyone with a link. They edit per locale side-by-side with the source. Suggestions wait for owner approval; direct edits land immediately.

Pull back

locale_helper pull --apply writes approved changes back to your ARB files. A 3-way diff keeps your local edits safe.

The review surface

Built for the people doing the work.

Translators see one string at a time, with source context, AI-generated intent notes, and a thread for asking questions. Owners review pending suggestions and approve in one click.

✓

Per-locale review state

Approve de while fr is still in review.
✓

Per-string change history

See every edit, who made it, and where it came from (suggestion / direct / publish).
✓

Comments threaded per key

Translators ask, you answer. Context stays attached to the string forever.
✓

Safe concurrent edits

A baseline lockfile detects conflicts before they overwrite your work.

app.locale.ly

Stays in your repo

Stays out of your way.

Lives next to your code, not in your CI. Idempotent. Your .locale_helper/ directory tracks just enough state to keep pushes and pulls safe.

$ locale_helper init                  # one-time per project
$ locale_helper publish               # pushes ARBs + AI context
                                      # reviewers do their thing
$ locale_helper pull --apply          # writes approved changes back

Pricing

Free during beta.

We'll figure out paid tiers when usage tells us what's worth charging for. Until then, everything is on the house.

Available now

Beta

Everything we've built, no limits.

$0/forever

✓ Unlimited projects + locales
✓ Unlimited reviewers
✓ AI-generated context per string
✓ Per-locale review state + history
✓ Open-source CLI

Later

Pro

For teams shipping in many languages.

$??/mo

· SSO + audit log
· Higher AI quota
· Self-host option
· SLA + priority support
· Whatever else you ask for

Tell us what you need

FAQ

Questions you'd reasonably ask.

What's the catch with "free forever"? ⌄

No catch right now. We're pre-launch and prioritising usage over revenue. When we eventually add a paid tier (probably for teams with SSO needs or heavy AI usage), the beta you signed up under will stay free. We'll announce changes in advance.

How is this different from Crowdin / Lokalise / Phrase? ⌄

Those are mature, generalist platforms. locale.ly is opinionated for Flutter — your ARBs stay the source of truth, the CLI is the only way things move in and out, and there's no proprietary file format. If you're not on Flutter or you need Figma plugins, those tools are probably a better fit.

Do my strings stay private? ⌄

Yes. Bundles are stored on our backend (encrypted at rest) and only accessible to project members you invite. AI context is generated via Anthropic with no training on your data. Self-hosting is on the roadmap for teams who'd rather keep everything on their own infra.

Can I self-host? ⌄

The full server source lives in the same monorepo as the CLI — Caddy, Postgres, systemd unit, bootstrap script, the works. It's not yet a first-class supported product, but if you want to run your own copy on a VPS today, everything you need is there.

Does it work for non-Flutter projects? ⌄

Not today. The CLI parses ARB files and writes them back. Anything built on a different format (gettext .po, iOS .strings, Android XML) would need a new loader. If you'd want one, get in touch.

What happens if two reviewers edit the same string? ⌄

Last write wins on the server, but the change history shows every edit and who made it. On the CLI side, a baseline lockfile detects when the server has changed since your last publish and warns you before overwriting.

Translations, without the hand-off mess.