With COVID-19 prevalent around the globe, Google is supporting the cause in fighting the spread of the disease. It looks like Google has recognized the limited resources during the pandemic and understands that many websites can't afford either the time or cost of translating vital updates into different languages for wider accessibility. To help maximize access to critical updates on public safety in a timely and effective manner, Google has decided to make its Google Translate widget free for non-commercial use.
Who can get the Google Translate Widget for free?
The Google Translate Website Translator has been made available at no cost for government, nonprofit, and non-commercial use only. This is only being offered for use by websites with a primary focus on COVID-19 response that fit the following categories:
- government
- non-profit
- non-commercial
While Google doesn't explicitly state what "non-commercial" means in this instance, it does state, "academic institutions" when citing non-commercial use.
How to get the Google Translate Widget for free
If you meet the eligibility requirements and want to use the Google Translate Website Translator for your website, just fill out the request form and agree to their terms of service. With this tool, website owners can translate important content into over 100+ languages including content within PDFs, and much more.
On the other hand, if you don't meet the eligibility requirements from above, Google does still offer translation services through its paid Google Cloud Translation API here.
Source: https://webmasters.googleblog.com/2020/05/google-translates-website-translator.html