International translation support

ChurchSuite is used by churches and charitable organisations in over 30 countries all around the world. Our mission is to build world-class software that supports the work and ministry of organisations internationally, and where possible, to provide a user experience where ChurchSuite can be understood in a user's native language.

How is ChurchSuite translated?

Ordinarily, ChurchSuite pages and content are shown in English. However, we also maintain a translation database containing a library of words, phrases, terms, and sentences used across the ChurchSuite ecosystem covering ChurchSuite, My ChurchSuite, Connect, and Embed. This database is regularly updated as new features and functionality are added, and when existing functionality is changed or enhanced.

The database comprises Native translations, Google Translate translations, and Amateur translations. We aim to offer comprehensive native translations wherever possible, derived from contributions of longstanding ChurchSuite users who are native speakers of a supported translation language - either as their first language or as a second language with a high degree of fluency. Native translations are the gold standard because we can be confident about the accuracy of the translation, and also confident that the translation makes sense in the context of ChurchSuite (rather than simply a literal translation).

When users access ChurchSuite through a browser, and if the browser language matches one of our supported translations, page content will be translated. However, we only show translated text where there is a Native, Google, or Amateur translation for that text in our database. Any text that doesn't yet exist in the database, or exists untranslated will be shown in English.

Supported languages

ChurchSuite currently offers comprehensive native translations for English, French, German (applies to Germany, Austria and Switzerland), and Spanish. These languages have a very high level of accurate native translation. We also support English variations for the UK and some other English-speaking countries, substituting terms with a regional variation where possible. For example, mobile/cell, county/state/province, postcode/zip code are supported English variations. These supported languages are automatically applied to your account using the geodata derived when you first requested a ChurchSuite account.

We also offer translations in Danish, Dutch, Italian, Polish, Slovak, and Swedish. These languages currently have a lower level of native translation and a higher level of Google and amateur translations, and some currently untranslated terms. As a result, these languages are not automatically assigned to your account - your account will show in English - but can be added on request. You may even wish to join some of our other international customer users actively committed to improving our native translation coverage for these languages, which not only makes ChurchSuite more accessible for your users but also for other customers in the future.

ChurchSuite also supports browser-based translation - where certain text like headings and fields will display in the language set in your browser settings. Since these translations are generated and applied by the browser, they may not be as accurate as a native translation. For example, they may include words which are a correct literal translation but are incorrectly translated for the context within ChurchSuite. For this reason, browser-based translations are only displayed for the member-facing My ChurchSuite system, and on public-facing pages like Donate, Embed, Group pages and Event pages. Users accessing the admin-facing ChurchSuite modules in a browser will never see a "Translate this page?" question - pages are always rendered in English unless their ChurchSuite account is set to use one of the supported languages described above.

Translations in our iOS and Android apps

When accessing ChurchSuite or My ChurchSuite through our iOS or Android app, or when using the Connect App on an Android device, the language that app pages are displayed in is determined by the language settings of the device. This is always the case, even when the language in question is not one of our supported languages.

Submitting new translations

We are always looking to improve the native translation coverage for supported languages to give the very best user experience for all of our customers, wherever in the world, they are using ChurchSuite.

If you or someone on your team is a native speaker of one of our currently-supported languages and would like to join others in translating ChurchSuite, please contact us at support@churchsuite.com and we will be more than happy to work that out with you.