How can I use Google Translate API to Translate text in Microsoft Excel

Question

I am hoping someone here can help me with the google translator API. I have an excel file with about 80k rows, and I am trying to build a macro where it translates everything in a column except for the first row. As an example I have six columns in Microsoft Excel such as the below

Excel Column Headers

• Column A = Name
• Column B = Address
• Column C = Phone Number
• Column D = Request
• Column E = Google Translated Request
• Column F = Notes

and I want to use the google translator API to take what is in column D and translate it to column E without translating what is in the first row as those are my column titles. Is this possible to do within an Excel Macro using the google translate API, and if so how would one do this?

Answer 1

In order to translate content from your Excel spreadsheets, your options would be one of the following:

1. Use built-in Microsoft text translation
2. Write a VBA script that communicates with the Microsoft Text Translator API
3. Write a VBA script that communicates with the Google Translation API

Depending on the use case and how confident you are with Microsoft's translation feature, I'd probably use the built in solution as it would likely be the simplest route. Depending on the version of Excel you have, it could even be built into the menus.

If not, you could use VBA script to use the Microsoft Text Translator REST API as suggested by @sysmod in a previous answer. As I'm not entirely familiar with that API, I'd strongly recommend reading the linked documentation.

If you prefer to use the Google Translation API, there is a REST API that you can use as linked above. You'd essentially need to use VBA script to issue a GET or POST request to https://translation.googleapis.com/language/translate/v2.

Keep in mind that in the case of both REST APIs (Microsoft and Google alike), you would need very specific query parameters as shown in their respective linked documentation and you'd also need to authentication your project/application using a subscription key or API key. This is the only way for Microsoft of Google to keep track of how much free quota your application has used.

Answer 2

Built into Excel 2016: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/translator/excel.aspx

Not Google, but using the free Microsoft Azure API:

https://sysmod.wordpress.com/2017/01/20/vba-code-for-microsoft-text-translator-api/