BabelBotBabelBot quick start for Discord translation
Set up automatic Discord translation with BabelBot's guided setup in about two minutes.
Guided setup takes you from the Discord invite to your first automatic translation in about two minutes. It detects your server, applies your choices, and checks your first translation.
New servers start with English translation on in text channels. Guided setup lets you choose other target languages and how translations appear.
Before you start
- You need Manage Server on the target Discord server
- You must add BabelBot to the server, not only to your user account
Get your first translation
Start guided setup
Open guided setup, then add BabelBot to the server you manage. Discord sends you back to the setup page, and the page detects the server. If you already added BabelBot, sign in and choose the server from the list.
BabelBot posts a welcome message in your server's system channel when it can. Otherwise, it uses a public text channel where it can post. The message uses your server's Discord language when BabelBot supports it. The message has buttons for setup and for BabelBot's interface language. The interface choice does not change translation targets. A server manager can also open guided setup directly.
Choose the languages your members read
Choose at least one target language. Guided setup suggests the language of your dashboard and English. BabelBot detects the language of each message and translates it into the languages you choose.
Choose how translations appear
Choose replies or threads, then select Save and test. If you are not signed in, the button shows Sign in with Discord to save. Discord confirms that you can manage the server before BabelBot saves your choices. Later, choose Embed or Plain text for replies on the Reply mode page in the dashboard. You can also choose Replace the original for automatic text translations or set rules for individual channels there.
Post a test message
Select Open Discord, then send a short message in a language that is not one of your target languages. Guided setup watches for the translation and confirms that BabelBot works.
If no translation appears after about a minute, guided setup shows what to check.
After guided setup
For 30 days after guided setup, Overview shows a Finish setting up checklist. It links to the next steps: see a translation in your server, choose where BabelBot translates, try a flag reaction, and link language channels. The checklist marks each step as done from your server's settings and activity. Select the close button to hide it.
If guided setup is already complete for a server, opening it again takes you to that server's Overview. Change settings there.
Manual setup
Use the dashboard if you skipped guided setup or want to configure the server yourself:
- Sign in to the dashboard.
- Select the installed server and click Manage.
- On Overview, turn Translations on.
- Under Target languages, add at least one language.
- Choose Reply in channel, Reply in threads, or Replace the original. If you choose replies, select Embed or Plain text, then send a test message in Discord.
You can also run /dashboard in the server to open its dashboard page. You need Manage Server.
If nothing appears
Check these before changing more settings:
- On Overview, translations are enabled for the server
- Under Target languages, at least one language is listed
- Under Channel rules, the test channel is not excluded (see the Dashboard Guide for how rules work)
- The message has normal text (not only a URL, emoji, or similar)
Still stuck? Continue with Troubleshooting.
Optional: keep channels clean from day one
Recommended for busy servers
Under Channel rules, add rules that turn translation off in admin, audit, and bot-command channels. Send a test message in each channel type to confirm behavior matches what you expect.
If one of those channels belongs to a bridge, bridge messages still relay. Remove or disable that bridge to stop traffic between its linked channels.
Verify on Overview
Open Overview for your server and confirm:
- Translation is on
- Plan & usage shows your tier and remaining AI capacity
- Translation activity will populate after real traffic (not required for this guide)
Run /help in Discord for a short recap of commands that still work in chat.
First-week defaults
- Reply preference: reply in channel
- Reply style: Embed by default, or Plain text for compact output
- Target languages: start with one
- Channel rules: disable translation in mod/log/bot channels
What to read next
- How BabelBot Works: why some messages are skipped on purpose
- Voice chat translation: live voice call setup and usage
- Command Reference: member shortcuts in Discord