The short answer
Kobold vs LangShop: the short answer
LangShop is a Shopify translation app priced by languages and products, from free to $500 a month, with no per-word charge. Its pro engines (OpenAI, DeepL Pro, Google Cloud) run on your own account, which those providers bill. Its auto-sync translates new products and collections once. When you edit the original, it marks the translation Outdated and you re-translate it. Kobold (usekobold.com) is a paid tool, from $79 a month, that makes Shopify theme code changes and translates your store. Its auto-translate translates new and changed store and theme content in each language you turn it on for, with a glossary, checks and Undo for 30 days. Translation uses 12 credits per 1,000 words per language. Both write translations to Shopify, so they stay if you leave.
Pick LangShop for
Many languages on a small budget
From $10 a month for 5 languages, no per-word charge from LangShop. Also metafields, checkout text, a currency switcher and human translation.
Pick Kobold for
Translations that follow your edits
From $79 a month. With auto-translate on, changed text is re-translated and checked, with Undo for 30 days.
What do Kobold and LangShop each do?
LangShop AI Language Translate is a Shopify translation app made by Aheadworks. It has been on the Shopify App Store since 2016, has the Built for Shopify badge, and is rated 4.5 out of 5 from 469 reviews [1].
It translates products, variants, collections, pages, blogs, menus, theme sections and settings, metafields, URL handles, checkout text, notifications, legal policies and third-party app content [3]. Its changelog added product image alt text in December 2025 and metaobject import and export in July 2026 [4]. Metaobject translation is on Standard and up [2]. Every plan has a free basic engine; paid plans add OpenAI, DeepL Pro and Google Cloud. You can also order human translation from a professional agency [1][2][3].
LangShop also adds a language and currency switcher, with location detection on Standard and up [2]. It stores translations in Shopify through the GraphQL API, and they stay if you uninstall the app [5].
Kobold (usekobold.com) is a web app that makes Shopify theme code changes and translates your store into the languages you've added in Shopify [13]. It translates four areas:
- Theme text
Buttons, labels and cart text from your theme's language files [13].
- Theme content
The text you typed into sections and theme settings [13].
- Store content
Products, collections, pages, blog posts, menus and image alt text [13].
- Metafields
The metafield and metaobject fields you tick on its Metafields tab, off until you turn it on [13].
Kobold writes native Shopify translations, so they stay in Shopify if you cancel [13]. Adding a language stays in Shopify. Kobold doesn't add a language or currency switcher: shoppers use the one in your theme, if it has one. It doesn't translate checkout, email notifications, payment or delivery names, or market-specific text [13].
Kobold translates metafields only by choice. You tick the fields that hold copy, like care instructions or FAQ answers, and each ticked field is translated on every product or entry. Only text types can be ticked: JSON gets its text values translated with keys and structure unchanged, URL, file, number and reference fields are never translated, and app fields start off [13].
What happens to translations when you edit a product?
This is the biggest practical difference between the two. Most stores change text every month: new descriptions, sale copy in sections, fixed typos. A translation app either follows those changes or leaves them for you.
LangShop's auto-sync (“Auto Pilot” on its pricing cards) translates new products and collections. It's on Standard and up, and each plan lists a number of new items: 50 on Standard, 125 on Advanced, 250 on Pro, 1,250 on Enterprise and unlimited on Unlimited [2]. LangShop's support wrote in November 2025: “Auto-sync is designed to translate only newly added products and collections automatically.” Duplicated products aren't re-translated. In December 2025 support added that automatic translation “runs only once (at the moment the new product is created)” [6].
When you edit the original text, LangShop marks the translation Outdated. It has done this since June 2023 for products, collections, pages, blogs and blog posts [4]. You then re-translate it yourself. On Advanced ($75 a month) and up, you can build a Shopify Flow that starts a translation [2][4]. In June 2026 LangShop's support suggested one that runs when a product goes from draft to active [6].
Kobold's auto-translate keeps a language up to date while your store changes. Add a product, edit a description or change the text in a theme section, and Kobold translates the new or changed text into each language you turned it on for [13]:
- Per language, off by default
Only an owner can turn it on. A language qualifies after one translation you started yourself, with store or theme content in it, has gone live, and Kobold keeps up to 10 of the rows you approved there as examples of your style. It needs two read-only Shopify permissions, read_products and read_content, to notice changes [13][15].
- Apply or hold
Apply automatically adds each translation as soon as it passes the checks: turning it on is the owner's approval for that language. Hold for my review keeps the drafts on the Translations page, with one email a day [13].
- Timing
Shopify tells Kobold about product and collection changes right away. Pages, blog posts and theme content are checked every hour, and menus each night. Kobold then translates 30 minutes after the first change, so a burst of edits becomes one translation, or once a day at 03:00 store time. A large batch goes to a translation service that usually answers within an hour, rarely up to 24 hours [13].
- What it covers
Store content and theme content, changed after you turn it on. Text that was already missing stays with Translate missing. Theme text is translated only when you start a translation yourself. Metafields and metaobject fields are included when you chose them and ticked the Metafields area; shop policies and URL handles are never auto-translated [13].
- Large changes are held
A batch of more than 20,000 words across its languages, after an import or a bulk edit, waits for review even when the language applies automatically, and owners get an email [13].
Auto-translate shipped on 7 October 2026, so it has no public track record yet. With Apply automatically, nobody reads a translation before it goes live, and theme content is written straight to your live theme after Kobold saves what was there. Moss's fit check, which looks at how text fits on the page, doesn't run on automatic translations, so check the language on your store now and then, or use Hold for my review [13].
How do Kobold and LangShop keep translations accurate?
Since 1 October 2026, every paid LangShop plan has unlimited glossary rules [2][4]. With DeepL you also get DeepL glossaries, a formality setting and DeepL style rules, and OpenAI translations can use store-specific context [4]. You can edit any translation by hand, and paid plans include unlimited translation editing [1]. Standard and up add translation suggestions, with alternative wordings to pick from, and a translation history to restore earlier translations [2]. Advanced and up add exclusion rules that keep chosen content out of translation, and since February 2026 shopify:// links are excluded by default [2][4].
In a translation you start, Kobold drafts a sample first. Every row, automatic ones included, is checked before it can be added [13][16]:
- Sample of 10
Before translating everything, Nib translates 10 strings per language. You approve, edit or reject them, and your choices guide the rest.
- Review table
The original, the current translation and Kobold's draft, side by side, with filters. Approve rows one by one, in a selection, or all at once.
- Checks
Placeholders, links, emails and phone numbers unchanged, no new numbers, HTML intact, every plural form present, glossary followed. A row that fails can't be approved until it's edited.
- Glossary and brand voice
Terms kept as they are (“Oak & Ember”) or always translated the same way. Kobold suggests terms and writes in your store's voice from its store memory.
- Theme copy first
In a translation you start, theme text and theme content go on Kobold's copy of your theme, so you can preview each language before it goes live.
- Undo for 30 days
Undo puts back the translations you had before, row by row, and leaves rows someone changed since.
Some values are never translated: URLs, file references, tags, and URL handles unless you ask for them. Kobold also never translates theme setting values that the theme matches on, such as swatch and option names, colour names, links and style settings. Translating “Color” in a swatch setting would stop it matching your products' Color option [13].
How much do Kobold and LangShop cost?
LangShop charges a flat monthly price set by languages and products, with no per-word charge: “We don't charge per word” [2]. Prices as of 7 October 2026, after its 1 October pricing update [2][4]:
Paying yearly saves about 17%, and paid plans have a 14-day trial [1][2]. LangShop's pro engines run on your own account: in June 2026 its support wrote that OpenAI, Google Cloud and DeepL Pro “use the API and the account of the user, not our own” [6][9]. So those providers bill you on top of the plan. The free basic engine has no such bill, and support recommends a pro engine for some language pairs [6].
Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial with 250 credits. Credits reset each month, don't roll over, and pay for theme code work and translation alike. Prices exclude VAT [14].
Starter
$79a month
1,000 credits a month
1 store · 1 seat
Growth
$249a month
4,000 credits a month
1 store · 3 seats with roles
Agency
$699a month
12,000 credits a month
Up to 15 stores · 5 seats · client approval links
Translation costs 12 credits per 1,000 words per language, counted on your original text. A 250-word description in German and French is 500 words, so 6 credits. Redrafts aren't charged again, and auto-translate has no checks fee. You can set a monthly credit limit for auto-translate per store, and you can top up 500 credits for $40 at any time [13][14].
What would a year of translation cost on Kobold or LangShop?
Three example stores, translated into 1 or 3 languages. LangShop prices come from its pricing page [2]. Translate & Adapt is free and auto-translates up to 2 languages, or 8 in 12 European countries [10][11].
Assumptions: 12 credits per 1,000 source words per language; year 1 is the first full translation plus 11 months in which 8% of the words change; year 2 is 12 such months; a credit is worth $0.058 (Agency) to $0.08 (a top-up); for LangShop, one product per 200 source words, all text included, so 150, 350 and 1,000 products (LangShop's pricing page estimates 250 words per product) [2].
Scroll sideways to see all three columns
| Store and languages | LangShop | Shopify Translate & Adapt | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30,000 words · 1 language | Year 1: 677 credits ($39–$54). Year 2: 346 credits ($20–$28). First run: 360 credits. | Basic, 150 products and up to 5 languages: $120 a year ($100 paid yearly), both years. Pro engines, if you use them, billed by their provider. | Free. Uses 1 of the 2 auto-translate languages (8 in 12 European countries). |
| 30,000 words · 3 languages | Year 1: 2,030 credits ($118–$162). Year 2: 1,037 credits ($60–$83). First run: 1,080 credits. | Basic, 150 products and up to 5 languages: $120 a year ($100 paid yearly), both years. Pro engines, if you use them, billed by their provider. | Free, but most stores can auto-translate only 2 of the 3 languages. The third is by hand or another app. |
| 70,000 words · 1 language | Year 1: 1,579 credits ($92–$126). Year 2: 806 credits ($47–$65). First run: 840 credits. | Standard, since 350 products is over Basic's 250: $480 a year ($400 paid yearly), both years. Pro engines, if you use them, billed by their provider. | Free. Uses 1 of the 2 auto-translate languages (8 in 12 European countries). |
| 70,000 words · 3 languages | Year 1: 4,738 credits ($275–$379). Year 2: 2,419 credits ($140–$194). First run: 2,520 credits. | Standard, since 350 products is over Basic's 250: $480 a year ($400 paid yearly), both years. Pro engines, if you use them, billed by their provider. | Free, but most stores can auto-translate only 2 of the 3 languages. The third is by hand or another app. |
| 200,000 words · 1 language | Year 1: 4,512 credits ($262–$361). Year 2: 2,304 credits ($134–$184). First run: 2,400 credits. | Standard, 1,000 products: $480 a year ($400 paid yearly), both years. Pro engines, if you use them, billed by their provider. | Free. Uses 1 of the 2 auto-translate languages (8 in 12 European countries). |
| 200,000 words · 3 languages | Year 1: 13,536 credits ($785–$1,083). Year 2: 6,912 credits ($401–$553). First run: 7,200 credits. | Standard, 1,000 products: $480 a year ($400 paid yearly), both years. Pro engines, if you use them, billed by their provider. | Free, but most stores can auto-translate only 2 of the 3 languages. The third is by hand or another app. |
On price alone, LangShop costs less in every example. Kobold's dollar range is the value of the credits used, not a separate bill: the credits come from your plan's monthly pool, shared with theme code work, and Kobold needs a plan from $79 a month ($948 a year) [14]. The monthly changes fit in a Starter month in every example. Four first runs don't: 30,000 words in 3 languages (1,080 credits), 70,000 in 3 (2,520), 200,000 in 1 (2,400) and 200,000 in 3 (7,200). Those need Growth, Agency, top-ups, or a first translation spread over several months.
What the LangShop price leaves out is the work on edits. In these examples 8% of the words change each month, from 2,400 words a month in the smallest store to 16,000 in the largest. LangShop flags that text Outdated, and someone re-translates it, or a Shopify Flow does on Advanced and up [2][4]. Kobold re-translates it with auto-translate, for the credits shown. Translations you start yourself also include Moss's page checks, charged like other QA and not included above [13].
What do LangShop's reviews say about reliability?
Most LangShop reviews are positive: 90% of its 469 reviews give 5 stars [1]. Recent 5-star reviews praise its support staff by name and say translating products, pages and theme content is straightforward [8]. The low-rated reviews from the past year cluster around a few problems:
Reviews are a small, self-selected sample, and LangShop's support replied to several of these [6]. Its changelog also shows steady fixes in 2026, such as up to 3.5 times faster bulk product translation and more reliable Shopify Flow translations [4].
Kobold's translation features are new, so there are no reviews to compare yet. When auto-translate can't run, it pauses instead of starting: out of credits, the monthly limit reached, a missing Shopify permission or a failed payment. The Translations page shows why, owners get an email, changes keep queueing, and it resumes by itself once the reason is gone [13].
Kobold vs LangShop vs Translate & Adapt: comparison table
LangShop facts come from its listing, pricing and features pages, changelog and support replies [1][2][3][4][6]. Translate & Adapt facts come from Shopify's listing and help pages [10][11][12].
Scroll sideways to see all three columns
| Feature | LangShop | Shopify Translate & Adapt | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | From $79 a month. Translation uses 12 credits per 1,000 words per language, from credits shared with theme work | Free to $500 a month, no per-word charge. Pro engines are billed by their provider | Free |
| What sets the limit | Credits per month: 1,000 to 12,000, plus top-ups | Languages (1 to 20) and products (50 to unlimited) | Auto-translates 2 languages (8 in 12 European countries) |
| New products | Translated automatically in each language with auto-translate on | Auto-sync on Standard and up, up to a set number of new items per plan | Click Auto-translate, or weekly Auto-sync where it's available |
| Edited text | Re-translated with auto-translate on, in a 30-minute window or once a day at 03:00 | Marked Outdated for you to re-translate, or a Shopify Flow on Advanced and up | Click Auto-translate again, or weekly Auto-sync where it's available |
| Review before live | Sample of 10, then a review table. Auto-translate applies or holds for review, per language | Edit any translation by hand. Translation suggestions on Standard and up | No review step documented. Shopify advises reviewing before you publish |
| Glossary | Yes. A row that breaks it can't be added | Yes, unlimited rules on paid plans | None documented |
| Format checks | Placeholders, links, numbers, HTML, plural forms and glossary, on every row | No pre-approval checks described. shopify:// links excluded by default, exclusion rules on Advanced and up | Not documented |
| Undo | Any run, for 30 days | Translation history on Standard and up, to restore earlier translations | Not documented |
| Theme | Theme text and theme content, plus theme code changes | Theme sections and settings | Theme content, including default theme text |
| Metafields and metaobjects | Metafields: yes, the fields you choose. Metaobjects: yes, the fields you choose. Both in auto-translate too | Both. Metaobjects on Standard and up | Metafields: yes |
| Checkout, notifications, app text | No | Yes. Third-party app text on Standard and up | App text only when the app stores it as Shopify translations |
| Where translations are kept | In Shopify. They stay if you cancel | In Shopify. They stay if you uninstall | In Shopify. They stay if you uninstall |
When should you use LangShop instead of Kobold?
The better pick for keeping up with changes
Use Kobold when
- Your text changes every week
Auto-translate re-translates edited descriptions and section text without anyone re-running it.
- You want to see a sample before everything
10 strings per language first, then a review table, with checks that block broken placeholders, links and HTML.
- You want a way back
Undo for 30 days, for runs you start and for automatic ones.
- You also need theme code changes
The same credits pay for tested, approved theme changes, built on a copy of your theme.
Can I use Kobold and LangShop together, or switch?
Yes. Both write ordinary Shopify translations [5][13]. Kobold keeps translations that already exist, including ones another app made: it fills missing translations and the ones Shopify marks out of date, and replaces others only when you ask [13]. With auto-translate on, that includes a LangShop translation whose original you edit. So you can keep LangShop for checkout text and use Kobold for the rest.
Don't let both translate the same language automatically. They would translate the same new text twice. Before you turn Kobold's auto-translate on for a language, make sure LangShop's auto-sync and any translation Flow won't translate it too. If you leave LangShop, its translations stay in Shopify after you uninstall [5].
Kobold and LangShop: frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Kobold and LangShop?
LangShop is a Shopify translation app priced by languages and products, from free to $500 a month, with a language and currency switcher and support for metafields and checkout text. Kobold, from $79 a month, makes theme code changes and translates your theme and store content, and its auto-translate re-translates text when you edit it. LangShop marks edited text as Outdated for you to re-translate.
Does LangShop re-translate a product when I edit it?
Not automatically, as of October 2026. LangShop's auto-sync translates new products and collections once, when they're created. When you edit the original, LangShop marks the translation Outdated and you re-translate it, by hand or with a Shopify Flow on the Advanced plan and up.
Does Kobold re-translate my edits automatically?
Yes, with auto-translate, which an owner turns on per language. Kobold translates new and changed store content and theme content in a 30-minute window after it notices a change, or once a day at 03:00 store time, and either adds it straight away or holds it for your review. Theme text is translated with Translate missing instead.
Is LangShop cheaper than Kobold?
Usually, yes. LangShop costs $10 to $75 a month for 5 to 20 languages, up to $500 for unlimited products, with no per-word charge, though its pro engines run on your own OpenAI, DeepL or Google account, which those providers bill. Kobold starts at $79 a month, and translation uses 12 credits per 1,000 words per language from credits shared with theme code work.
Do my translations stay if I cancel?
Yes, with both. Kobold and LangShop store translations in Shopify, so they stay after you cancel or uninstall. With Kobold, Undo for past runs ends when you leave.
Does Kobold translate metafields?
Yes, the ones you choose. On Kobold's Metafields tab you turn on Translate metafields and tick the metafield and metaobject fields that hold copy; Translate missing and auto-translate then cover them, charged per word like other text. JSON fields get only their text values translated, and URL, file, number and reference fields are never translated. Translations LangShop already made stay in place.
What does Kobold never translate?
URLs, file references, tags, checkout, email notifications, payment and delivery names, market-specific text, and theme setting values the theme matches on, such as swatch and option names, colour names and links. URL handles and shop policies are translated only when you ask, and never automatically.
Can I use LangShop and Kobold on the same store?
Yes. Kobold keeps translations other apps made and fills only missing or out-of-date ones, unless you ask it to replace them. Let only one of them translate each language automatically, so they don't translate the same text twice.
How much does Kobold cost?
Kobold costs $79 a month on Starter, $249 on Growth and $699 on Agency, excluding VAT, with 1,000, 4,000 and 12,000 credits a month. Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial with 250 credits, and a 500-credit top-up costs $40.
Sources
LangShop and Translate & Adapt facts were checked against these pages on 7 October 2026. Numbers match the markers in the text.
LangShop (primary)
- [1]LangShop AI Language Translate on the Shopify App Storeapps.shopify.com
- [2]LangShop pricinglangshop.io
- [3]LangShop featureslangshop.io
- [4]LangShop changeloglangshop.io
- [5]LangShop FAQ: Shopify-specific questionslangshop.io
- [6]LangShop App Store reviews, 1 star, newest first (with LangShop's replies)apps.shopify.com
- [7]LangShop App Store reviews, 2 and 3 stars, newest firstapps.shopify.com
- [8]LangShop App Store reviews, newest firstapps.shopify.com
- [9]LangShop blog: translating with the DeepL and Google APIs (2022)langshop.io
Shopify (primary)
- [10]Translate & Adapt on the Shopify App Storeapps.shopify.com
- [11]Translate & Adapt: automatic translationhelp.shopify.com
- [12]Translate & Adapt: requirementshelp.shopify.com
Kobold
- [13]Translations and auto-translatedocs.usekobold.com
- [14]Creditsdocs.usekobold.com
- [15]Connect a store and permissionsdocs.usekobold.com
- [16]QA checksdocs.usekobold.com