I like Safari. It’s tightly integrated into macOS, it benefits from Apple’s iCloud+ security features, and it feels native. But when I need to read news in a language Safari doesn’t support, I have to switch to Firefox. That’s not a once-in-a-while thing — it’s frequent enough that it’s part of my routine.

Safari vs. Firefox: Language Support

Browser / Tool	Number of Languages Supported	Notes
Safari (Apple Translate)	19 languages	Arabic, Chinese (Simplified & Traditional), Dutch, English (US & UK), French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese (Apple support)
Firefox (Built-in translation)	60+ languages	Includes Greek, Swedish, Hebrew, Malay, Hindi, and more; fully on-device processing (Mozilla support)
Google Translate / Chrome	249 languages	Widest coverage available, both online and in Chrome (Wikipedia)

That’s nineteen languages vs. over sixty vs. nearly two-hundred-fifty. And Greek — hardly obscure — doesn’t make Safari’s list.

Why it matters

If you follow international news, you hit this wall quickly. Many sites don’t offer English versions. In Safari, that means jumping through hoops: copy-pasting into a translation app, or trying a third-party extension that may or may not work with the site’s layout. Interactive elements — menus, links, forms — often fail after translation.

Firefox, in contrast, translates the page instantly, menus and all, without breaking functionality. It feels like browsing a native-language site.

This is also relevant for travellers. Even if you don’t read Greek newspapers daily, being able to instantly translate a transport schedule, government website, or local service page without leaving the browser is a convenience you notice the moment it’s missing. Government website notifying of local hazardous conditions, think forest fires and the like, typically will not get an English version until it hits the international news.

Other Firefox advantages

Translation isn’t the only area where Firefox pulls ahead. Its profile management is more flexible — different profiles can run side-by-side in separate tabs or windows. That’s useful if you manage work and personal accounts or switch between different log-ins for testing.

And Firefox’s translation is done locally, with no data sent to the cloud. Mozilla has invested in on-device neural machine translation technology (Mozilla Hacks), which is rare among mainstream browsers. Privacy isn’t an afterthought — it’s part of the design.

Why is Apple behind here?

Apple has the resources. It also has the incentive — it’s building features like live conversation translation for AirPods. But in Safari, the feature set feels incomplete. Why?

Some speculate it’s about quality control: Apple may be unwilling to roll out a language until its on-device model meets a certain accuracy threshold. Others wonder if licensing or business arrangements play a role. Google reportedly pays Apple $18–20 billion annually to remain the default search engine in Safari (New York Times, 2023). There’s no public evidence that the deal influences translation support, but the limited integration of Google’s translation technology into Safari suggests the companies’ cooperation is selective.

Whatever the reason, it leaves Apple’s translation offering looking modest compared to the competition.

Feedback has been sent. Still waiting.

I’ve reported the lack of broader language support to Apple’s feedback system. That was a long time ago. There’s been no visible change. If you’re in the same position, you can submit feedback as well — but be prepared for a slow turnaround.

The practical choice

For now, Safari stays my default for everyday browsing — it’s efficient, it integrates well with macOS, and it’s secure. But when I need translation beyond Apple’s 19 languages, Firefox takes over without hesitation. It’s the tool that gets the job done.

If you’re also frustrated, you’re not imagining it. The gap is real, and it’s measurable. Whether Apple chooses to close it remains to be seen.

As always, be excellent to each other.