--- title: "Trados Studio Reviews, Pros and Cons - 2026 Software Advice" description: "Reviews of Trados Studio. Learn how real users rate this software's ease-of-use, functionality, overall quality and customer support. Talk to our advisors to see if Trados Studio is a good fit for you!" source_url: "https://www.softwareadvice.com/translation-management/sdl-trados-studio-profile/reviews/" page_type: "reviews" language: "en" --- [Home](https://www.softwareadvice.com/) / [Translation Management Software](https://www.softwareadvice.com/translation-management/) / [Trados Studio](https://www.softwareadvice.com/translation-management/sdl-trados-studio-profile/) / Trados Studio Reviews Software Advice offers objective insights based on verified user reviews and independent product and market research. When our advisors match you to a software provider, we may earn a referral fee. [Overview](https://www.softwareadvice.com/translation-management/sdl-trados-studio-profile/) Reviews [Alternatives](https://www.softwareadvice.com/translation-management/sdl-trados-studio-profile/alternatives/) # Trados Studio User Reviews ## Reviews summary - Overall rating: 4.3/5 - Total reviews: 88 ### Secondary ratings - Ease of use: 3.4/5 - Customer support: 3.7/5 - Value for money: 3.5/5 - Functionality: 4.2/5 ### Rating distribution - 5 stars: 47 reviews (53%) - 4 stars: 29 reviews (33%) - 3 stars: 6 reviews (7%) - 2 stars: 3 reviews (3%) - 1 star: 3 reviews (3%) ### Most mentioned pros - Overall, Trados Studio is a solid, professional-grade CAT tool that delivers when it comes to translation memory management and consistency. - Overall a very good translation solution, although a bit pricy since the new tarifs. - Trados supports a lot more file formats than any other CAT tool. If I compare Trados to Memsource, it is more sophisticated, and has more applications; and the translator if he/her has some time to spend can customize the software and use its advantages to the fullest. ### Most mentioned cons - Updates and licensing can sometimes be cumbersome, and it’s not always as fast or intuitive as I’d like during day-to-day work. - As far as I know it does not allow to translate video or similar (for which in general there are more speficif tools). - The learning curve is quite steep, and the interface can feel heavy compared to other tools. ## Trados Studio customer reviews Showing reviews 1-25 of 88 (page 1). ### The biggest reference for CAT tools. - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Ignacio C. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: August 2019 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. SDL Trados Studio is, by far, the most known CAT tool out there. It's an expensive software, but once you start using it for your projects, you will quickly notice how this can pays itself off in a few months (or days, depending on your workload). After years translating with SDL Trados, it's impossible to imagine my rountine without a CAT Tool like this. The downside is that it may freeze at sometimes for no apparent reason. It also demands a good PC to run it smoothly, as it tends to be a bit slow in older devices. Overall, it is worth every cent if you do intend to work as a translator! #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 5/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Customer support: 5/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros It makes your job as a translator sooo much easier, faster and more professional! The translation memories and termbases allow you to work like 2x faster and keep consistency throughout your project. It's a really powerful tool (after 5 years working daily with it, I still discover new and incredible tools and features every week). #### Cons The software may freeze or present some errors that force you to reopen it. It may also have a hard time working with MS Word file full of tags. You may need a strong PC to work it properly and smoothly. --- ### One of the first but competitors caught up... - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Roberto R. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: 2-10 employees - Product usage: Used monthly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: August 2022 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered I have mixed feeling about the product. It took me years to really accept it until the industry made it almost mandatory to use it and I had to learn how to use it. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 5/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros It has many likeable features which are updated frequently and work very well. #### Cons Sometimes the software is hard to use and you need special training to understand and use the product. #### Reasons for choosing Trados Studio It was a breakthrough product in the industry and we were a bit slow to accept it as such. --- ### SDL Trados Studio - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Verified Reviewer - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Outsourcing/ Offshoring - Company size: 10000+ employees - Product usage: Used other for less than 6 months - Reviewed: February 2019 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros Very important software for translating. #### Cons I didn't like the fact that it is a bit hard to learn using it. --- ### Great translation management tool - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Yann T. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used other for less than 2 years - Reviewed: September 2020 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. I have been using SDL Trados for a bit more than one year and it has showed useful in various occasions, however, it required a few hours to get acquainted with the main features. Overall a good product, but its price don't make it the first option for most of independent workers. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros The translation memory is a smart tool and comes handy for translating large documents with a fair amount of repetitions. The system supports a lot of different file types. #### Cons The software is not very stable and has an annoying tendency to crash, especially when using with large files. Its price is expensive and can be an important obstacle for a translator working independently. --- ### It's a great product but pricy. - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Rostyslav B. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Civil Engineering - Company size: 2-10 employees - Product usage: Used weekly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: July 2022 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered It is a good product. It changed my life. I increased my productivity. It has a lot of settings allowing to adjust it perfectly to my needs. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 5/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 5/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros It works offline. No need for Internet connection. Sometimes that is very important. Great functionality. #### Cons If TM is huge, it is necessary to have powerful PC. --- ### From work horse to elephant, from elephant to dinosaur - Overall rating: 3/5 - Reviewer: Verified Reviewer - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: 11-50 employees - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: July 2022 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. Our overall experience with Trados Studio is that it is a tool that is hard to master. We think that at some stage no love was put any longer into this tool. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 2/5 - Value for money: 1/5 - Customer support: 2/5 - Functionality: 2/5 #### Pros We use this software because we have to. We're a translation company and our clients ask us to use this tool. They made an investment in Trados Studio years or even decades ago and they are reluctant to change. There is nothing really we like about this tool. However, we have to use it daily. #### Cons Trados Studio was first launched at the end of the 1980s. For years, they had not serious competitors. When other players entered the market, Trados added more and more features related to Project Management, QA , Resource management etc. It`s hard to combine all this into one tool and here are some thoughts for Trados (owned by the RWS group these days) to right the ship: 1. Adding/fixing tags is totally unintuitive. They cannot just be copied and pasted. It´s important to know that many translators are having to deal with 10 (ten) translation tools in a typical work week - and nobody these days bothers to read user's manuals. You expect the software to work as you think it should. Just like when you hire a car: You don't read the user's manual. 2. The QA is so compley and cumbersome that it should be overhauled immediately. In fact, most of our clients are asking us to do the QA using Xbench, Verifika etc. 3. Handling multiple files can be difficult and cause Studio to crash. If you have a software project with 100 files, which is not uncommon, opening and saving these files takes a very long time. Other tools handle this much better. 4. The Freelance version (which I think is around 600 EUR) only handles 5 languages. The Professional version, which allows all languages, package creation etc., is 1000 EUR. I think that's too expensive. Adding to this, there no monthly subscription scheme, probably pushing many translators into pirate software. --- ### A leader on the market that could use some improvement in UI - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Dmitry K. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: 2-10 employees - Product usage: Used monthly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: July 2019 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. I need to work with Trados because some of my clients work with it and we need to keep the same format of files. The tool itself is pretty great except for some features that feel like overkill. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros Trados was one the first tools that I have used and I always appreciated the straightforward project setup process. #### Cons This tools suffers from an abundance of features that only a small fraction of users actually need or use. It could definitely improve user interface to make it easier for users to navigate the menu and perform simple commands. Proprietary file formats make compatibility with other similar tools an issues as well. --- ### Probably the most used translation software - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Uku S. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Product usage: Used monthly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: December 2017 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 3/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros Includes everything that a professional translator needs. But can be do complicated for a seldom user. #### Cons Maybe too complicated for those who are not using it on a daily basis. Most clients however require Trados for most of the translation tasks. --- ### Wasn't able to Successfully Implement It - Overall rating: 2/5 - Reviewer: Emily T. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used other for free trial - Reviewed: September 2019 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. I do freelance translation. I typically work with manually scanned documents and faxes, where something like Trados or another CAT tool is not helpful. However, a larger company asked me to consider Trados in order to complete a specialized project with them, and I agreed. After spending many frustrating hours trying to successfully complete operations within Trados, I gave up and cancelled the contract with the company. Perhaps in the future, while working with someone who knows Trados well, I might have some success with it. But, as it is, I wasn't able to get any useful work out of it. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 2/5 - Value for money: 2/5 - Functionality: 2/5 #### Pros The biggest pro that Trados has going for it is the number of companies that require the use of Trado in order to do translation work for them. #### Cons It isn't intuitive and is not easy to use. --- ### Tool so usefulness for translations - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: romay zuleima f. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Product usage: Used other for unspecified - Reviewed: June 2018 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. so many texts translated faster #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros Excellent tool for the saving of time in translations and the multiple options with innovative functions #### Cons Some literal expressions that can be translated senseless because of the contextualization required --- ### The CAT tool against which all others are judged - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Gregory C. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: February 2022 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. Trados is the quintessential professional software - it is not exactly elegant (or resource efficient), but it gets the job done better as well as or better than any other. Over the years, it has become the industry standard. Would I recommend it to translators who are just starting out? That would depend on what features they need and whether they could afford the high price tag. That said, in my case, once I got past the considerable learning curve, I find myself using Trados almost exclusively. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros Trados handles everything from large files and TMs to complex formatting with relative ease. In particular, it handles formatting better than any other CAT tool I have used (in the sense that it reproduces formatting accurately without inserting an excessive number of obtrusive tags into the test), including when using external MT engines. For LSPs or those working with them (such as myself), the system of creating 'project packages' and 'return packages' takes project (and TM/terminology) management relatively straightforward. #### Cons Trados is not exactly 'user friendly' or 'intuitive' - indeed, it has quite the learning curve, even for those who are generally quick learners. It is a perfect example of software with 'too many' features and options for the average end user (translator), which makes it quite confusing to learn. When deploying Trados, there are several mistakes you have to make three or four times before you learn to watch out for them (such as the default location for each New Project or new TM being wherever the previous iteration was created). The user interface itself would seem to have evolved over many years, and is not exactly logical - or comfortable for that matter. Also, and perhaps most importantly, the software does crash from time to time, which can be quite nerve-wracking. --- ### Powerful tool with a steep learning curve - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Daniel L. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Information Services - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: May 2022 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered Trados Studio is the business standard which means it that it's a must-have for any professional translator. It is difficult to learn, and never ceases to frustrate, but, overall, it can be the only tool you really need. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 2/5 - Value for money: 3/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros This software is standard within the translation business and therefore a must-have for every professional translator. The software can be very powerful once you have learned to master it. #### Cons The learning curve is very steep, the user interface is counter-intuitive, bordering on byzantine. Even for power users with many years of use, this software never ceases to confuse. The development has stalled, which means that competing software is now just as good, or better, but Trados Studio is still a must-have due to its ubiquity. --- ### Indispensable software for a translator - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Chiara P. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: August 2022 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 5/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 5/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros It is very easy to understand and to use. You can easily go to the workflow section and once you have learned the main features (how to use TM and TB, add/remove tags, go to the next segment, etc) you will procede at high speed. #### Cons Sometimes the review mode is inserted without having chosen it. --- ### Best CAT Tool on the market - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Samuel A. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Telecommunications - Company size: 2-10 employees - Product usage: Used weekly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: May 2023 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered I was used to other similar CAT tools, but overall Trados is the best tool by far. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 5/5 - Value for money: 3/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros It really speed up my translations. The Machine Translations are really accurate. #### Cons It takes a little time to get to know all the functionalities. It can be a little overwhelming at the beginning. --- ### The use of this software shoul be taught in every translation school ! - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Magali G. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: February 2020 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. Most of the time, when you know a technical issue with Trados, most of translation agencies of the world already know how to solve them. Also, the support team is super available and helful. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros It helps save a huge amount of time. Once you completely master it's use, the advantage is undeniable, especially if you're a freelancer. #### Cons It requires a complete training and several hours to master this software. Even if it's worth it, it's impossible to use the software right after the purchase without training. --- ### An essential software for every translator - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Valentina V. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: October 2021 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros Thanks to this software I really spare time during my work. I can work faster, provide a better overall quality and consistency to my customers. It's easier to use and more complete than other CAT-tools. If you'll try it, you'll never leave it! #### Cons Some add-ons should be improved or simplified. --- ### The CAT tool you will be required to use - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Verified Reviewer - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used monthly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: March 2019 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. I only use Trados (I started using it back in 2006, now using version 2017) when I am required by an agency. This is not because I don't know how to, on the contrary, I can and have taught people how to work with it. But the result is invariably the same: they are dumbfounded by its complexity, especially after comparing it to other tools. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros Rich in features and functionalities. The support for community-made add-ons that solve various problems or improve (facilitate) functionality. #### Cons Trados has the steepest learning curve among the leading CAT tools, and managing even a simple setting can be quite a challenge. I have to say I hate the fact the in order to be able to work with terminology, you are required to purchase a separate – and costly – tool. --- ### Useful CAT tool - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Verified Reviewer - Verified reviewer: Yes - Product usage: Used weekly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: August 2018 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered Terminology bank for clients. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 3/5 - Customer support: 1/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros Fairly easy to use if you only do simple Word document translations. Pretty straightforward. Tags are easy to insert. #### Cons Doesn't format as well as other CAT tool and the free version has a limit of terms it can store per client. --- ### Review about SDL Trados Studio - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Nataliya D. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: May 2019 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered I like it very much. I use it in my everyday working process, actually I don’t see myself without it. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 4/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros It really speeds the working process, and helps keep consistency of similar documents. #### Cons The only minus is the pricing, and that there are many update also to be purchased. --- ### Some problems - Overall rating: 3/5 - Reviewer: Myriam C. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used weekly for more than 2 years - Reviewed: February 2020 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. I've been using this software since more than 3 years and despite it's considered the best program for translators, I don't agree as I lost my job because it crashed. However I can see it has interesting features, like suggestions of already translated words/sentences. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 3/5 - Value for money: 3/5 - Functionality: 3/5 #### Pros This software has a feature wich gives you some suggestions about the words and sentences you have already translated. #### Cons It happened several times that I lost my job because the program crashed and I could not recovered. --- ### Excellent software for translators - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Marcin K. - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used daily for more than 2 years - Reviewed: April 2017 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. A leading programme on the market for translators. A real must-have. Exceeds all CATs known to me so far. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros Ease of use Compatibility Popularity #### Cons Speed Size --- ### Wide opportunities to overcome the language barrier for any specialist - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Amerigo T. - Company size: 2-10 employees - Product usage: Used weekly for less than 2 years - Reviewed: February 2018 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 5/5 - Functionality: 4/5 #### Pros In everyday situations I use this program. It is imperfect, but it gives a better result than the translators from Google. I am pleased with the simple interface and nice design. At the same time, the program has good functionality and remembers the previous translation (it allows inserting already finished pieces at full or partial coincidence). #### Cons Translation is imperfect, as in any other automated translation system. I would like to improve the translation of the artistic text. --- ### Not as good as I thought it was. - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Antonio R. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Translation and Localization - Company size: 501-1000 employees - Product usage: Used weekly for free trial - Reviewed: July 2022 - Review source details: This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered No good at all for me. I find it confusing and not easy to use. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 1/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros I did not like much actually. I had great expectations but in the end I was a bit frustrated. #### Cons It is confusing. I expected much from the product as it is very popular. But the price is way too high and what it offers is not something we can`t find in other similar products. --- ### Great software! - Overall rating: 4/5 - Reviewer: Aura N. - Company size: 2-10 employees - Product usage: Used weekly for less than 12 months - Reviewed: February 2018 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 3/5 #### Pros The program has an intelligent memory that allows it to extract and quickly translate familiar pieces of text. This is a very convenient function, which is little implemented. It was she who caused my acquaintance with this system. I recommend. #### Cons Absolutely useless for ordinary non-professional literature. This is not a translator in the classical sense. The program remembers what the translator has already translated. This point of many is misleading. --- ### Makes Language Services Accessible - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviewer: Kholoud A. - Verified reviewer: Yes - Industry: Marketing and Advertising - Company size: Self-Employed - Product usage: Used other for less than 6 months - Reviewed: November 2019 - Review source details: This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you. Overall ok because the software is designed for people who translate lengthy works regularly not those who may need to translate infrequently (making price too costly). #### Ratings breakdown - Ease of use: 4/5 - Value for money: 5/5 - Customer support: 4/5 - Functionality: 5/5 #### Pros The software is reputed and very popular in the language services industry. The translation capacity is very large allowing fast translation of long articles. #### Cons Word banks that are stored in the memory can be improved as well as the overall accuracy of common languages. Human proofreading is still essential to accurate translation and I would like to see better prices for users who don't need to run the software frequently. ## More reviews [Next reviews](https://www.softwareadvice.com/translation-management/sdl-trados-studio-profile/reviews/?page=2) --- Trados Studio Reviews, Pros and Cons - 2026 Software Advice