Ditto—Copy text twice to translate with Apple or DeepL

Copy text twice to translate with Apple or DeepL

Requires macOS Sequoia 15.0 or later
Last updated: 2026-05-08

Translate text without switching apps. Ditto sits in your menu bar and translates whenever you copy some text to the clipboard twice.

Uses Apple Translate by default with no setup required, or switch to DeepL for broader language support. Select text anywhere, press CMD+C twice, and your clipboard is translated in a popup window. Or open the floating window and type directly for real-time results.

Double Copy

Press the copy shortcut CMD+C twice to translate
Menu Bar

Lightweight status item with no Dock icon
Apple Translate

Built-in translation with no API key required
Floating Window

Compact translator that can float above other apps
Live Translation

Real-time translation as you type or paste in the window
DeepL API

Enable DeepL Free or Pro for 35+ languages

Double Copy

Select text in any app and press CMD+C twice quickly
Clipboard is used as the source for translation
No accessibility permissions, uses pasteboard detection
Works system-wide across all apps

Floating Translation Window

Compact window can float above other apps
Source and translated text side by side
Real-time translation as you type
Swap button for quick back-translation
Dropdown for to change target languages
Press Cmd+ESC or click away to dismiss

Translation Engines

Apple Translate—works out of the box
DeepL—easily add Free or Pro API key
Toggle between engines from the menu bar
Retranslates automatically when switching engine

Language Support

Automatic source language detection
Apple Translate uses system-downloaded languages
DeepL supports 35+ target languages including regional variants
Custom language codes for unlisted DeepL languages
Full support tables:
- Apple Translate language matrix
- DeepL language matrix

DeepL API

Works with both free and pro DeepL plans
Auto-detects plan type from API key
API usage monitoring with percentage display
Secure key storage

Optimised

Only 264 KB app download size
Less than 40 MB base memory footprint

How It Compares

Here’s how this app compares to other similar apps.

	Ditto	Apple	DeepL App
Menu bar app	✓	–	✓
Floating window	✓	–	✓
Keyboard shortcut	✓	–	✓
Apple Translate	✓	✓	–
DeepL support	API key	–	✓
Subscription required	–	–	Pro
Character limit	–	–	1,500 (free tier)
Native Mac app	✓	✓	✓
App size	264 KB	Built-in	320 MB

Can I change the Cmd+C shortcut key to something else?

No. Ditto doesn’t specify or provide a shortcut itself, but rather simply watches the system pasteboard contents.

Ditto is not affiliated with Apple or DeepL