Quickstart: Azure AI Translator REST APIs

Try the latest version of Azure AI Translator. In this quickstart, get started using the Translator service to translate text using a programming language of your choice or the REST API. For this project, we recommend using the free pricing tier (F0), while you're learning the technology, and later upgrading to a paid tier for production.

Prerequisites

You need an active Azure subscription. If you don't have an Azure subscription, you can create one for trial

  • Once you have your Azure subscription, create a Translator resource in the Azure portal.

  • After your resource deploys, select Go to resource and retrieve your key and endpoint.

    • You need the key and endpoint from the resource to connect your application to the Translator service. You paste your key and endpoint into the code later in the quickstart. You can find these values on the Azure portal Keys and Endpoint page:

      Screenshot: Azure portal keys and endpoint page.

      Note

      • For this quickstart it is recommended that you use a Translator text single-service global resource.
      • With a single-service global resource you'll include one authorization header (Ocp-Apim-Subscription-key) with the REST API request. The value for Ocp-Apim-Subscription-key is your Azure secret key for your Translator Text subscription.
      • If you choose to use an Azure AI multi-service or regional Translator resource, two authentication headers will be required: (Ocp-Api-Subscription-Key and Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Region). The value for Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Region is the region associated with your subscription.
      • For more information on how to use the Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Region header, see Text Translation REST API headers.

Headers

To call the Translator service via the REST API, you need to include the following headers with each request. Don't worry, we include the headers for you in the sample code for each programming language.

For more information on Translator authentication options, see the Translator v3 reference guide.

Header Value Condition
Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Key Your Translator service key from the Azure portal. Required
Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Region The region where your resource was created. Required when using an Azure AI multi-service or regional (geographic) resource like China North.
Optional when using a single-service global Translator Resource.
Content-Type The content type of the payload. The accepted value is application/json or charset=UTF-8. Required
Content-Length The length of the request body. Optional

Important

Remember to remove the key from your code when you're done, and never post it publicly. For production, use a secure way of storing and accessing your credentials like Azure Key Vault. For more information, see the Azure AI services security article.

Translate text

The core operation of the Translator service is translating text. In this quickstart, you build a request using a programming language of your choice that takes a single source (from) and provides two outputs (to). Then we review some parameters that can be used to adjust both the request and the response.

For detailed information regarding Azure AI Translator service request limits, see Text translation request limits.

Set up your Node.js Express project

  1. Make sure the latest version of Node.js is installed. Node Package Manager (npm) is included with the Node.js installation.

    Tip

    If you're new to Node.js, try the Introduction to Node.js Learn module.

  2. In a console window (such as cmd, PowerShell, or Bash), create and navigate to a new directory for your app named translator-app.

        mkdir translator-app && cd translator-app
    
      mkdir translator-app; cd translator-app
    
  3. Run the npm init command to initialize the application and scaffold your project.

       npm init
    
  4. Specify your project's attributes using the prompts presented in the terminal.

    • The most important attributes are name, version number, and entry point.
    • We recommend keeping index.js for the entry point name. The description, test command, GitHub repository, keywords, author, and license information are optional attributes—they can be skipped for this project.
    • Accept the suggestions in parentheses by selecting Return or Enter.
    • After you complete the prompts, a package.json file will be created in your translator-app directory.
  5. Open a console window and use npm to install the axios HTTP library and uuid package:

       npm install axios uuid
    
  6. Create the index.js file in the application directory.

    Tip

    • You can create a new file using PowerShell.

    • Open a PowerShell window in your project directory by holding down the Shift key and right-clicking the folder.

    • Type the following command New-Item index.js.

    • You can also create a new file named index.js in your IDE and save it to the translator-app directory.

Build your JavaScript application

Add the following code sample to your index.js file. Make sure you update the key variable with the value from your Azure portal Translator instance:

    const axios = require('axios').default;
    const { v4: uuidv4 } = require('uuid');

    let key = "<your-translator-key>";
    let endpoint = "https://api.translator.azure.cn";

    // location, also known as region.
    // required if you're using a multi-service or regional (not global) resource. It can be found in the Azure portal on the Keys and Endpoint page.
    let location = "<YOUR-RESOURCE-LOCATION>";

    axios({
        baseURL: endpoint,
        url: '/translate',
        method: 'post',
        headers: {
            'Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Key': key,
             // location required if you're using a multi-service or regional (not global) resource.
            'Ocp-Apim-Subscription-Region': location,
            'Content-type': 'application/json',
            'X-ClientTraceId': uuidv4().toString()
        },
        params: {
            'api-version': '3.0',
            'from': 'en',
            'to': 'fr,zu'
        },
        data: [{
            'text': 'I would really like to drive your car around the block a few times!'
        }],
        responseType: 'json'
    }).then(function(response){
        console.log(JSON.stringify(response.data, null, 4));
    })

Run your JavaScript application

Once you add the code sample to your application, run your program:

  1. Navigate to your application directory (translator-app).

  2. Type the following command in your terminal:

    node index.js
    

Translation output:

After a successful call, you should see the following response:

[
    {
        "translations": [
            {
                "text": "J'aimerais vraiment conduire votre voiture autour du pâté de maisons plusieurs fois!",
                "to": "fr"
            },
            {
                "text": "Ngingathanda ngempela ukushayela imoto yakho endaweni evimbelayo izikhathi ezimbalwa!",
                "to": "zu"
            }
        ]
    }
]

Next steps

That's it, congratulations! You just learned to use the Translator service to translate text.

Explore our how-to documentation and take a deeper dive into Translation service capabilities: