Translate a Teams meeting.

Turn on captions, then translation, in Teams

1. Show live captions

   These are Microsoft's steps for the desktop app. In the meeting controls, select More actions, then Language and speech, then Show live captions. Microsoft notes that Teams does not save captions, so turn on transcription if you want a record.

2. Set the spoken language

   To the right of the captions, select Caption settings, then Language settings, and check that Meeting spoken language matches what people are saying. Microsoft says the organizer, a co-organizer or whoever started transcription can change it.

3. Turn on Translate to

   In the same panel, turn on the Translate to toggle and pick the language you want to read. Microsoft says only people covered by the license rule below see the Translate to option.

Which license translated captions need

• Microsoft's support page says live translated captions are available as part of Teams Premium and Microsoft Copilot, an add-on license your organization buys.
• If the organizer has one, every participant can use translated captions and transcription with no license of their own. If instead only some participants hold a license, only those people see the Translate to option.
• Microsoft's admin documentation is narrower. It says the organizer must have a Teams Premium license and does not mention Copilot. If you are relying on Copilot alone, ask your IT admin.
• The same admin page says live captions must be left at the default policy setting for translation to appear. An admin can switch captions off for a user, which removes both.
• In town halls and live events, organizers preselect the caption languages in advance. Microsoft says six, or ten with Premium, from over 50. Attendees pick one of those.

Microsoft's list of spoken languages for captions had 57 entries on the day this page was checked. Many are regional versions (English alone has six), so that is about 44 distinct languages. The list of translation languages is shorter: 31 entries.

Captions and translations are made by Microsoft's speech services, not on your computer. Microsoft says it processes live caption data in the geographical region where your organization is based, that no person can access it, and that caption data is deleted after the meeting.

If you would rather listen than read

• Interpreter agent translates speech to speech, so you hear the translation over the speaker. Microsoft says it is part of the Microsoft Copilot license, which each person who wants to listen needs, with 20 hours per person per month included. Microsoft's support page lists ten languages. People joining anonymously or as guests cannot use it, because their license status cannot be verified, and it does not work in town halls, webinars or Teams Free meetings.
• Human interpretation has to be set up by the organizer before the meeting starts, and interpreters must join on Teams for desktop. Microsoft does not supply them, so your organization hires its own.

Where Teams leaves you without a translation

• Your company has Teams but not Premium or Copilot, and one call next week does not justify an add-on license.
• You are a guest in a client's meeting and their organizer has no eligible license. Their billing decides what you can read.
• You use a personal Teams account. Microsoft's page for live captions in Teams Free covers turning captions on and says nothing about translating them.
• The language you need is not one of the 31 Teams translates into.

Read the call in your language with Fraze

1. Let it listen to the call

   Choose system audio and Fraze hears whatever your computer plays, including the Teams app and Teams in a browser tab. On a Mac you can point it at the Teams app alone.

2. Pick the two languages

   Choose the language being spoken and the language you want to read. The first time you use a pair Fraze downloads what it needs, and after that it runs with Wi-Fi off.

3. Read along

   Lines appear about half a second to a second after a speaker pauses, with the translation under each one. A small caption window can float over Teams, and the transcript is saved on your computer.

Be clear about what this is. Fraze translates what you hear, for you. Nobody else in the meeting sees your subtitles, no bot shows up in the participant list, and your own speech is not translated back for anyone.

The first 30 minutes are free on every account, with no card. After that it is $29.99 once or $2.99 a month, both unlimited. In some places you have to tell people before you transcribe a conversation, even when the transcript never leaves your machine.

When the Teams feature is the better pick

• Your organizer already has Teams Premium or Copilot. Then translated captions cost you nothing extra.
• Everyone needs to follow along, not just you. Only Teams can put translated captions on other people's screens.
• You need the translation spoken out loud. Fraze has no voice, so that is Interpreter or a human interpreter.
• The speakers use a language Fraze does not recognize. Fraze hears 25 European languages, plus more such as Japanese, Korean and Chinese on macOS 26 or later. Microsoft's spoken language list is longer.
• You want summaries, speaker labels or a shareable link. Fraze has none of those. Verli, the cloud sibling at verli.app, has summaries and sharing and runs in a browser, but the audio goes to the cloud.

Questions