memoQ vs POEditor
memoQ and POEditor sit at opposite ends of the translation tool range. memoQ, from a Budapest company, is a translator's workbench plus a management server, licensed per seat and not metered by volume. POEditor, run by a United States operator, manages app and website strings and is priced by how many strings you hold, starting at a free tier of 1,000. A software team shipping an app will find POEditor lighter to set up, while an agency translating contracts needs memoQ's tools. The desktop client of memoQ runs on Windows only.
Sebastiaan SmitsFounderVendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. How that works.
Choose memoQ ifyou translate documents for clients all day, want a per-licence price that ignores word volume, and work on Windows machines. You may also need a server in your own building.
Choose POEditor ifyou ship an app or website and want strings translated with little setup. You want a free tier to start and a price list you can read by string count.
memoQ and POEditor side by side
| memoQ | POEditor | |
|---|---|---|
| Our translation rank | #1 of 22 | #2 of 22 |
| Established in | Hungary | United States |
| List price, 9 November 2026 | 396 EUR a year per translator pro licence; TMS Starter 2,750 EUR a year; larger TMS plans on contact | Per month by string count: Free 1,000 strings, Start 20, Plus 60, Premium 160, Enterprise 260 dollars, with discounts on 6-month and yearly billing |
| Free tier | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Self-hostable | Yes | — |
| Built for | An in-house translation team or agency translating documents at volume | A small software team that wants strings translated with minimal setup |
| Not for | A product team that wants localisation inside its release pipeline | A company routing documents through several translation agencies |
Both are reviewed in full in our translation ranking: memoQ and POEditor.
Where they differ
memoQ 3 · POEditor 3 · open 0- 01
Counting strings against translating without a meter
POEditor's plans are set by string limits: Free 1,000, Start 3,000, Plus 10,000, Premium 30,000 and Enterprise 100,000, with unlimited projects on every plan and no word limits. memoQ's pricing page says there is no volume-based pricing, so you can translate as much as you want. A team with a growing string count must climb POEditor's tiers, while a document agency pays memoQ the same however many words pass through.
Edge: memoQ
- 02
From a free tier to a 2,750 EUR server
POEditor Start costs 20 dollars monthly, 18 for six months or 17 yearly, per month, and its Free plan costs nothing. memoQ translator pro is 396 EUR a year per licence, and memoQ TMS Starter is 2,750 EUR a year with one project manager licence, five linguist subscriptions and 10 GB of storage. The other TMS plans show contact sales instead of a price, and storage there depends on the deployment. For a small team with a small budget, POEditor is far cheaper to enter, and Start sits well below memoQ's yearly figures.
Edge: POEditor
- 03
Trying it before paying
POEditor starts a 10-day trial of paid features on the first project of a Free account, and asks for no card. memoQ translator pro has a 14-day trial, while the TMS pricing page names a trial only for its Starter plan. No free plan is listed for memoQ. A team that wants to test on real project files has more room with POEditor, since its Free plan has no end date.
Edge: POEditor
- 04
Workflows, glossaries and review stages
memoQ lists a translation management system, a computer-assisted translation environment, AI translation and terminology management. POEditor lists AI translation, workflow automation, glossaries, quality checks and the ordering of human translations from integrated language service providers. Its fit notes say workflows start on Plus and custom workflows and the glossary on Premium. For multi-stage review and terminology work across documents, memoQ is the more complete workbench.
Edge: memoQ
- 05
Windows desktop or a hosted service
memoQ translator pro runs on Microsoft Windows, and the home page refers both to memoQ on the web and to a download. memoQ's own home page does not state its hosting model. POEditor shows sign-up and Start free trial links, which suggests a hosted service, and self-hosting is not mentioned. A Mac-only translator cannot use memoQ's desktop client, which is a real limit for freelancers.
Edge: POEditor
- 06
Budapest company against a Jeffersonville operator
memoQ is operated by memoQ Translation Technologies Ltd, with a registered seat in Budapest, Hungary, and offices in Budapest, Vancouver and Bonn. POEditor is operated by CODE WHALE INC. in Jeffersonville, Indiana, United States, per its terms, with no registered seat or company number stated. Neither site names a parent company. A buyer who wants a vendor with a European registered seat finds that with memoQ.
Edge: memoQ
When neither fits
If you want strings synced from your code repository inside the release pipeline, or a tool you can host yourself, neither is the closest fit. Crowdin is the usual choice for developer workflows, and Weblate is the open-source option you can run on your own server.
memoQ or POEditor: questions
3 answersDoes memoQ charge by the word the way some agencies do?
No, the TMS page confirms there is no volume-based pricing for the TMS plans. You pay per licence, and TMS Starter is 2,750 EUR a year with one project manager licence and five linguist subscriptions.
Machine translation plugins are free to integrate but need a third-party account.
How many people can work in a free POEditor account?
The pricing page says unlimited contributors, while the FAQ says a free registration allows up to 5 contributors. The Free plan holds 1,000 strings. Those two statements differ, so confirm the limit with the vendor before you rely on it.
Can a Mac user run memoQ?
The translator pro page says the client runs on Microsoft Windows. The home page also mentions memoQ on the web, but it does not describe what that includes. Check with the vendor before buying a licence for a Mac.
Sources
Checked 9 November 2026- memoQ translator pro page: the yearly licence fee, its trial length and the operating system it needs.
- memoQ TMS pricing: TMS Starter at 2,750 EUR with 5 linguists, 10 GB, no volume pricing and contact-sales tiers.
- memoQ imprint: the Budapest registered seat of the operating company.
- POEditor pricing page: string limits per plan, monthly prices, billing discounts and the 10-day trial.
- POEditor terms: CODE WHALE INC. in Jeffersonville as the operator.