Discord Translation Delivery: Reply, React, Translate Buttons, or Relay Channels
There are four common ways a Discord translation bot can deliver its result - public reply, public on-demand Reactive Translation, a private on-demand Translate Buttons panel, or a Relay Channel - and most active servers end up using more than one, since the choice is usually made per channel, not once for the whole server.
The two questions that actually decide it
- Does everyone in the channel need to see this translation, or just the person who asked? An announcement should probably be visible to everyone. A translation requested mid-conversation by one member usually should not clutter the channel for everyone else.
- Is this a permanent structural need, or a one-off? Two language communities that are both active every day benefit from a dedicated, always-on Relay Channel. A single cross-language event or meeting does not need a channel built for it.
Four options, at a glance
| Method | Who sees it | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Reply (Autonomous Translation) | Everyone in the channel | Announcements, support - anywhere everyone should see every translation by default |
| Reactive Translation | Everyone in the channel, but only when a member requests it | Busy general chat - on-demand translation without a permanent panel |
| Translate Buttons | Just the requester, privately | A short-lived cross-language event or meeting in one channel |
| Relay Channels | Everyone in the destination channel | Two or more active language communities that want their own permanent room |
Why most servers mix all four
An announcements channel, a fast general-chat channel, and two established language communities are three different problems, not one. Setting the same delivery method for all of them optimizes for whichever channel type is easiest to picture first, at the expense of the others. Pigona sets delivery per channel rather than per server for exactly this reason - the right choice for #announcements and the right choice for #general are rarely the same choice.
Each mechanism has its own setup guide with configuration detail this page does not cover: Autonomous Translation, Reactive Translation, Translate Buttons, and Relay Channels.
Try more than one, per channel
All four delivery mechanisms are available on every tier, including free - mix them per channel from day one.