# How to translate an image to Chinese and get text you can edit

To translate an image to Chinese, upload the photo or screenshot to LoreAI, choose Chinese (Simplified) or Chinese (Traditional) and download an editable Word file. LoreAI reads the English with OCR and writes the Chinese as real characters, with tables and numbers in order. Google Translate's Images tab returns a translated picture or text to copy instead[1].

## Which images people translate into Chinese

Usually a page someone photographed for a Chinese-speaking reader. A school notice for parents who read Chinese. Discharge instructions for a parent visiting from Guangzhou. A product sheet, a flyer or a slide for a partner in Taipei. A screenshot of an email that a relative needs to understand.

The reader wants Chinese text they can read on their phone, print, or search, not English with characters stamped over it. LoreAI returns the translation as a Word document.

## How to translate an English photo to Chinese with LoreAI

1. **Save the image as JPG, PNG or PDF.** A phone photo, a screenshot or a scan all work. Put several pages into one PDF to get one file back.
2. **Type your email at the top of this page.** The 6-digit code we send opens LoreAI with Chinese already chosen. Your first document is free, up to 3 pages and 3 MB.
3. **Pick simplified or traditional.** Chinese (Simplified) is preset. Switch to Chinese (Traditional) for readers in Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau.
4. **Download the Word file.** Headings, lists and tables come back in the order of the photo, as Chinese characters you can select and edit.

## Simplified or traditional characters?

- **Mainland China**: Simplified
- **Singapore and Malaysia**: Simplified
- **Taiwan**: Traditional
- **Hong Kong and Macau**: Traditional

The two scripts differ in many characters and in some everyday words, so a file in the wrong one looks foreign to its reader. The [English to Chinese PDF guide](https://www.loreai.org/translate-pdf/english-to-chinese) shows the word choices side by side.

## What the Chinese Word file looks like

- **Punctuation**: Full-width Chinese marks such as ，and 。 instead of the English comma and period
- **Personal names**: English names stay in Latin letters, as on the passport
- **Numbers and times**: Phone numbers, amounts and times such as 9:30 AM are kept as written
- **Tables**: A timetable or a price list comes back as a Word table with the same rows

Chinese writes dates year first. Where a reader could take 04/05/2026 as 4 May, add the year-first form, 2026年4月5日, after it.

## Free ways to translate a picture into Chinese

On a computer, Google Translate's Images tab lets you pick the language, upload a picture, then copy the translated text or download the translated image[1]. On a phone, Google Lens translates signs, menus and handwriting through the camera in over 100 languages[2]. Both suit a sign, a label or a chat. For a full page with tables, a translated picture is hard to correct and to reprint, and a Word file is easier.

## The other direction, Chinese to English

For a Chinese certificate, letter or screenshot into English, see [translate a Chinese image to English](https://www.loreai.org/translate-image-to-english/chinese). To copy Chinese text out of a picture without translating it, use [Chinese OCR](https://www.loreai.org/chinese-ocr). For Spanish or Arabic targets, the [Spanish](https://www.loreai.org/translate-image-to-spanish) and [Arabic](https://www.loreai.org/translate-image-to-arabic) image pages work the same way.

## Questions people ask

### Can I translate an image to Chinese for free?

Yes. LoreAI translates your first document free, up to 3 pages, and returns a Word file. Google Translate's Images tab is free on a computer[1].

### Does LoreAI do traditional Chinese?

Yes. Choose Chinese (Traditional) as the target for readers in Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau.

### Can I edit the Chinese text afterwards?

Yes. The characters are real text in a Word file, so you can edit, search and copy them.

### Can I translate a screenshot?

Yes. Upload it as PNG or JPG like any photo.

## Sources

1. [Google Translate Help: Translate images (computer)](https://support.google.com/translate/answer/6142483?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop), accessed November 6, 2026
2. [Google Search: Search what you see with Lens](https://search.google/ways-to-search/lens/), accessed November 6, 2026

By Matt Mountain · Updated November 6, 2026