This library is a simple wrapper for i18next, simplifying its use in Vue 3.

There is also a Vue 2 version of this package.

In the documentation, you can find information on how to upgrade from @panter/vue-i18next, from i18next-vue 3.x or earlier versions.

npm install i18next-vue

import Vue from "vue";
import i18next from "i18next";
import I18NextVue from "i18next-vue";
import App from "./App.vue";

/*const i18nInitialized = */i18next.init({ ... });
createApp(App).use(I18NextVue, { i18next }).mount('#app');

// to wait for loading the translations first, do this instead:
// i18nInitialized.then(() => createApp(App).use(I18NextVue, { i18next }).mount('#app'));

Use the $t translation function, which works like (and uses) the versatile t function from i18next.

There is a full tutorial for setting up i18next-vue. You can check out the live demo version version of it, too.

To learn about more options, check out the full documentation.

Given the i18next translations

i18next.init({
	// ...
	resources: {
		en: {
			// language
			translation: {
				// the default namespace
				insurance: "Insurance",
			},
		},
		de: {
			// language
			translation: {
				// the default namespace
				insurance: "Versicherung",
			},
		},
	},
});

You can use

<template>
	<h1>A test in {{ $i18next.language }}</h1>
	<p>{{ $t("insurance") }}</p>
</template>

$t() works both in Options API and Composition API components.

Using the useTranslation() composition function you can access the i18next instance and t() in the setup part, and e.g. get a t() functions for a specific namespace.

<script setup>
import { computed } from "vue";
import { useTranslation } from "i18next-vue";
const { i18next, t } = useTranslation();
const term = computed(() => t("insurance"));
</script>

<template>
	<h1>A test in {{ i18next.language }}</h1>
	<p>inline: {{ t("insurance") }}</p>
	<p>inline with $t: {{ $t("insurance") }}</p>
	<p>computed: {{ term }}</p>
</template>

i18next-vue provides a <i18next> translation component, so you can use markup (including Vue components) in translations.

In this example {faq-link} will be replaced by the faq-link slot, i.e. by the router link. You can move {faq-link} around in the translation, so it makes sense for the target language.

i18next.init({
  // ...
  resources: {
    en: {
      translation: {
        "message": "Open the {faq-link} page."
        "faq": "Frequently Asked Questions"
      }
    },
    fr: {
      // ...
    }
  }
})

<template>
	<i18next :translation="$t('message')">
		<template #faq-link>
			<router-link :to="FAQ_ROUTE">
				{{ $t("faq") }}
			</router-link>
		</template>
	</i18next>
</template>

Custom slot values may be useful when the default braces ({ and }) are wrongly treated by the Locize service or don't satisfy other needs.

Use custom values for recognizing start and end of the insertion points of the <i18next>/TranslationComponent inside the localization term:

// main.js
i18next.init({
  // ...
  resources: {
    en: {
      translation: {
        "message": "Open the <slot>faq-link</slot> page."
        "faq": "FAQ"
      }
    },
    de: {
      // ...
    }
  }
})

app.use(I18NextVue, {
    i18next,
    slotStart: '<slot>',
    slotEnd: '</slot>',
});

<!-- Component.vue -->
<template>
	<i18next :translation="$t('message')">
		<template #faq-link>
			<router-link :to="FAQ_ROUTE">
				{{ $t("faq") }}
			</router-link>
		</template>
	</i18next>
</template>

• Node.js >= v20