Keep Papago for translating. Use WriteNative for the English you write at work.
Papago is one of the best Korean–English translators, and it is free. But writing an email or a Slack reply through a translator means copying, switching windows and pasting back. WriteNative is a Mac app that writes the English where you are typing: press ⌥ twice, write in Korean, and natural English appears in the message.
Translator or writing assistant: two different jobs
Papago, by Naver, translates text, photos, documents, speech, handwriting and websites in more than ten languages, on the web, on iPhone and Android, and on Apple silicon Macs through its iPhone and iPad app. Its Korean–English translation has a strong reputation, it can render English into polite Korean with its honorifics switch, and for reading a PDF, a menu or a web page it is hard to beat. Its paid tier, Papago Plus, adds unlimited text translation, more documents and images a month and glossaries, and Papago Plus has a desktop app for Mac and Windows.
WriteNative does a narrower job. It is not a general translator: it does not translate images, PDFs, documents or speech. It helps you write English at work on a Mac, in the app you are already writing in, and checks the English you write yourself.
WriteNative and Papago side by side
Compared with Papago's App Store listing and the Papago Plus site in October 2026. Where Papago is the better choice, the table says so.
| WriteNative | Papago | |
|---|---|---|
| Korean → English for a message you are writing | Press ⌥ twice in the field, English appears at the cursor | Translate in Papago (web, app or ⌘C C in the Plus desktop app), then put it in your message |
| English tuned to the app (formal in Mail, casual in Slack) | Yes | Translates what you wrote; you adjust the tone |
| Checks the English you type yourself, reasons in Korean, typo fixes | Yes | A translator, not a grammar checker |
| Image, document and PDF translation | No | Yes, including HWP, DOCX and PPTX with Papago Plus |
| Voice and conversation translation | No | Yes |
| Web and phone apps | No, Mac only (macOS 14+) | Yes, web, iPhone and Android |
| Price | Spelling free; free account 30 checks + 5 AI uses a day; Pro $20/month | Free; Papago Plus from $9.99/month |
| Runs entirely on your Mac | Yes, with On-device ($49 once) | Offline translation in the phone app |
What WriteNative adds for English at work
The parts that matter when the English goes out under your name:
- No copy and paste. Press ⌥ twice with nothing selected, write in Korean, and press Return: the English goes into the email or chat you are writing.
- English that fits the place. Mail gets polite email English, Slack gets a short chat reply.
- Your own English, checked. Spelling and grammar are underlined as you type, and every suggestion is explained in Korean, with the meaning and pronunciation of suggested words.
- Typos fixed by themselves. In native apps like Notes and Messages obvious typos are fixed as you type; in Mail, Slack, Notion and the browser a fix goes in with one click.
- Rewrite in a tone. Select text, press ⌥ twice, and pick Improve, Shorter, Formal, Friendly or Confident.
- Understand a received message. Select an English message and press ⌥ twice: Explain tells you its meaning and tone in Korean and suggests up to three replies.
When Papago is still the better choice
If you need to translate a photo, a scanned page, a PDF or a Word file, talk with someone across languages, or translate on your phone or on Windows, use Papago. It is free for most of that, and Papago Plus covers heavy document work. Many people will keep both: Papago for reading and translating files, WriteNative for the English they write every day on a Mac.
Getting started
Download WriteNative, allow Accessibility when it asks, and keep writing in Mail, Outlook, Slack, Notion, Messages or the browser. It does not work inside Google Docs. Spelling and typo fixes are free without an account; a free account adds 30 paragraph checks and 5 AI uses a day. Your text is not stored or used for training.
Questions
- What is a good alternative to Papago for writing English emails on a Mac?
- WriteNative is made for that: on a Mac, press ⌥ twice in Mail, Outlook, Slack or Notion, write in Korean, and natural English appears where you are typing, without copying to a translator. It also checks English you write yourself and explains each suggestion in Korean. For images, PDFs and documents, Papago is still the tool to use.
- Is there a Papago app for Mac?
- Papago's iPhone and iPad app runs on Macs with Apple silicon (M1 or later, macOS 13 or later), and Papago Plus offers a desktop app for macOS 12 or later. Both translate text you paste, select or capture. WriteNative works differently: it writes the English into the field you are typing in.
- Is WriteNative free like Papago?
- Partly. Spelling and automatic typo fixes are free without an account, and a free account adds 30 paragraph checks and 5 AI uses a day, such as Korean-to-English writing or a rewrite. Pro, unlimited, is $20 a month or $96 a year after a 7-day free trial.
- Can WriteNative translate PDFs or images?
- No. WriteNative is not a general translator and does not translate images, PDFs, documents or speech. Papago does, for free within monthly limits and more with Papago Plus.
- Is my text stored?
- No. WriteNative does not store your text or use it for training, and with the On-device plan it never leaves your Mac.
Write your next English email in Korean.
Free to download. Press ⌥ twice and start typing.