Setle + SimpleLocalize:
Moving from local files to
a single source of truth

About Setle

Based in Leuven, Belgium, Setle is a digital platform designed to simplify the complex world of home renovations. By providing homeowners and professionals with tools like "Quick Energy Scans," Setle helps users make informed decisions about energy efficiency and renovation costs.

“Setle is a digital platform that simplifies renovations, standing out with features like Quick Energy Scans.”
— Pieter Caluwaerts, Product Owner at Setle

Operating in a multilingual region, Setle currently supports three languages, ensuring that their critical energy-saving tools are accessible to a diverse user base.

The Challenge: The "Messy" Era of local files

Before adopting SimpleLocalize, Setle struggled with the common issues of manual translation management. Managing translations across different parts of the product was not easy, often leading to fragmented workflows and a lack of oversight.

The team needed to move away from scattered local files and establish a centralized system that both the product and development teams could rely on.

“Before using SimpleLocalize, management of translations was not easy. We needed one source of truth.”

The Workflow: Precision through manual review

Setle's approach to localization is built on quality and control. While they utilize AI to assist in generating content, they have implemented a strict Review and QA workflow to ensure accuracy.

Using SimpleLocalize's review status features, every new translation is marked as Needs review. This allows the product team to manually verify the content before it is finalized.

“New translations have the status 'Review_needed' and are manually reviewed. Once approved, they are committed directly into the codebase.”

This structured process ensures that the development team only handles "clean", approved data, reducing the risk of errors in production.

Why Setle chose SimpleLocalize

For Setle, the most beneficial features centered around organization and visibility. Specifically, Filters allowed the team to quickly identify which strings were pending review and which were ready for deployment.

The shift has resulted in a more manageable and transparent localization cycle. By centralizing everything, they have eliminated the friction of hunting through various folders or files.

“The biggest improvement is the ease of management and having one truth about translations.”

The Results

Since integrating SimpleLocalize, Setle has successfully maintained its three-language support with much higher efficiency. The platform's language selector allows users to switch easily between versions, backed by a robust and professional backend workflow.

Final advice from the Setle team

For teams still managing translations via spreadsheets or local JSON files, Pieter offers clear advice:

“With a TMS, there is one view on translations—no more local files.”