XLIFF 1.2

Last updated: April 12, 2025
xliff:1.2
File format value
xliff:1.2
List of supported file formats

XLIFF 1.2 is a standard format for exchanging localization data between tools. It is widely used in the localization industry and is supported by many translation management systems. It is an XML-based format that allows you to store translations, comments, and other localization-related information in a structured way. XLIFF 1.2 is also widely used in Xcode projects for iOS and macOS applications, you can find it in .xcloc files.

XLIFF 1.2 is currently in beta phase, and it may not fully support all standard features. We encourage you to test it and provide feedback to us.

Format structure

The XLIFF 1.2 format consists of a root <xliff> element, which contains one or more <file> elements. Each <file> element represents a single translation file and contains one or more <body> elements.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<xliff version="1.2">
  <file source-language="en" target-language="pl" datatype="plaintext" original="messages">
    <body>
      <trans-unit id="hello_world" xml:space="preserve">
        <source>Hello World</source>
        <target>Witaj Świecie</target>
        <note>My comment</note>
      </trans-unit>
    </body>
  </file>
</xliff>

The file usually contains translations for two languages, the source language and the target language. The source-language attribute specifies the source language, and the target-language attribute specifies the target language.

Attributes

  • source-language: The language code of the source language.
  • target-language: The language code of the target language.
  • datatype: The type of data in the file. It can be plaintext, html, or xhtml.
  • original: The name of the original file.
  • xml:space: The xml:space attribute specifies how whitespace should be handled. It can be preserve or default.

Comments

You can add comments and description to your translation units using the <note> element. The <note> element can be used to provide additional information about the translation, such as context or usage notes.

Limitations

Currently, the XLIFF 1.2 format is not fully supported in SimpleLocalize. The following limitations apply:

  • The xml:space attribute is always set to preserve in the exported file. It will be ignored during import.
  • The datatype attribute is always set to plaintext in the exported file. It will be ignored during import.
  • The original attribute can have up to 128 characters. If it exceeds this limit, it will be skipped during import/export.

Upload source translations

To upload source translations to SimpleLocalize, use the upload command with the --uploadFormat xliff:1.2 parameter, and provide the path to your en.xliff file using the --uploadPath parameter, and the language key using the --languageKey parameter.

simplelocalize upload \
  --apiKey PROJECT_API_KEY \
  --uploadLanguageKey en \
  --uploadFormat xliff:1.2 \
  --uploadPath ./en.xliff

Learn more about upload command.

Add --overwrite flag to update existing translations in SimpleLocalize from the imported file. Otherwise, only new translations will be added.

Export translations

To export translations from SimpleLocalize to the Android Strings file format, use the download command with the --downloadFormat xliff:1.2 parameter, and provide the path to the output file using the --downloadPath parameter.

simplelocalize download \
  --apiKey PROJECT_API_KEY \
  --downloadFormat xliff:1.2 \
  --downloadLanguageKeys pl,de \
  --downloadPath ./{lang}.xliff

Please note that the --downloadLanguageKeys parameter is optional. If you don't provide it, all translations will be downloaded. However, it's recommended to provide it to download only the necessary translations.