CLI tool for managing Xcode String Catalogs (.xcstrings).

• List, filter, and inspect translation keys
• Detect untranslated keys with variation-level detail (--detail flag)
• Set translations with plural/device variation support (--plural, --device flags)
• Translation progress tracking with key-level and string-unit-level counting
• CSV export/import for spreadsheet-based translation workflows
• Full support for plural, device, nested, and substitution variations
• needs_review and stale state recognition
• Stale key management (list, remove, dry-run)
• Atomic file writes for data safety
• Single Go binary — no Xcode required, works on Linux CI

go install github.com/corrupt952/xckit@latest

Download a prebuilt binary from the Releases page.

git clone https://github.com/corrupt952/xckit.git
cd xckit
make build

# View translation progress
xckit status -f MyApp.xcstrings

# List all keys with translation status
xckit list -f MyApp.xcstrings

# Find untranslated keys for Japanese
xckit untranslated --lang ja -f MyApp.xcstrings

# Set a simple translation
xckit set --lang ja "hello_world" "こんにちは世界" -f MyApp.xcstrings

# Set a plural variation
xckit set --lang ja --plural other "item_count" "%lld 個のアイテム" -f MyApp.xcstrings

# Export to CSV for external translation
xckit export --format csv -f MyApp.xcstrings -o translations.csv

# Import translations from CSV
xckit import --format csv -f MyApp.xcstrings translations.csv

All commands accept -f (or --file) to specify the .xcstrings file path. When omitted, xckit looks for a .xcstrings file in the current directory.

xckit list [-f file.xcstrings] [--prefix <prefix>]

Lists all keys with their translation status. Use --prefix to filter by key prefix.

xckit untranslated [-f file.xcstrings] [--lang <language>] [--prefix <prefix>] [--detail]

Shows keys that need translation. Without --lang, returns keys with any untranslated language. Use --detail to see per-variation-path breakdown (e.g., key > ja > plural.other).

xckit set [-f file.xcstrings] --lang <language> [--plural <category>] [--device <device>] [--force] <key> <value>

Sets a translation for a specific key and language.

• --plural: Set a plural variation (zero, one, two, few, many, other)
• --device: Set a device variation (iphone, ipad, mac, appletv, applewatch, applevision, other)
• --force: Suppress the migration warning when converting a plain string to variations

Plural and device flags can be combined to set nested variations (e.g., device > plural).

xckit status [-f file.xcstrings]

Displays translation progress for each language, showing both key-level and string-unit-level completion percentages along with needs_review counts. Stale keys are reported separately and excluded from progress calculations.

xckit export --format csv [-f file.xcstrings] [-o output.csv]

Exports all strings to CSV. Variations are flattened into rows with bracket notation (e.g., key[plural.other], key[device.iphone.plural.one]). Substitutions are exported as key[substitutions.name.plural.other]. Output goes to stdout when -o is omitted.

xckit import --format csv [-f file.xcstrings] [--dry-run] [--backup] [--on-missing-key skip|error] [--clear-empty] <csv-file>

Imports translations from a CSV file produced by export.

• --dry-run: Preview changes without writing
• --backup: Create a .bak copy before writing
• --on-missing-key skip|error: Handle keys present in CSV but missing from the catalog (default: skip)
• --clear-empty: Remove translations for empty CSV cells

xckit stale [-f file.xcstrings] [--remove] [--dry-run]

Lists keys with extractionState: stale. Use --remove to delete them from the catalog, and --dry-run to preview without writing.

# 1. Export current translations to CSV
xckit export --format csv -f Localizable.xcstrings -o translations.csv

# 2. Edit translations.csv in a spreadsheet or send to translators

# 3. Preview what will change
xckit import --format csv -f Localizable.xcstrings --dry-run translations.csv

# 4. Import with a backup
xckit import --format csv -f Localizable.xcstrings --backup translations.csv

# Fail the build if any Japanese translations are missing
if xckit untranslated --lang ja -f Localizable.xcstrings | grep -q .; then
  echo "Untranslated keys found"
  exit 1
fi

# Check overall progress
xckit status -f Localizable.xcstrings

# Clean up stale keys
xckit stale --remove -f Localizable.xcstrings

xckit is a single Go binary — no Xcode needed, runs on Linux CI.

It covers the full workflow: inspect keys, set translations including plural and device variations, check progress, export to CSV for translators, and import back. Stale and needs_review states are tracked alongside the standard untranslated state.

make test

make build

make coverage

MIT License. See LICENSE for details.