Connect Your Engine
The Lingo.dev CLI connects your codebase to a localization engine through your project config. Every lingo push routes through your engine — applying your brand voice, glossary, rules, and model configuration automatically. No code changes, no new dependencies.
What changes#
| Before | After | |
|---|---|---|
| Translation pipeline | Default Lingo.dev pipeline | Your localization engine |
| Brand voice | None | Applied per target locale |
| Glossary | None | Semantically matched per request |
| Rules | None | Included per target locale |
| Model selection | Lingo.dev default | Your model config with fallbacks |
| Quality review | None | Your configured AI reviewers run automatically |
Setup#
Link to your engine
Run lingo link in your project root:
lingo linkPick (or create) an organization and a localization engine. link writes orgId and engineId into .lingo/config.json — commit it so every run uses the same engine. Find an engine's ID in the dashboard too; it starts with eng_ (e.g. eng_SxjMwMsfOIsvV1wh).
Authenticate
lingo loginOpens a browser to authenticate and stores a session. For CI or non-interactive use, pass an API key instead:
lingo login --api-key lk_...…or set it as an environment variable:
export LINGO_API_KEY="lk_..."Generate an API key from the API Keys page in the dashboard.
Push
lingo pushThe CLI sends source files to your engine and writes the translated results back to disk — applying your brand voice, glossary, rules, and model configuration automatically.
Configuration reference#
.lingo/config.json#
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
orgId | Organization that owns the engine. Set by lingo link. |
engineId | Engine that performs the translation (eng_...). Set by lingo link. |
sourceLocale, targetLocales, and files work the same as in any project — see Configuration.
Environment variables#
| Variable | Required | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
LINGO_API_KEY | For CI | - | Your Lingo.dev API key (instead of lingo login) |
LINGO_API_URL | No | https://api.lingo.dev | Custom API base URL (for self-hosted or staging) |
What to expect#
Every translation the CLI produces flows through your engine's full pipeline:
- Brand voice shapes tone and formality per locale
- Glossary items enforce exact terminology via semantic matching
- Rules apply locale-specific linguistic rules
- Model configs select the right LLM with automatic fallbacks
- AI Reviewers evaluate quality automatically after each request
Translations appear in Reports with trigger type api, alongside requests from the API and integrations.