crowdin string comments not exported to xliff error

Fix Crowdin string comments not exported to XLIFF

TL;DR

Comments live in the export only if you ask for them, so turn on context and comment inclusion in the XLIFF export settings. The default export skips translator notes to keep files small. Flip the export options, re-export, and the notes show up as note elements.

The error

Exported XLIFF has no translator notes
strings have comments in the Crowdin UI but note elements are absent from the file

Fix it

Step 1: Check the export settings for the XLIFF download

node -e "console.log('project settings, exports: look for include context / include comments options on XLIFF')"

Expected: You see whether comment export is on or off.

Step 2: Enable comment and context export

node -e "console.log('turn on the options that include string comments and context in XLIFF exports')"

Expected: The settings now include notes in exports.

Step 3: Re-export the XLIFF and check for notes

curl -s -H "your auth header "https://api.crowdin.com/api/v2/projects/$CROWDIN_PROJECT_ID/translations/exports" | head -c 200

Expected: The new export contains the translator notes.

Step 4: Confirm your TMS reads the notes on import

node -e "console.log('import the file into your TMS and check one string known to have a comment')"

Expected: The comment is visible in the TMS.

When to use this

• XLIFF exports from Crowdin lack translator comments
• Your TMS needs the notes for context

When NOT to use this

• Comments are missing in the Crowdin UI itself, add them to the strings first
• You export JSON not XLIFF, comment support differs per format

Tool and version compatibility

• Crowdin XLIFF export, XLIFF 1.2 and 2.0
• Applies to both UI export and API export endpoints

Variant phrasings

screenshots missing from export

Same settings area. Screenshot export is a separate toggle from comments.

comments export but in the wrong place

XLIFF 1.2 puts them in note elements, 2.0 in notes containers. Tell your TMS which version you send.

Why it happens

Crowdin stores comments separately from the string text, and the XLIFF exporter only joins them in when the export options say so. The default is off, so teams that never touched export settings get clean but context-free files.

Edge cases

• Very long comments can break strict XLIFF validators, keep notes concise
• API exports and UI exports can have different default options, check both
• Comments added after the export started are not included, re-export

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_fDchMPYQEjgrb0H-MEadEQ