Meta-owned WhatsApp has introduced a message translations feature to make cross-language communication easier on the platform. The company is improving the user experience with these updates, and recently added Writing Help, AI-powered Message Summaries, and more.
Message Translations
Users can now long-press a message and tap ‘Translate’ to view it in their chosen language. They can select the source and target language, and once a language pack is downloaded, it remains available for future use. The option applies to individual chats, group conversations, and Channel updates.
On Android, there is an additional setting to enable automatic translation for an entire conversation. When turned on, all future incoming messages in that chat thread will be translated automatically.
WhatsApp emphasized that translations are processed directly on the device, which ensures that chats remain private and inaccessible to WhatsApp servers.
Availability
- Android users: Available in six languages — English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, and Arabic.
- iPhone users: Launching in 19+ languages — Arabic, Dutch, English (United Kingdom and United States), French (France), German (Germany), Hindi, Indonesian, Italian (Italy), Japanese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese (China mainland and Taiwan), Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish (Spain), Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian Vietnamese
The rollout began on September 23, 2025, and is being introduced gradually to Android and iPhone users, starting with a limited set of languages, with more to follow.
On the announcement, the company stated:
We hope this feature helps bridge language barriers and allows users to connect more deeply with loved ones and communities around the globe.