Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, has launched a new message translation feature on WhatsApp, designed to make cross-language conversations smoother for its more than 3 billion users worldwide.
The rollout, which began on Tuesday, gives users the ability to translate messages directly inside chats while maintaining privacy. By simply long-pressing a message, tapping Translate, and choosing a preferred language, communication across borders becomes seamless.
The feature supports one-on-one chats, group conversations, and Channel updates. For Android users, there’s also the option to turn on automatic translation for entire threads, enabling real-time multilingual exchanges.
Rollout Details
Android users will start with six languages: English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, and Arabic.
iPhone users will have access to over 19 languages immediately.
Meta emphasized that privacy remains a top priority. All translations happen directly on the user’s device, ensuring WhatsApp itself cannot access the content, keeping in line with its end-to-end encryption policies.
> “Message translations were designed to protect the privacy of your chats. That’s why translations occur on your device where WhatsApp cannot see them,” the company explained.
With users spread across 180+ countries, this update is expected to remove language barriers and help foster deeper global connections.
Bigger Picture
This new translation tool is part of WhatsApp’s broader strategy to become more than just a messaging app. Earlier in June, the platform unveiled three new features—Channel Subscriptions for exclusive content, Promoted Channels for discoverability, and Ads in Status to boost business visibility.
Meta revealed that over 1.5 billion people use the Updates tab daily, making WhatsApp a key player in helping businesses, creators, and organizations expand their reach and monetize content.
By adding translation, WhatsApp is positioning itself as a truly global communication platform, where language differences are no longer an obstacle.
