How to Translate Text Messages on iPhone and Android

Quick answer: to translate a text message, long-press the message, copy it, and paste it into a translator app to read it in your language. To reply, type your answer in the translator, copy the result and paste it back into the chat. Newer phones also have translation built into the messaging app, but the copy and paste method works in every app, and with an offline translator it works with no signal.

Text messages are some of the easiest things to translate. The words are already digital, so nothing has to be scanned or recognized first. This guide covers the built-in options, the method that works everywhere, and how to reply without sounding like a robot.

What is the fastest way to translate a text message?

It depends on your phone and on the app the message arrived in. Here is how the main options compare.

The built-in tools are convenient when they cover your language and your app. Copy and paste is the one method that always works, whether the message is an SMS, a WhatsApp chat, an email or a comment.

How do I translate a text message on iPhone?

On recent iPhones that support Apple Intelligence, Messages can translate a conversation for supported languages. The setting lives in the conversation details, and once it is on, incoming messages appear in your language.

On any iPhone, you can also translate a single message:

1. Long-press the message bubble and choose Copy, or tap into the text and select the words you want.
2. If a text selection menu appears, tap the arrow and choose Translate.
3. Read the translation in the card that pops up.

If Translate is missing from the menu, or the language is not supported, use the copy and paste method below.

How do I translate a text message on Android?

Android depends on the phone maker and the keyboard. On many phones, selecting text in a message shows a Translate option in the menu. Gboard, the Google keyboard, has a translate mode that converts what you type before you send it. Some Samsung phones offer chat translation as part of Galaxy AI.

These features usually need an internet connection, and they vary between devices. If yours does not have them, copy and paste works on every Android phone.

How to translate any text message with copy and paste

This method works for SMS, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Telegram and any other app that lets you copy text. Here is how it works in AI Translate:

1. In your messaging app, long-press the message and tap Copy.
2. Open AI Translate and go to the Translate tab.
3. Paste the text. The app detects the language for you and shows the translation.
4. Tap the speaker button if you want to hear the translation read aloud.
5. Your translations are saved in History, so you can scroll back to an earlier message.

Because the words go straight from your clipboard into the translator, there is no recognition step to get wrong. This is also why pasting works for every one of the app’s 59 languages, including Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic, Russian and Thai.

Once a language pack is downloaded (about 30 MB each), the translation runs on your phone. That matters when you are roaming without data or on patchy hotel Wi-Fi. Read more about how that works in our guide to offline translators.

How do I reply to a text in another language?

Replying is the same process in reverse.

1. In the Translate tab, tap the swap button so your language is on the input side.
2. Type your reply, or use voice input to speak it.
3. Tap Copy under the translation.
4. Go back to the chat, paste, and send.

A few habits make replies much clearer:

• Write short sentences. One idea per sentence translates far more reliably than a long paragraph.
• Skip slang and idioms. “I’m swamped” may come out literally. “I am very busy” will not.
• Check the meaning by translating back. Swap the languages and paste the translation in. If it returns something close to what you wrote, it is safe to send.
• Add names and numbers yourself. Times, prices and addresses are easy to mistype, so read them twice.

Voice input uses your phone’s own speech recognition, so it may need a connection unless your phone supports offline dictation for that language. Typed text does not.

Common text message phrases, translated

These short phrases come up in almost every chat with a host, landlord, driver or new friend.

The Portuguese “obrigado” becomes “obrigada” when a woman is speaking. Spanish and Portuguese chats often drop accents and punctuation, such as “donde estas”, and the translation is usually still correct.

What about a screenshot of a text message?

Sometimes you only have a screenshot. A friend forwards a picture of a group chat, or the app will not let you copy.

In AI Translate, open the Text tab and tap the gallery button to import the screenshot. The recognized text is translated and shown in a sheet you can copy. In the current version, the camera and photo import read Latin-script text, such as Spanish, French, German, Portuguese and Vietnamese. For a screenshot in Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic or another script, ask the sender to paste the words instead, or copy them from the original message. Our guide on how to translate a picture has more tips for images.

Is it private to translate text messages?

Messages often contain addresses, phone numbers and personal details. Many online translators send what you paste to a server. AI Translate translates on your phone once the language is downloaded, and it needs no account. There are no ad trackers, and photos are never uploaded. If you compare apps, our list of the best offline translator apps explains what to look for.

The free plan covers your chosen language pair and 15 translations a day, which is enough for most chats. Premium, from $1.99 a month, adds unlimited translations and all 59 languages.

Translate your next message in Spanish

If most of your chats are in Spanish, start with our Spanish translator page. It covers the Spanish language pack, common phrases and how the offline camera reads Spanish menus and signs, so you are ready for the next message.