AYARUXLast updated:
Does WhatsApp Web translate on its own?
WhatsApp has started offering translation of incoming messages in some languages in its phone app. Which languages, which countries and whether it shows up on WhatsApp Web varies by version. If you see a Translate option in a message's menu, use it; if you don't, the methods below work either way.
Even where it exists, it only covers messages you read. WhatsApp has no button that translates your reply into the other person's language before you send it.
Option 1: Chrome's page translation
In Chrome you can right-click the page and choose "Translate to English". Foreign messages in the chat then show in your language. It's quick, with a few limits:
- The whole page is translated; menus, contact names and your own messages can change too, and the chat looks mixed up.
- New messages aren't always translated as they arrive; sometimes you have to turn translation on again.
- It doesn't translate what you type; it's for reading only.
- Page translation usually sends the text to Google's translation service. Use it knowingly in a private conversation.
Option 2: Copy, translate, paste
Select and copy the incoming message, paste it into a translation site in a new tab. Write your reply there in your own language, copy the translation and paste it into WhatsApp Web's message box. On a computer this is easier than on a phone, because Ctrl+Tab flips between the two tabs.
The catch is four or five steps per message. Fine for a few messages a day; in a fast conversation with a customer it slows everything down.
Option 3: A translator extension
An extension built for WhatsApp Web moves the job into the message box: you type in your language, pick the target language, and the translation lands in the same box for you to read and send. A button next to an incoming message lets you read that message in your language.
When choosing one, check two things:
- Permissions: it should run only on web.whatsapp.com. A translator has no need to read every site you visit.
- Where the text goes: some extensions send your message to their own server to translate it. With extensions that translate inside the browser, on the device, your text never leaves your computer.
Faster chats with the keyboard
The keyboard is the big advantage of chatting on a computer. A few habits speed things up:
- Read the translation once before sending anything important; pressing Enter takes a second, fixing a wrong price takes a day.
- Use Shift+Enter for a new line; plain Enter sends the message.
- Keep frequent answers (prices, address, opening hours) in a notes file, in your language and translated.
- Write numbers as numbers and months as words: "3 February", "$9.99". Those are what slip most in translation.
The WhatsApp desktop app on a Mac
If you use WhatsApp's desktop app on a Mac instead of the browser, a browser extension won't work there, and there's no Chrome page translation either. You'll need copy and paste, or a translation tool that works in every Mac app.