In late 2025, WhatsApp added built-in translation to chats, covering dozens of languages. Around the same time, phones started shipping their own on-device translation for messaging apps. Both are real, useful upgrades. Neither one currently covers Hebrew.
So if you're in a Hebrew conversation on WhatsApp today, the phone-level and app-level translation features that work for French or Japanese or Korean simply don't fire. You're back to the old way: copying text out, pasting it into a separate translator, and copying the result back in.
Hebrew is a harder language to translate well than most. Words change form depending on who's speaking and who's being spoken to, and a translation engine that ignores that gets the grammar wrong even when the meaning is close. Big platforms tend to ship the languages that are easiest to cover broadly first, then fill in the harder ones later, if at all. There's no announced timeline for Hebrew from either Apple or WhatsApp as of today, and that could change; check the apps' own settings for the current list before assuming this stays true forever.
This is exactly the gap Bridgi was built for. It's not a general translator trying to cover a hundred languages. It's a keyboard built for one pair, Hebrew and English, done properly, including the gender agreement that generic translation tools skip. Type your message in English inside WhatsApp, tap Translate, and it goes out in Hebrew, in the gender that's actually you. Get a Hebrew message back that you don't follow, flip the direction, and read it in English the same way.
Mostly people who think in English but live a Hebrew-speaking life day to day: people who've moved to Israel, partners of Israelis, family members abroad staying in touch, Hebrew learners who read slower than they'd like. If you've caught yourself checking whether your phone finally added Hebrew to its translation list, and it hadn't, this is the page for you.
Bridgi doesn't keep what you type. It's sent securely to translate, then it's gone. No ads, no accounts, no third-party tracking on what you write.
An Android keyboard, Hebrew and English, both directions. Gender-correct when you're writing, set once during setup. Needs an internet connection to translate. Bridgi subscription: $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year, with a 7-day free trial to start, no card required.
Q: Does WhatsApp have Hebrew translation built in?
A: Not currently. WhatsApp added in-chat translation covering dozens of languages, but Hebrew isn't included as of today.
Q: Does my phone's own translation feature work for Hebrew in WhatsApp?
A: No. On-device translation features on modern phones don't support Hebrew yet, and even where similar features exist for other apps, they're generally built for messaging and calling apps, not WhatsApp specifically.
Q: Will WhatsApp or phone makers add Hebrew eventually?
A: Possibly. Platforms add languages over time, but there's no announced timeline for Hebrew right now.
Q: How is Bridgi different from waiting for that to happen?
A: Bridgi works today. It's a keyboard built specifically for Hebrew and English, including the gender agreement that general translation features tend to skip.
Q: Does Bridgi work in apps besides WhatsApp?
A: Yes. Bridgi works in any Android app that accepts keyboard input: Messages, Instagram, Gmail, Telegram, Signal, and more.